Hourglass vs Sandy Timer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Hourglass
A visual timer app that uses falling sand to help you track time peacefully. Ideal for focus sessions, meditation, or any activity where a calm sense of time passing is desired. Offers customizable colors and time visibility with a Pro upgrade.
- Visual falling sand timer
- Customizable timer durations
- Relaxing sand animation
- Timer completion notifications
- Restart recent timers
- Customizable colors (Pro)
- Toggle time visibility (Pro)
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Watch the sand fall and enjoy a calmer way to keep track of time. Hourglass is a simple visual timer that lets you enjoy the gentle motion of falling sand while counting down your time. Use it for studying, focused work, reading, breaks, meditation, or any moment when you want time to feel a little more peaceful. Unlike an ordinary digital timer, Hourglass gives you a visual sense of time passing as the sand slowly falls. Perfect for: • Studying and focus sessions • Work and productivity • Reading and hobbies • Pomodoro sessions • Meditation and quiet time • Relaxing breaks Features: • Set any timer duration you like • Relaxing falling-sand animation • Quickly restart recently used timer durations • Notifications when the timer finishes • Customize sand and background colors with Pro • Show or hide the remaining time with Pro Whether you're studying, working, meditating, or taking a break, Hourglass gives you a simple and calming way to experience time. standard Apple Terms of Use (EULA) https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Sandy Timer
Simulates a real sand timer using your device's orientation. Simply flip your phone to start the countdown. Tap the screen to adjust timer settings.
- Realistic sand timer simulation
- Device orientation control
- Tap to change settings
- Simple and intuitive interface
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This a real sand timer app simulator. Gravity does its job... Just turn your device upside down to start the timer! Single tap the screen to change the timer options. Make sure to turn the device orientation lock Off... and turn it upside-down!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Sandy Timer at none against Hourglass's shown. Hourglass's advantage is rating (4.5 vs 4.1) and ratings volume (255 vs 9). On price, review sentiment, update cadence 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
Both are free to download. Hourglass sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and Sandy Timer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Hourglass holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hourglass has 255 ratings behind it against 9, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 30% of Hourglass's written reviews are positive against 25% of Sandy Timer's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Hourglass | Sandy Timer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (255 ratings) — better | 4.1 (9 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 30.0% of reviews — better | 25.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 255 — better | 9 |
| Update frequency | Weekly | Weekly |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 52 MB | 5 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Focaccia, Inc. | Cesar Mejia Valero |
Customer experience
Hourglass
Sandy Timer
In-app purchases
Hourglass
- Pro - Monthly7 Days trial$0.991 Month
- Hourglass Timer Pro$4.99
Sandy Timer
- Pro$3.99







