Comparison

Focus vs Tether

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

Head to head
About

Focus

This app helps you regain control of your day by reducing distractions from social media and excessive screen time. It aims to boost productivity, improve mental well-being, and help you make the most of your time.

Highlights
  • Reduce social media distractions
  • Block distracting apps
  • Improve productivity
  • Enhance mental well-being
  • Save time
  • Own your day
Features
Read full description

Focus helps you be more productive! Say STOP to: - Opening Instagram every 2 mins for no reason - Distraction from social media apps - Doom scrolling every night Start to: - Be more productive - Get the best out of your day - Own your days! - Build something useful BENEFITS - Focus users are less distracted - Focus users are more productive thanks to the app - Focus users improved their mental health by not using the screen too often - Focus users save so many hours per day! ----------------------- - Privacy Policy: https://humblecraft.io/static/privacy-policies.pdf - Terms of Use: https://humblecraft.io/static/terms-and-conditions.pdf - For our subscriptions, we are following the standard Apple Terms of Use (https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/).

About

Tether

This app helps you break free from excessive screen time by introducing friction to app usage. It allows you to block apps, websites, and categories with customizable difficulty levels for ending sessions, promoting stronger phone habits.

Highlights
  • App and website blocking
  • Customizable session difficulty
  • Focus modes (indefinite, countdown, Pomodoro)
  • Scheduled sessions
  • Reusable blocklists
  • Strict Mode to prevent loopholes
  • Live Activity and Dynamic Island integration
Features
Read full description

You open your phone for "just a second" and lose 45 minutes to scrolling. Tether is an app blocker built to break that loop with real friction. Block apps, websites, and categories, then choose how hard it should be to stop: tap out, scan an NFC tag, scan a QR code, or get approval from someone you trust. Focus modes for real life - Indefinite sessions when you just need to stay locked in - Countdown sessions for deep work, study, and sprints - Pomodoro sessions with built-in breaks - Scheduled sessions for work hours, bedtimes, and daily routines Why Tether works - Create reusable blocklists for work, study, sleep, and weekends - Use Allow Mode to block everything except what you need - Turn on Strict Mode to prevent easy loopholes mid-session - Keep emergency overrides for genuine exceptions - See your session with Live Activity and Dynamic Island - Sync across devices so your rules stay consistent Tether is for people who want less screen time, stronger phone habits, and a system that's harder to cheat. Make distractions harder to reach, make quitting harder to justify, and make focus easier to keep. Terms of Use: https://www.tetherto.me/terms Privacy Policy: https://www.tetherto.me/privacy

Screenshots

Focus3 screens
Tether4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Tether at 5.0 against Focus's 1.0. Tether also leads on ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (8 vs 1). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support 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. Focus sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days and Tether sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $5.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Tether holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Tether has 8 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Focus versus Tether: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFocusTether
PriceFreeFree
Rating1.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (8 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings18 — better
Update frequency—Every 10 days
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.6
Further details — not scored
Size180 MB44 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHC MAKER - PHOTO LOGO BACKGROUND EDITOR APPS FOR FREEUndrift LLC

Customer experience

Focus

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

Tether

All ratings8 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Focus

Subscriptions2
  • Premium features$4.997 Days
  • Premium features$19.991 Year
7 purchases

Tether

Subscriptions5
  • Tether Pro Monthly Member$5.491 Month
  • Tether Pro Free Trial3 Days trial$6.991 Month
  • Tether Pro Monthly$6.991 Month
Show 2 more
  • Tether Pro Yearly Member$24.491 Year
  • Tether Pro Yearly$34.991 Year
One-time2
  • Tether Pro Lifetime Member$79.99
  • Tether Pro Lifetime$99.99

Questions

Is Focus free?
Focus is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Tether free?
Tether is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Focus or Tether?
Tether is rated higher. Focus averages 1.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while Tether averages 5.0 from 8 ratings.
Do Focus or Tether have ads?
Focus shows ads; Tether does not.

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