Focus Tree vs SoBrief
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Focus Tree
This app helps students stay focused during study sessions by blocking distractions and offering study timers. It also includes flashcards with spaced repetition for effective learning and allows users to study with friends by growing shared virtual gardens.
- Focus sessions with distraction blocking
- Study timers and Pomodoro sessions
- Flashcard creation and spaced repetition
- Shared virtual gardens for group study
- Progress tracking and accountability with friends
Read full descriptionHide full description
#1 Focus App for Students (2M+ users) Can’t stop checking your phone when you should be studying? Focus Tree helps you stay focused, study smarter, and get better grades together. FOCUS ANYWHERE, ANYTIME Start a focus session and block distractions automatically. Use study timers or Pomodoro sessions to stay consistent and productive. STUDY SMARTER WITH FLASHCARDS Create and review flashcards that actually stick. Use spaced repetition to remember more and ace your exams. STAY MOTIVATED WITH FRIENDS Join shared gardens with classmates or friends. Each time you focus, you add new blocks to your garden and design it your way. Work together, track each other’s streaks, and stay accountable. SEE REAL RESULTS Students who focus daily with Focus Tree report higher grades, stronger habits, and less stress. Focus Tree: study better, together. Privacy Policy: https://focustree.app/privacy Terms of Service: https://focustree.app/terms
SoBrief
Access over 73,000 book summaries in over 40 languages, with AI-powered recommendations and audio playback. Discover your next read in minutes and enjoy a distraction-free learning experience.
- AI-powered book discovery
- Massive library of summaries
- Audio book summaries
- Personalized recommendations
- Multilingual summaries (40+ languages)
- Scan book barcodes for summaries
- Request book summaries
Read full descriptionHide full description
SoBrief is the #1 AI-powered book summary app with the largest catalog, using AI to help you discover your next reads and finish any book in just 10 minutes with instant access to 73,530 book summaries in over 40 languages. MAIN FEATURES: - Swipe to Discover: Our viral "Tinder for books" feature uses AI to personalize book recommendations, making discovery fun and addictive. - Massive Library: Bestsellers, classics, niche titles, ebooks, and exclusive content across Business, Self-Help, Romance, Thriller, Psychology, History, Science, Philosophy, Biographies, and more. - Audio Book Summaries: Listen to narrated summaries anytime, anywhere—in your preferred language. A perfect microlearning app experience. - AI-Powered Book Recommendations: Let AI find perfect books based on your reading taste and preferences. - Search & Discover: Effortlessly find specific summaries or discover exciting new titles with intuitive search and personalized recommendations. - Scan Books Instantly: Scan any book barcode to get its summary immediately. - Requests: Seamlessly request books to summarize if not in our catalog. - Multilingual Access: Summaries available in 40+ languages: Spanish, Chinese Simplified, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese, Italian, Korean, Russian, Dutch, Arabic, Polish, Hindi, Vietnamese, Swedish, Greek, Turkish, Thai, Czech, Romanian, Hungarian, Ukrainian, Indonesian, Danish, Finnish, Bulgarian, Hebrew, Norwegian, Croatian, Catalan, Slovak, Lithuanian, Slovenian, Serbian, Estonian, Latvian, Persian, Malayalam, Tamil, and Urdu. EFFORTLESS LEARNING EXPERIENCE: - Absorb key ideas quickly, ideal for busy lives and daily microlearning. - Enjoy an ad-free, distraction-free learning environment. HOW SOBRIEF WORKS: - Download SoBrief and explore tens of thousands of summaries. - Add interactive widgets for continuous, effortless learning. - Listen to or read summaries in multiple languages at your convenience. - Unlock knowledge effortlessly and transform daily moments into growth, insight, and inspiration. Download SoBrief today. Terms of Use: https://sobrief.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://sobrief.com/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
Focus Tree and SoBrief both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 68% of Focus Tree's written reviews are positive against 18% of SoBrief's. Focus Tree also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 6 weeks) and ratings volume (5.7K vs 414). SoBrief's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, rating, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Focus Tree sells 14 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and SoBrief sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Focus Tree holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Focus Tree has 5.7K ratings behind it against 414, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of Focus Tree's written reviews are positive against 18% of SoBrief's.
Focus Tree ships an update every 2 weeks, SoBrief every 6 weeks. Both last shipped on October 20, 2026.
| Parameter | Focus Tree | SoBrief |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (5.7K ratings) — better | 4.5 (414 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 67.7% of reviews — better | 17.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 5.7K — better | 414 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 6 weeks |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.1 — better | 17.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 265 MB | 15 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Focus Labs | Audiblogs, Inc. |
Customer experience
Focus Tree
SoBrief
User reviews
Focus Tree
From 5.7K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Helps with focus and productivity
- 👍 Cute and motivating design
- 🔒 Blocks distracting apps
- 💡 Competitive aspect with friends
- 🌱 Fun to build a garden
Room to improve
- 🐛 App freezes or gets stuck
- 🔒 Overly restrictive app blocking
- 💰 Lack of customization options
- 🎁 Limited rewards for study sessions
SoBrief
From 414 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Great concept
- 👍 Love the idea
- 👍 Appreciated for catching up on books
- 👍 Allows accelerated reading
- 👍 Summaries are good and informative
Room to improve
- 😞 App crashes frequently
- 😞 Technical issues
- 😞 Low-quality AI summaries
- 😞 Extortionate fees/pricing
- 😞 App not working
Bugs and requests
Focus Tree
Reported bugs
4 issues- App gets stuck on loading screen
- Notifications not working as expected
- Account recovery issues when changing devices
- Screen time feature not functioning properly
Requested features
4 requests- Allow pausing of study sessions
- Provide more tiles/rewards for longer study sessions
- Add option to choose different tile designs
- Improve compatibility with larger devices like iPads
SoBrief
Reported bugs
25 issues- App crashed and stopped working
- App not working
- App crashes frequently
- Delete account button not functional
- Refuse to remove my data
Show 20 moreShow fewer
- Delete account button doesn't work
- App keeps crashing on the first sentence
- Not functional
- Every time I try to read a summary it says I need to sign up again
- Doesn't show saved books, interests, etc.
- Cannot access materials
- Doesn't seem to be a way to access 10 free summaries
- Paid plan still doesn't work
- Issue after issue since signing up
- App doesn't function as supposed to
- Telling me that I haven't signed up and I'm still using the free account
- AI person told me that only paying customers can speak to someone
- The 'tinder' style book recommendation engine has worked LITERALLY ONCE
- Received nothing except for the title error since then
- Half of the features are either underbaked or just straight not there
- Language I needed wasn't even available
- Selecting other languages often leads to a blank screen with just a small 'not found' message
- App is full of bugs
- Thinks you don't have an account when you do
- A lot of books that aren't summarized yet
Requested features
5 requests- Allow users to see how the app works before paying
- Upload GoodReads history
- Include Spanish in languages section
- Better book recommendation engine
- More human-written summaries
In-app purchases
Focus Tree
- Focus Tree Premium$9.991 Month
- Premium Annual7 Days trial$19.991 Year
- Premium Annual7 Days trial$29.991 Year
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- Premium Annual7 Days trial$39.991 Year
- Premium Annual7 Days trial$49.991 Year
- Focus Tree Premium7 Days trial$69.991 Year
- Premium Annual7 Days trial$89.991 Year
- Premium Annual7 Days trial$99.991 Year
- Coin Pack$0.99
- Coin Pack$4.99
- Coin Pack ($9.99)$9.99
Show 3 moreShow fewer
- Coin Pack ($19.99)$19.99
- Coin Pack ($49.99)$49.99
- Coin Pack ($99.99)$99.99
SoBrief
- SoBrief Pro (Monthly)14 Days trial$9.991 Month
- SoBrief Pro (Monthly)3 Days trial$9.991 Month
- SoBrief Pro (Monthly)$9.991 Month
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- SoBrief Pro (Yearly)$29.991 Year
- SoBrief Pro (Yearly)14 Days trial$44.991 Year
- SoBrief Pro (Yearly)7 Days trial$44.991 Year
- SoBrief Pro (Yearly)3 Days trial$44.991 Year
- SoBrief Pro (Yearly)$44.991 Year
- SoBrief Pro (Lifetime)$59.99
- SoBrief Pro (Lifetime)$79.99
