Comparison

Roots vs Reduce Scrolling

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

Head to head
About

Roots

This app helps you regain control of your phone usage by setting app limits, scheduling downtime, and participating in detox challenges. It provides insights into your screen time habits and offers features like 'Monk Mode' for focused periods. Aimed at improving well-being and reducing phone addiction.

Highlights
  • App and website blocking
  • Scheduled downtime
  • Phone detox challenges
  • Monk Mode for strict blocking
  • Digital dopamine monitoring
  • Daily goals and progress tracking
  • Personal balance score
Features
Read full description

Roots is the #1 screen time app. Set boundaries with your phone, and unlock more time.  Screen time has a major impact on our mental and physical wellbeing. We're here to help — with better app limits, digital downtime, daily goals, balance score, and more. Join thousands of people using Roots to build a better relationship with their phone. WHAT TO EXPECT - Better screen time management - Unlock 2 hours per day - Stop scrolling mindlessly - Cure your phone addiction - Detox from phone dopamine - Find better balance - Be more present - Stay focused BLOCK NOW - Start blocking apps at any time with one tap BETTER APP LIMITS - Block any app or website based on time limits or number of opens SCHEDULE DOWNTIME - Be intentional with "mindful mornings", "evening wind down", and more PHONE DETOX CHALLENGES - Personalized challenges to compete with yourself and friends - Challenges with neuroscientist and Roots Chief Science Officer, Tj Power BLOCK WITH "MONK MODE" - App blocking that doesn't let you unblock until tomorrow MONITOR DIGITAL DOPAMINE - Not all screen time is equal, so we help you understand the impact of each app DAILY GOALS - Set goals for screen time and phone pickups, and track your daily progress PERSONAL BALANCE SCORE - Daily score helps keep you accountable with beautiful illustrations and visuals SCREEN TIME TRENDS - View the progress and trends of your screen time journey BUILD A STREAK - Build a streak as you stay under limits, earn cheat days and custom app icons BLOCK ADULT WEBSITES - Keep yourself off adult websites once and for all DON’T JUST TAKE IT FROM US "We’re all guilty of being obsessed with our phones. Roots helps you break free." -- Tj Power, Neuroscientist and Author “It's beautiful, and it works” -- Jameston78 “This app does what it says” -- Casper-F “Worth every penny” -- Thehikingfool PRIVACY GUARANTEED We use Apple’s Screen Time API so all of your phone usage data stays on your phone. TERMS & CONDITIONS - Auto-Renewing Subscription Options: Roots Plus (Monthly or Annual) - Terms: https://www.getroots.app/terms - Privacy Policy: https://www.getroots.app/privacy-policy

About

Reduce Scrolling

This app helps you regain control over your phone usage by introducing gentle "speed bumps" to encourage mindful app engagement. It offers customizable settings for different applications and schedules to help you reduce distractions and build better digital habits.

Highlights
  • Per-app control with customizable settings
  • Live Activity timer for remaining time
  • Recharge Time delays to prevent compulsive reopening
  • Smart Schedules for automatic app blocking
  • Streak tracking for habit momentum
  • 7-day free trial
Features
Read full description

We get it. You don't want to completely ditch your phone, you just want to stop feeling like it controls you. Maybe you've noticed yourself opening Instagram without even thinking about it. Or you meant to check one thing and suddenly 30 minutes disappeared. Or you feel that little twinge of guilt when you realize you've been scrolling instead of doing... literally anything else. You're not broken. Your phone is just really, really good at grabbing your attention. **WHY BLOCKWISE IS DIFFERENT** We're not here to shame you or lock you out of your apps like you can't be trusted. We built Blockwise because we had the same problem, and we realized that aggressive blocking doesn't actually help you build better habits. It just makes you feel restricted. Instead, Blockwise works with you to create little speed bumps that help you pause and think before you dive into an app. Small changes that actually stick. **WHAT YOU GET** - Per-App Control - Different settings for different apps based on how distracting they are - Live Activity timer - See exaclty how much time you have left while using a distracting app - Recharge Time delays - Prevent compulsive app reopening with customizable wait times - Smart Schedules - Automatic make distracting apps inaccessible during work, sleep, or family time - Streak Tracking - Build momentum with daily success streaks **WHY PEOPLE LOVE BLOCKWISE** "I use it for my ADHD and tendency to doom scroll and lose complete track of time. It's made a HUGE impact for me. 100% recommend!" "My screen time dropped from 8-9 hours, to TWO. I haven't been able to find anything else like it." "This app is fairly new but I'm loving it already. It helps me to cut back on doom scrolling and improve my social media health. Give it a chance!" **THE HONEST TRUTH** Blockwise won't magically fix everything overnight. Building new habits takes time. But if you're tired of feeling like your phone is in charge, this is a really good place to start. And here's the thing: even though finding your perfect routine takes a bit of experimentation, most people start seeing real reductions in their screen time right after setting up their first block. The results can be surprisingly quick. You'll probably slip up sometimes. That's totally normal. The difference is, with Blockwise, you'll have tools that actually help you get back on track instead of just feeling bad about it. **LESS SCROLLING, MORE LIVING** Whether you want to focus better at work, be more present with friends and family, sleep better, or just stop feeling guilty about your screen time, Blockwise can help. Your phone can be a useful tool instead of a time thief. We'll help you get there. **TRY IT FREE FOR 30 DAYS** See if Blockwise clicks for you. If it does, awesome. If not, no hard feelings. **YOUR DATA IS YOURS** We use Apple's Screen Time APIs, which means your data stays on your device. We don't see what you're doing on your phone, and we don't sell your information. **QUESTIONS? WE ANSWER THEM ALL** Seriously, reach out anytime at blockwise.app@gmail.com. We actually read and respond to messages. Terms: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://joinblockr.xyz/privacy/

Screenshots

Roots4 screens
Reduce Scrolling4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ratings volume: Roots at 2.6K against Reduce Scrolling's 4. Reduce Scrolling's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 75%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.8). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. Roots sells 17 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month and Reduce Scrolling sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Reduce Scrolling holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Roots has 2.6K ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 75% of Roots's written reviews are positive against 100% of Reduce Scrolling's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Roots versus Reduce Scrolling: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRootsReduce Scrolling
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (2.6K ratings)5.0 (4 ratings) — better
Positive reviews75.4% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2.6K — better4
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS18.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size379 MB80 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMWMKo LiChung

Customer experience

Roots

All ratings2,649 ratings
Positive94.8%
Neutral1.5%
Negative3.7%
Written reviews362 reviews
Positive75.4%
Neutral5.2%
Negative19.3%

Reduce Scrolling

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Roots

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Apps getting blocked when they shouldn't be
  • Screen time data not syncing correctly
  • Frequent app crashes and freezes
  • Subscription issues and inability to cancel
  • Trouble with the initial setup and syncing

Requested features

5 requests
  • Home screen and lock screen widgets
  • Customizable challenges and ability to share with friends
  • More options for the 'Do Not Disturb' mode
  • Improved analytics and progress tracking
  • Ability to easily adjust app limits without resetting

Reduce Scrolling

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

17 purchases

Roots

Subscriptions17
  • Roots Plus - Monthly Plan$6.991 Month
  • Premium$7.997 Days
  • Roots Plus - Weekly Plan3 Days trial$7.997 Days
Show 14 more
  • Roots - Monthly Plan$9.991 Month
  • Roots Plus - Monthly Plan$9.991 Month
  • Roots - Monthly Plan$19.991 Month
  • Premium Pass7 Days trial$19.991 Month
  • Roots Plus - Annual Plan$29.991 Year
  • Premium$39.991 Year
  • Roots Plus - Annual Plan7 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Premium Pass$59.991 Year
  • Roots Plus - Annual Plan7 Days trial$59.991 Year
  • Premium1 Month trial$69.991 Year
  • Roots Plus - Annual Plan$79.991 Year
  • Premium3 Days trial$99.991 Year
  • Premium Pass1 Month trial$99.991 Year
  • Premium Pass7 Days trial$99.991 Year
9 purchases

Reduce Scrolling

Subscriptions9
  • Unlimited access2 variants$9.991 Year
  • Unlimited3 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Unlimited Access$19.991 Year
Show 6 more
  • Unlimited access$22.991 Year
  • Unlimited Access$29.991 Year
  • Unlimited Access3 Days trial$29.991 Year
  • Unlimited access$39.991 Year
  • Unlimited Access7 Days trial$44.991 Year
  • Unlimited Access7 Days trial$89.991 Year

Questions

Is Roots free?
Roots is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Reduce Scrolling free?
Reduce Scrolling is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Roots or Reduce Scrolling?
Reduce Scrolling is rated higher. Roots averages 4.8 out of 5 from 2.6K ratings, while Reduce Scrolling averages 5.0 from 4 ratings.
Do Roots or Reduce Scrolling have ads?
Neither Roots nor Reduce Scrolling shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Roots or Reduce Scrolling?
Roots ships an update every 3 weeks, and Reduce Scrolling every 3 weeks. Most recently, Roots was updated on September 22, 2026 and Reduce Scrolling on September 7, 2026.

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