Comparison

RescueTime vs Rostr

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

Head to head
About

RescueTime

Understand and manage your time automatically. This app helps you block distractions, track activities on your mobile and desktop, and set productivity goals. Gain insights into your workday and improve focus.

Highlights
  • Automatic time tracking
  • Distraction blocking (Focus Sessions)
  • Activity categorization
  • Task timers
  • Offline activity logging
  • Home screen widgets
  • Productivity goals and alerts
Read full description

RescueTime helps you track time, block distractions, manage goals, and understand your full workday across phone and desktop. Together this gives you a clear view of your habits and the tools to improve them. Understand where your time goes, stay focused when it matters, and build better workdays without extra effort. One subscription works across all your devices, syncing your data to give you a complete picture of your time on mobile and desktop. **Created For iOS** RescueTime for iOS brings powerful, simple focus tools to your phone: • Automatic app tracking: see app activity with productivity ratings and daily and weekly summaries (optional Screen Time permission). • Focus Sessions with optional app blocking: stay on task with time-boxing, optionally grant permission to block distractions in real time. • Project tracking: log time to specific projects and track progress across sessions and timers. • Offline time: add meetings, calls, and other offline activities to complete your day. • Reporting: View and manage your time across all your devices in the app. • Available in English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese, and Russian. **Focus Sessions** Start a Focus Session when you need uninterrupted time to work. RescueTime blocks distractions, tracks your progress, and delivers a summary when you're done. Use timers for time boxing or to track open-ended tasks. Sessions and timers can be linked to projects, so your focused time always counts toward something meaningful. **Full Workday Perspective** Install RescueTime on your desktop to see the full picture. Your activity, focus sessions, and progress sync seamlessly across devices. Please note that RescueTime for desktop is only available in English. **Goals And Insights** Set daily goals for focused work, screen-free time, or better online habits. RescueTime tracks your progress automatically and shows how your behavior aligns with your goals. Weekly summaries highlight trends over time, so you can see what's working and what's not. **Permissions** Several optional features require elevated permissions. Reporting: tracking phone app activity requires Screen Time permission, and you can choose to use this feature or not. Focus Sessions: using the optional app blocking part of sessions requires Screen Time permission in order to offer real-time intervention. **Plans** Solo Focus includes automatic tracking with full history, Focus Sessions with real-time app blocking, offline activity logging, goals with daily targets, alerts and automations, advanced filtering, and integrations. Solo+ includes everything in Solo Focus, plus automated project and task tracking with RescueTime Timesheets. Link activities and timers to projects to automatically generate timesheets or track progress across work and personal goals. Free includes automatic basic tracking, daily and weekly reports, the Productivity Pulse, and two weeks of activity history. Offline time logging, project tracking, and distraction blocking require a subscription. **For Teams** RescueTime also offers team plans with shared projects, team dashboards, manager insights, and centralized settings. Team plans are only available at rescuetime.com. **Privacy** RescueTime does not record keystrokes, capture screenshots, or read message and website content. You control what is tracked, can pause tracking at any time, and can export or delete your data whenever you choose.

About

Rostr

Streamline workforce management with an all-in-one app for scheduling, communication, and operations. Designed for businesses of all sizes, it offers intuitive tools to save time and improve team satisfaction without complexity or high costs.

Highlights
  • Advanced employee scheduling
  • Real-time team communication
  • Digital checklists
  • Team management tools
  • Instant notifications
Features
Read full description

Rostr is the affordable, all-in-one team management app built to simplify workforce management for businesses of all sizes. Whether you run a single location or manage teams across multiple sites, Rostr gives you the tools you need without the clutter, complexity, or high costs of other platforms. Designed by experienced franchisees who dealt with outdated scheduling systems and disconnected tools, Rostr brings scheduling, team communication, and operations together in one easy-to-use app. Here's what you can do with Rostr: • Advanced employee scheduling with a shift builder and custom job templates. • Employee time clock with clock-in/out, paid and unpaid breaks, manager-reviewed timesheets, and exportable time reports for payroll. • Real-time team communication through personal and group chats, so everyone stays connected. • Digital checklists you can customize to keep standards high across every location. • Team management with unlimited team members, role permissions, multiple locations, a user and vendor directory, and document storage. • Instant notifications for schedule changes, new shifts, and important updates. Rostr was created for busy owners and managers in restaurants, retail, hospitality, cleaning services, and other service businesses. It helps you stay organized without paying for features you will never use. Spend less time managing your software and more time running your business. Download Rostr today and see how much easier team management can be.

Screenshots

RescueTime4 screens
Rostr4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Rostr at 100% against RescueTime's 21%. Rostr also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.3) and in-app purchases (none vs 4). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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. RescueTime sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $9.00 per month. Rostr asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Rostr holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 13 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 21% of RescueTime's written reviews are positive against 100% of Rostr's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

RescueTime ships an update every 4 weeks, Rostr every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
RescueTime versus Rostr: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRescueTimeRostr
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (4 ratings)5.0 (13 ratings) — better
Positive reviews21.4% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings413 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 weeksEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.4 — better17.6
Further details — not scored
Size61 MB38 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRescueTimeRostr, LLC

Customer experience

RescueTime

All ratings4 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews28 reviews
Positive21.4%
Neutral3.6%
Negative75.0%

Rostr

All ratings13 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

4 purchases

RescueTime

Subscriptions4
  • Solo Monthly14 Days trial$9.001 Month
  • Solo+ Monthly14 Days trial$15.001 Month
  • Solo Yearly14 Days trial$84.001 Year
Show 1 more
  • Solo+ Yearly14 Days trial$143.991 Year
None

Rostr

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is RescueTime free?
RescueTime is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Rostr free?
Rostr is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, RescueTime or Rostr?
Rostr is rated higher. RescueTime averages 4.3 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Rostr averages 5.0 from 13 ratings.
Do RescueTime or Rostr have ads?
Neither RescueTime nor Rostr shows ads.
Which is updated more often, RescueTime or Rostr?
RescueTime ships an update every 4 weeks, and Rostr every 2 days. Most recently, RescueTime was updated on October 25, 2026 and Rostr on October 5, 2026.

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