Comparison

TalkingTime vs HourChime

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

Head to head
About

TalkingTime

This app announces the current time audibly at user-defined intervals, such as hourly, half-hourly, or quarter-hourly. It operates efficiently in the background after initial setup, conserving battery life. The app adheres to your phone's 12-hour or 24-hour time format.

Highlights
  • Audible time announcements
  • Hourly, half-hourly, quarter-hourly alerts
  • Set and forget operation
  • Battery efficient
  • Respects phone's time format
Features
Read full description

Hear the time without stopping to look at your screen. TalkingTime gives you spoken time announcements, chimes and personal voice reminders on iPhone and iPad. Use a regular time cue to notice the passing hours while you work, study or move through your day. START WITH EASY • Use the included Easy schedule. • Choose spoken time or chimes, a voice, and 12- or 24-hour speech. • Add your own text to an enabled Easy announcement time. PRO SUBSCRIPTION • Edit Easy announcement times. • Use the separate Custom schedule at any minute, on specific dates or on selected weekdays. LEGACY PRO Your original lifetime access continues to include Easy editing and messages. The separate Custom schedule requires a Pro subscription. SET UP ANNOUNCEMENTS Keep Master Enable on and allow Notifications and Sounds for TalkingTime. Then return to the Home Screen with a normal swipe up or Home button, giving the app time to prepare your schedule. Prepared announcements use iOS local notifications and can sound when the screen is locked. Keep the device powered on. Silent mode, ringer volume, Focus and audio routing can affect what you hear. GET HELP Open It’s not working and tap Get support. Diagnostic information is sent automatically. You can also contact support@fortuisoft.com. The app and Apple purchase sheet show the current Pro price, billing period and any eligible trial. Pro is an automatically renewing subscription unless cancelled. Manage or cancel subscriptions through your Apple account. Privacy: https://www.fortuisoft.com/talkingtime/Privacy.html Terms: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

HourChime

This app provides hourly or 30-minute voice cues and sounds to help you stay focused and on track. It features customizable quiet hours and a clean, battery-friendly interface. The app is designed for reliable background operation.

Highlights
  • Hourly/30-minute chime intervals
  • Spoken time announcements
  • Customizable mute schedule
  • Background operation
  • Battery-friendly design
  • Light/Dark Mode support
Features
Read full description

Chime your day into focus. Hourly or every-30-minute voice cues that keep you on track. Quiet when you need it—powerfully simple when you don’t. HourChime is a focused time-management app that keeps your rhythm with hourly or every-30-minute chimes and optional spoken time, delivering notifications reliably in the background. Set quiet hours with a mute schedule for sleep, meetings, or deep work. A clean, intuitive UI is optimized for Light/Dark Mode and designed to be battery-friendly with no unnecessary background tasks. Features • Chime interval: hourly or every 30 minutes • Spoken time announcement (on/off) + bell sound toggle • Mute Schedule: per time window/day for sleep & meetings • AM/PM or 24-hour display switch • Works reliably in the background after permission • One-time in-app purchase removes ads & unlocks all features (Restore Purchases supported) • Minimal data use; privacy-minded by design Perfect for • Focus sessions, study blocks, and Pomodoro-style routines • Office hours, standups, and calendar-free time awareness • Gentle timekeeping at home and bedtime wind-downs Download now and give your day a clear, calm cadence.

Screenshots

TalkingTime3 screens
HourChime4 screens

Verdict

The call

TalkingTime and HourChime both sit at 4.6 stars, but that hides the real split: 93% of TalkingTime's written reviews are positive against 62% of HourChime's. TalkingTime also leads on ratings volume (309 vs 3). 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. TalkingTime sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $1.99 per month and HourChime sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for TalkingTime against 4.7 for HourChime. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: TalkingTime has 309 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 93% of TalkingTime's written reviews are positive against 62% of HourChime's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

TalkingTime ships an update every 6 weeks, HourChime every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
TalkingTime versus HourChime: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTalkingTimeHourChime
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (309 ratings)4.7 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews92.7% of reviews — better61.5% of reviews
Number of ratings309 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.617.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size25 MB13 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFortuisoft LLCMitsuhiro Hashimoto

Customer experience

TalkingTime

All ratings309 ratings
Positive90.6%
Neutral2.9%
Negative6.5%
Written reviews205 reviews
Positive92.7%
Neutral2.0%
Negative5.4%

HourChime

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews13 reviews
Positive61.5%
Neutral7.7%
Negative30.8%

Bugs and requests

TalkingTime

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Announcements not working after iOS updates
  • Inconsistent behavior with music/audio playback

Requested features

4 requests
  • More frequent time announcements (e.g., every 10 minutes)
  • Custom voice recording option
  • Integration with calendar/scheduling apps
  • Separate volume control for announcements

HourChime

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

TalkingTime

Subscriptions1
  • Pro upgrade7 Days trial$1.991 Month
1 purchases

HourChime

One-time1
  • Premium$1.99

Questions

Is TalkingTime free?
TalkingTime is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is HourChime free?
HourChime is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, TalkingTime or HourChime?
HourChime is rated higher. TalkingTime averages 4.6 out of 5 from 309 ratings, while HourChime averages 4.7 from 3 ratings.
Do TalkingTime or HourChime have ads?
Neither TalkingTime nor HourChime shows ads.
Which is updated more often, TalkingTime or HourChime?
TalkingTime ships an update every 6 weeks, and HourChime every 2 months. Most recently, TalkingTime was updated on October 15, 2026 and HourChime on October 12, 2026.

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