Comparison

Time’s Up! vs Calm Countdown Timer

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Time’s Up!

This app offers a fun and engaging way to track time with visually appealing countdowns. It's perfect for managing tasks, study sessions, or bedtime routines for both children and adults. Choose from unique visual styles or traditional clocks, and customize alerts for a personalized experience.

Highlights
  • Visual countdown styles (Reveal, Pixelate, Puzzle)
  • Customizable alert sounds and colors
  • iCloud timer syncing across devices
  • Live Activities for Lock Screen and Dynamic Island
  • Guided Access for child lock
  • AirPlay and tvOS support for TV display
  • Minute-by-minute audio updates
Features
Read full description

Time’s Up! is a fun, visual timer that you’ll actually want to use. Whether it’s for you, your kids, or someone else, Time’s Up! will make counting down much more engaging. Timers can be used at work and at home, whether you’re making sure you take a break or telling kids it’s bedtime.  Timers exist everywhere, but none of them are fun and visually appealing — and that can be important when you’re dealing with kids big and small! Time’s Up! has the features you need to make time fun again — try it for free, NO ADS. Time’s Up! isn’t just for kids and workaholics, though. The possibilities are endless: • Adults who need to set timers to stop them from working for too long without a break. • Kids who don’t want to do their homework but can be convinced to work in smaller chunks. • Setting reading or other activity timers before bed time. • Helping bigger kids focus on an activity for a set amount of time. • Setting timers for exercises — put Time’s Up! on your TV screen using AirPlay and turn a timer into the focal point for your exercise group. • Anything that’s based on a specific amount of time! What makes a timer fun? Time’s Up! has 5 fun styles to choose from, including:  • “Reveal” a photo from your Photo Library as the seconds tick down.  • “Pixelate” makes a photo more clear as a timer gets closer to completion. • “Puzzle” breaks a photo into jigsaw puzzle pieces and then puts the pieces into their places as time progresses. Alternatively, there are more traditional clock faces if you just want a simple timer. Timers can be customized with their own alert sound and color, too. Other key features include: • Sync your timers between iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV using iCloud. • See your timers on your Lock Screen, Dynamic Island, and Apple Watch with Live Activities (requires iOS 18). • Guided Access to prevent kids from switching apps and changing timers, making sure only you have the power to control time. • Airplay and tvOS support so you can put a timer up on a TV screen. • Get audio updates each minute or countdown the last 10 seconds. • On macOS, you can float the timer window above other apps so it’s always visible. Time’s Up! is a free download with a trial limit of five countdowns. After that, there is a small one-time purchase that unlocks the app on all your devices, forever. ——————— What’s the difference between “Time’s Up! — Visual Timer” and “Time’s Up! Timer (VPP)”? You are looking at the free-to-download version of Time’s Up! that lets you try the app five times before upgrading via in-app purchase. “Time’s Up! Timer (VPP)” is the same app but available paid-upfront with no limits in the app itself. “Time’s Up! Timer (VPP)” exists so educators can purchase the app through Apple’s Volume Purchase Program (VPP) for Education. ——————— Time’s Up! has no ads or data trackers. We believe your data is your own and we don’t collect any of it.

About

Calm Countdown Timer

This app provides a simple, calming visual timer to help children understand time, improve focus, and manage transitions smoothly. Its friendly design and clear countdown display make routines predictable and less stressful for kids, including those with special needs.

Highlights
  • Visual countdown display
  • Friendly characters
  • One-tap presets
  • Distraction-free design
  • Supports children with ADHD/autism
  • Helps with transitions and routines
Read full description

Calm Countdown Timer is a simple, calming visual timer designed to help kids understand time, stay focused, and transition between activities with less stress. With bright visuals, friendly characters, and a clear countdown display, kids can see time passing instead of guessing, making routines feel more predictable and manageable. Completely free. No distractions. No ads No in-app purchases No subscriptions No hidden costs Just a clean, reliable timer you can trust your kids to use. Why parents and kids love it Visual countdown makes time easy to understand Simple one-tap presets for quick use Calm, friendly design with engaging characters Helps reduce resistance during transitions Encourages independence and routine-building Helpful for different needs Visual timers are commonly used to support children with ADHD, autism, and sensory processing differences by making time more predictable and reducing overwhelm. Calm Countdown Timer provides a gentle, distraction-free way to support focus, transitions, and daily structure. Perfect for everyday moments Getting ready in the morning Homework or focus time Screen time limits Bedtime routines Playtime and breaks Designed with simplicity in mind No clutter. No unnecessary features. Just a calm, easy-to-use timer that works instantly when you need it.

Screenshots

Time’s Up!4 screens
Calm Countdown Timer3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Calm Countdown Timer at none against Time’s Up!'s 1. Calm Countdown Timer also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.6) and update cadence (weekly vs every 6 weeks). Time’s Up!'s advantage is ratings volume (444 vs 2) and device support (5 vs 2). On price and ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Time’s Up! sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Calm Countdown Timer asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Calm Countdown Timer holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Time’s Up! has 444 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Time’s Up! ships an update every 6 weeks, Calm Countdown Timer weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Time’s Up! versus Calm Countdown Timer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTime’s Up!Calm Countdown Timer
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (444 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews84.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings444 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple TV — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.4 — better17.6
Further details — not scored
Size60 MB15 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperOverdesigned, LLCShujaat Siddiqui

Bugs and requests

Time’s Up!

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Hotkey functionality broken after update
  • Timer not working after app update
  • No sound at the end of timer

Requested features

5 requests
  • Allow longer timer durations
  • Add ability to set multiple timers
  • Improve customization options
  • Provide more sound/alert options
  • Add child-proof timer lock feature

Calm Countdown Timer

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Time’s Up!

One-time1
  • Time’s Up! Unlimited$5.99
None

Calm Countdown Timer

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Time’s Up! free?
Time’s Up! is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Calm Countdown Timer free?
Calm Countdown Timer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Time’s Up! or Calm Countdown Timer?
Calm Countdown Timer is rated higher. Time’s Up! averages 4.6 out of 5 from 444 ratings, while Calm Countdown Timer averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Time’s Up! or Calm Countdown Timer have ads?
Neither Time’s Up! nor Calm Countdown Timer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Time’s Up! or Calm Countdown Timer?
Time’s Up! ships an update every 6 weeks, and Calm Countdown Timer weekly. Most recently, Time’s Up! was updated on October 24, 2026 and Calm Countdown Timer on October 8, 2026.

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