Pulse Focus vs Dopamine
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side β with what reviewers say about each.
Pulse Focus
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Pulse Focus turns your work into a calm, rewarding ritual. Break your day into focused Pomodoro sessions and restorative breaks β and watch a beautiful forest grow with every minute you focus. FOCUS, BEAUTIFULLY β’ A reliable Pomodoro timer that keeps counting accurately, even in the background. β’ Fully customizable focus, short-break and long-break durations, with optional auto-start. β’ An immersive full-screen focus mode where a tree grows as your session progresses. GROW YOUR FOREST β’ Every completed focus session plants a tree in your own forest. β’ Watch your forest fill up over time β a satisfying, motivating record of your effort. BREATHE & RESET β’ Take a guided breathing exercise on your breaks (5s inhale / 5s exhale) to reset your mind. β’ Or take a normal break β it's up to you. TASKS & PRIORITIES β’ Create tasks with priorities (High/Medium/Low) and categories (Work, Study, Projectβ¦). β’ Attach a task to a focus session and automatically log the time you spend on it. TRACK YOUR PROGRESS β’ See your full history in the Agenda, with day, week and month charts. β’ Total sessions, focus time, average session length and your daily streak. β’ Export your focus data to CSV or JSON anytime. SOUNDS & THEMES β’ Real ambient sounds β rain and ocean β plus a soft chime and gentle haptics. β’ Four beautiful themes: Forest, Tomato, Pixel and Space. MORE β’ Local notifications so you never miss the end of a session. β’ Available in 34 languages. Pulse Focus Pro unlocks all themes, the rain & ocean sounds, unlimited tasks, the Month stats view, CSV/JSON export and your growing forest. It's an auto-renewable subscription (or a one-time lifetime purchase); your subscription renews unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the period, and you can manage it in your Apple Account settings. Pulse Focus: Pomodoro Timer β make every minute of focus count. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Dopamine
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Dopamine is a brain dump that thinks like you do. If your head is a noisy pile of tasks, half-thoughts and worries, Dopamine gives it a home. Type anything β it becomes a card you can act on, keep as a thought, or let go. No rigid lists, no streaks to break, no shame. Built for ADHD brains, gentle enough for anyone. A softer way to ease procrastination and burnout β without pushing yourself harder. MEET AU, YOUR CALM AI COMPANION Au reads the room. It celebrates a big day, sits with you on the hard tasks, and never nags or asks endless questions. Pick the tone that fits you: Soft, Calm, Strict, or Playful. JUST DUMP IT β’ Type a task, a thought, or a worry β it all lands in one place β’ Ask Au to break a big goal into clear steps, or split a list into separate tasks β’ Double tap to complete, swipe to turn a task into a thought (or back) β’ Two clean tabs: To do and Done β your wins, archived LESS OVERWHELM β’ Overwhelm Mode hides the scary count and shows just your top 3 β’ Gentle reminders that never guilt-trip you FOCUS TOOLS β’ Pomodoro focus timer with a Live Activity on your Lock Screen β start your break with one tap β’ Breathing exercises (4-7-8, Box, 5-5) with soft haptics β’ Body Doubling β Au keeps you company while you work YOURS, EVERYWHERE β’ Beautiful themes and Liquid Glass design β’ Available in 27 languages β’ Tasks and thoughts live on your device; only messages to Au are processed on our server Dopamine Premium unlocks multiple chats, all focus tools, photo and video notes, and premium themes β with a free trial to start. Your brain deserves a calmer place to think. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Pulse Focus at every 2 days against Dopamine's monthly. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Pulse Focus sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Dopamine sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Pulse Focus ships an update every 2 days, Dopamine monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Pulse Focus | Dopamine |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 2 days β better | Monthly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad β better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | 18.0 |
| Further details β not scored | ||
| Size | 9 MB | 14 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Develak | Ksenia Shubova |
In-app purchases
Pulse Focus
- Monthly$4.991 Month
- Yearly7 Days trial$24.991 Year
- Pulse Focus Pro β Lifetime$39.99
Dopamine
- Dopamine Monthly$4.991 Month
- Dopamine Yearly7 Days trial$39.991 Year









