Comparison

Unbroken Chain vs Screen Time Buddy

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

Head to head
About

Unbroken Chain

This app helps you visualize your progress on daily goals by creating a chain of checkmarks for each day you accomplish a task. Track habits you want to build or break, and watch your chain grow longer.

Highlights
  • Create and track multiple goals
  • Mark daily accomplishments with checkmarks
  • Visualize progress with growing chains
  • Track habits to build or break
  • Set custom tracking days (e.g., 3 times a week)
Features
Read full description

Unbroken Chain helps you build consistency with the classic don't-break-the-chain method. Create a goal, choose the weekdays you want to track, and mark each successful day with a bold red completion mark. The calendar keeps the streak visual and immediate, so your next job is simple: do not break the chain. The app is intentionally focused. One goal is free forever. Upgrade to Premium when you want to track multiple chains at once. Features: - Create daily or weekday-specific goals - See consecutive-day and total-day counts - Review progress in a clean dark calendar - Mark or unmark past tracked days - Add optional reminders for scheduled goal days - Keep goal data local on your iPhone Unbroken Chain is built for iPhone and designed around speed, focus, and the satisfaction of watching the chain grow.

About

Screen Time Buddy

This app transforms reducing screen time into a fun, game-like experience. It uses app limits, friend accountability, and character progression to help users regain control of their phone usage and improve focus.

Highlights
  • Gamified screen time reduction
  • App limits and blocking
  • Friend accountability system
  • Character progression and evolution
  • Weekly leaderboards
  • Focus and productivity improvement
Features
Read full description

Spending too much time scrolling? Same. Screen Time Buddy turns cutting back into a game you actually want to play -- with friends who keep you honest (and roast you when you slip). 5 to 6 hours. That's how long most of us burn on our phones every day. Not learning something new. Just... scrolling. Screen Time Buddy gives you app limits, friend accountability, character progression, leaderboards, and a coin system that makes putting your phone down feel like winning. Real People, Real Results "Cut my screen time from 6 hours to 2.5 in one week. Game changer." -- Sarah K. "Finally an app that works instead of just nagging me." -- Mike T. "The buddy system is genius. My friends keep me accountable." -- Jess L. "Went from Sloth to Eagle in two weeks." -- Ryan M. Why Screen Time Buddy Works You've tried other screen time apps. They lectured. They nagged. They made you feel bad. Then you deleted them. Screen Time Buddy is different. It's fun. It's social. And it sticks. Your Daily Character Every day, you earn a character based on your screen time. Under 1.5 hours? You're an Eagle. Hit 3 hours? A clever Fox. Panda at 4 hours. Sloth at 5. Which one are you today? Buddy-Powered Accountability Set limits on the apps that steal your time. Hit your limit and they're locked. Need more time? Ask a friend -- they have to approve it. No sneaking. No bypassing. Just real accountability. Climb the Leaderboard See where you rank among your crew. Weekly leaderboards, coins, and friendly competition to keep you motivated. The Results - 92% feel less distracted - 89% report better focus and productivity - 86% say they sleep better What that looks like: more focus at work, better sleep, less "I wasted my whole day" guilt, and actually being present with people you care about. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.powermate.app/privacy-policy Terms & Conditions: https://www.powermate.app/terms-and-conditions Premium Plans Monthly: $59.99 -- Full access with a free first week Yearly: $24.99 -- Full access for 12 months (Save 96%!) Auto-renewing subscriptions. Cancel anytime in your account settings. Payment charged to your Apple Account at purchase. Subscription automatically renews unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period.

Screenshots

Unbroken Chain1 screens
Screen Time Buddy4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Screen Time Buddy at Free against Unbroken Chain's $0.99. Screen Time Buddy also leads on update cadence (monthly vs every 4 months) and ratings volume (9 vs 2). Unbroken Chain's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and ads (none vs shown). On rating, 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

Screen Time Buddy is free to download; Unbroken Chain costs $0.99 up front. Screen Time Buddy sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $24.99 per month. Unbroken Chain asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for Unbroken Chain against 4.6 for Screen Time Buddy. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 9 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 75% of Unbroken Chain's written reviews are positive against 50% of Screen Time Buddy's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Unbroken Chain ships an update every 4 months, Screen Time Buddy monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Unbroken Chain versus Screen Time Buddy: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterUnbroken ChainScreen Time Buddy
Price$0.99Free — better
Rating4.5 (2 ratings)4.6 (9 ratings) — better
Positive reviews75.0% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings29 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFreemium — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.0 — better17.6
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB106 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperConsultUtah LLCPower Insights Company

Customer experience

Unbroken Chain

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%

Screen Time Buddy

All ratings9 ratings
Positive88.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative11.1%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

In-app purchases

None

Unbroken Chain

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Screen Time Buddy

Subscriptions2
  • Powermate Pro monthly3 Days trial$24.991 Month
  • Screen Time Buddy Pro Yearly7 Days trial$59.991 Year

Questions

Is Unbroken Chain free?
Unbroken Chain costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Screen Time Buddy free?
Screen Time Buddy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Unbroken Chain or Screen Time Buddy?
Screen Time Buddy is rated higher. Unbroken Chain averages 4.5 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while Screen Time Buddy averages 4.6 from 9 ratings.
Do Unbroken Chain or Screen Time Buddy have ads?
Screen Time Buddy shows ads; Unbroken Chain does not.
Which is updated more often, Unbroken Chain or Screen Time Buddy?
Unbroken Chain ships an update every 4 months, and Screen Time Buddy monthly. Most recently, Unbroken Chain was updated on October 6, 2026 and Screen Time Buddy on October 14, 2026.

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