# Left vs Cortex Lantern

The clearest difference is update cadence: Cortex Lantern at daily against Left's every 3 days. Cortex Lantern also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 26.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Left sells 29 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per 7 days and Cortex Lantern sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Left ships an update every 3 days, Cortex Lantern daily. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Left | Cortex Lantern |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.6 (486 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/left-widgets-for-time-left/id6740155884/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **486** | — |
| Positive reviews | 72.9% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 days | **Daily** |
| Monetization | Paid | — |
| Size | 246 MB | 44 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | **15.1** |
| Devices | iPhone | **iPhone, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Cntxt Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/1778834894) | [The UGC Playbook LTD](https://appshunter.io/developer/1872947596) |

## What reviewers say

### Left

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/left-widgets-for-time-left/id6740155884)

Visualize your time with customizable widgets for your Home Screen, Lock Screen, and StandBy. Track life progress, countdowns to important events, and monitor habits with streak tracking. Offers a clean and visually appealing way to stay aware of your time.

**Highlights:** Time progress widgets (year, week, day), Life progress tracking, Event countdowns, Habit and streak tracking, Customizable widget styles and colors, Apple Calendar sync

**In-app purchases (29)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Left Premium | $0.99 | per 7 days |
| Left Premium | $2.99 | per 7 days |
| Left Premium | $3.99 | per 7 days |
| Left Premium | $8.99 | per 7 days |
| LEGEND | $8.99 | per year |
| Left Premium | $9.99 | per year |
| Left Premium | $19.99 | per year |
| Left Premium | $19.99 | per 7 days |
| Left Premium | $24.99 | per year |
| Left Premium | $24.99 | per year |
| Left Premium | $29.99 | per year |
| Left Premium | $29.99 | per year |
| Left Premium | $34.99 | per year |
| Left Premium | $34.99 | per year |
| Thanks! | $39.99 | per year |
| Left+ | $0.99 | one-time |
| Awesome | $1.99 | one-time |
| Left+ | $2.99 | one-time |
| Left+ | $3.99 | one-time |
| Legend | $4.99 | one-time |
| Left+ Thanks | $5.99 | one-time |
| Left+ | $6.99 | one-time |
| Left+ | $7.99 | one-time |
| Left+ | $8.99 | one-time |
| Left Premium | $12.99 | one-time |
| Left Premium | $29.99 | one-time |
| Left Premium | $49.99 | one-time |
| Left Premium | $69.99 | one-time |
| Left Premium | $149.00 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Minimalist design
- 👍 Simple and intuitive
- 🔒 Privacy-respecting
- 💡 Unique and insightful concept
- 👍 Clean and bloat-free

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buggy app with frequent issues
- 💡 Lack of customization options
- 💡 Predetermined lifespan not accurate for all users

**Reported bugs**

- Widget not working
- Blank screen on widget after update
- Percentage left showing -inf%

**Requested features**

- Custom lifespan input
- Ability to set custom milestones
- Widget color customization
- Life widget
- Ability to track minutes left in the day


### Cortex Lantern

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cortex-lantern-focus-timer/id6758439275)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Cortex Lantern Pro | $5.99 | per month |
| Cortex Lantern Pro Annual | $59.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Left free?

Left is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Cortex Lantern free?

Cortex Lantern is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Do Left or Cortex Lantern have ads?

Neither Left nor Cortex Lantern shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Left or Cortex Lantern?

Left ships an update every 3 days, and Cortex Lantern daily. Most recently, Left was updated on October 30, 2026 and Cortex Lantern on October 25, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*