Special Dates vs App Blocker
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Special Dates
Easily save and track important dates with a minimalist countdown widget. This app helps you remember upcoming events like birthdays or bills, syncing them across your devices.
- Save important dates
- Track days remaining
- Periodic event saving
- Birthday reminders
- Bill tracking
- iOS 14 widget support
- Cross-device syncing
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Save your important dates and track the days that have left. Simplest app to save dates and see a countdown of each one. Allows to save periodically events like birthday or bills. Supports all the widget sizes that have iOS 26 and the dates will be synced between your devices
App Blocker
Reclaim your screen time and build better habits with this app. It helps you step away from distracting applications and create intentional breaks using native system features for a private and reliable experience.
- One-tap focus breaks
- Smart scheduling for recurring breaks
- App and category blocking
- Gentle reminders for healthy breaks
- Privacy-first insights and charts
- Home and Lock Screen widgets
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Focus Pal - Take Back Your Screen Time Reclaim focus. Build better habits. Feel in control. Focus helps you step away from distracting apps and create intentional screen breaks - on your terms - using native Screen Time capabilities for a seamless, private, and reliable experience. Why You’ll Love It - Calm the noise and be present in moments that matter. - Make focused work (or true rest) effortless with one‑tap breaks. - See your progress with clear, privacy‑first insights. - Works with iOS Screen Time for trustworthy app shielding. What Focus Does - One‑Tap Focus: Instantly shield distracting apps you choose for a set duration. - Smart Schedules: Plan recurring breaks that fit your day (morning focus, evening wind‑down, deep‑work blocks). - App & Category Control: Select specific apps or entire categories to reduce temptation and save your attention. - Gentle Reminders: Nudge yourself to take healthy breaks before fatigue or doom‑scrolling kicks in. - Clear Insights: Track time saved and trends with beautiful, native charts (iOS 16+). - Widgets: Start a break or check progress right from your Home or Lock Screen. How It Works 1. Choose apps you find distracting. 2. Start a Focus (now or on a schedule). 3. Your chosen apps are gently shielded during the break. 4. Review insights to fine‑tune your routine and stay consistent. Thoughtfully Designed - Privacy‑First: No accounts, no ads - your data stays on your device. - Native & Lightweight: Built for fast, reliable performance. - Mindful Defaults: Sensible presets to help you start strong without overthinking. Perfect For - Focused work and study sessions. - Tech‑lite mornings and restful evenings. - Reducing social media or news overload. - Parents and caregivers encouraging healthy device habits on shared devices. Privacy & Safety - Built on Apple’s Screen Time framework for secure, system‑level app shielding. - Data stays on your device. - You control what’s shielded and when. Requirements - iPhone or iPad running iOS/iPadOS 16 or later. - Screen Time authorization is required to enable app shielding. A Quick Note Focus shields the apps you select during your breaks. You can always adjust which apps are affected, tweak schedules, or pause/resume with a tap. Take a breath. Take a break. Take back your time with Focus. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: App Blocker at 4.6 against Special Dates's 4.0. App Blocker also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs every 3 months) and ratings volume (73 vs 5). Special Dates's advantage is monetization model (free vs freemium) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Special Dates sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and App Blocker sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
App Blocker holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: App Blocker has 73 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Special Dates ships an update every 3 months, App Blocker every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Special Dates | App Blocker |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (5 ratings) | 4.6 (73 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 61.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 5 | 73 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 18.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1 MB | 268 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Ernesto Fernández Calles | Manuel Fessen |
Customer experience
Special Dates
App Blocker
In-app purchases
Special Dates
- Coffee$0.99
- Cake$2.99
- Party$4.99
App Blocker
- Pro7 Days trial$1.997 Days
- Pro$3.991 Month
- Pro7 Days trial$4.997 Days
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- Pro$4.991 Month
- Pro$12.991 Year
- Pro$29.991 Year
- Pro$39.991 Year
- 60 Credit Pack$0.99
- Pro$34.99








