Comparison

Expecting and Empowered vs Pauseful

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

Head to head
About

Expecting and Empowered

This app offers expertly designed at-home workouts for pregnant and postpartum mothers. It provides safe, effective, and manageable fitness plans tailored to each week of your journey, requiring minimal equipment and time.

Highlights
  • Pregnancy strength training
  • Postpartum strength training (vaginal & C-section)
  • Return to running programs
  • Core strengthening series
  • Prenatal and postpartum yoga
  • Workout scheduling
  • Community support
Features
Read full description

The best at home workout app for pregnant and postpartum moms is waiting for you. All the workouts you need are waiting for you inside the Expecting and Empowered app! Expertly created by a women's health physical therapist and a personal trainer, Expecting and Empowered has safe and effective workouts to take the guesswork out of your fitness routine in motherhood. Whether you're trying to conceive, pregnant, or postpartum - we have programs for you! With easy to follow workout plans that will take you week by week through your pregnancy or postpartum journey, you can find manageable and efficient workouts you can do at home or the gym inside the app. Designed to be done in just 30 minutes or less with minimal equipment, moms love the Expecting and Empowered App. With built in accountability challenges, supportive community and moms just like you - you'll find encouragement like no other. Find workouts you'll love, including: -Pregnancy Strength Training -Postpartum Strength Training - both vaginal and C-section delivery -Elevated + Empowered Advanced Postpartum Strength Training -Postpartum Running Evaluation -Return to Running Program -Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced Level Runs -Core Strengthening Series -Empower Your Core Programs - both vaginal and C-section delivery programs -Yoga - both prenatal and postpartum -Ability to Schedule Workouts STAY CONNECTED: -The app offers a community feature- where women that are going through what you’re going through can connect, support, and encourage each other. PRELOAD CLASSES: -If you’ll be without wifi, you can pre-download the classes that you’re planning to take. EXPERTISE + EDUCATION: Amy Kiefer is a registered nurse, doula, and personal trainer. Along with her co-founder and sister Krystle Howald who is a physical therapist, they offer educational posts that will help you navigate through pregnancy and postpartum. Whether you have a question about round ligament pain or about if working out will impact your milk supply- they have the answers in this section. Terms of use: https://www.expectingandempowered.com/app-terms-of-use Privacy Policy: https://www.expectingandempowered.com/app-privacy-policy

About

Pauseful

This app gently interjects a mindful pause before you open distracting applications. It uses personalized reminders based on your own answers to help you consciously decide whether to proceed, promoting awareness without shame. Reconnect with your priorities one intentional pause at a time.

Highlights
  • Personalized pause screens
  • Customizable reminders
  • Gentle, non-shaming approach
  • User-controlled app selection
  • Privacy-focused design
  • Adapts tone throughout the day
Features
Read full description

Take back your attention — gently. Pauseful isn't another app blocker that just says "no." It puts a calm, mindful pause between you and the apps that pull you in, and reminds you — in your own words — of what you actually want your time to go toward. Before you open a distracting app, Pauseful shows a brief pause screen with a personal reminder built from your own answers: the person who matters to you, the goal you're working toward, the reason you set this up. Then you choose — consciously — whether to continue. HOW IT WORKS • Choose the apps that tend to pull you in. • Answer a few short questions about what matters to you. • When you open one of those apps, Pauseful shows a gentle, personalized pause. • Take a breath, remember your why, and decide with intention. WHY IT'S DIFFERENT • Awareness, not shame. The reminders are kind, varied, and encouraging — never guilt-tripping. • Personal to you. Your pauses reflect your own reasons, your people, and your goals. • Adapts through the day. The tone shifts gently the more you pause, so it never feels repetitive. • You stay in control. Pauseful never locks you out — it helps you choose. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Pauseful collects nothing. No accounts, no servers, no ads, no tracking. Everything — your answers, your selected apps, your photos — stays on your device and never leaves it. Powered by Apple's Screen Time, Pauseful shows your pause only on the apps you choose. It cannot see your activity inside other apps. Reconnect with what matters. One mindful pause at a time.

Screenshots

Expecting and Empowered4 screens
Pauseful4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Pauseful at none against Expecting and Empowered's 10. Pauseful also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 91%). Expecting and Empowered's advantage is ratings volume (444 vs 3) and device support (4 vs 1). On price, rating, update cadence 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. Expecting and Empowered sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per month. Pauseful asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Pauseful holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Expecting and Empowered has 444 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 91% of Expecting and Empowered's written reviews are positive against 100% of Pauseful's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Expecting and Empowered versus Pauseful: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterExpecting and EmpoweredPauseful
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (444 ratings)5.0 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews91.4% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings444 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.6 — better17.6
Further details — not scored
Size74 MB18 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperExpecting and Empowered LLCAlok Shrestha

Customer experience

Expecting and Empowered

All ratings444 ratings
Positive95.5%
Neutral2.0%
Negative2.5%
Written reviews139 reviews
Positive91.4%
Neutral3.6%
Negative5.0%

Pauseful

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Expecting and Empowered

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Workouts skipping or getting stuck in loops
  • Inability to preview upcoming exercises
  • Automated log out issues

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add ability to log weights used
  • Improve scheduling and workout tracking
  • Allow listening to own music during workouts
  • Provide more modifications for exercises

Pauseful

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Expecting and Empowered

Subscriptions5
  • Monthly Subscription$19.991 Month
  • Monthly Subscription1 Month trial2 variants$19.991 Month
  • Annual Subscription1 Month trial$19.991 Month
Show 2 more
  • Annual Subscription1 Year trial5 variants$149.991 Year
  • Annual Subscription$149.991 Year
None

Pauseful

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Expecting and Empowered free?
Expecting and Empowered is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Pauseful free?
Pauseful is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Expecting and Empowered or Pauseful?
Pauseful is rated higher. Expecting and Empowered averages 4.8 out of 5 from 444 ratings, while Pauseful averages 5.0 from 3 ratings.
Do Expecting and Empowered or Pauseful have ads?
Neither Expecting and Empowered nor Pauseful shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Expecting and Empowered or Pauseful?
Expecting and Empowered ships an update every 3 weeks, and Pauseful every 3 weeks. Most recently, Expecting and Empowered was updated on November 3, 2026 and Pauseful on October 31, 2026.

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