Comparison

Notify vs Focen

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

Head to head
About

Notify

Receive instant alerts for website changes, RSS feed updates, or script statuses directly on your device. This app offers a private and simple monitoring solution without requiring servers or complex setup. It provides visual change detection, custom notifications via webhooks, and home screen widgets for at-a-glance status.

Highlights
  • Website and RSS feed monitoring
  • Instant alerts via webhooks
  • Visual change detection
  • No server setup required
  • Home screen widgets
  • Cross-device sync (optional)
Features
Read full description

Monitor Websites & RSS Feeds. Get Alerts From Anything. No Servers Required. Get instant alerts when a website changes, an RSS feed updates, or your own scripts and devices need your attention. No accounts, no servers, no technical setup. START MONITORING IN SECONDS Add any website or RSS feed with a tap. Send notifications from any script, server, or web app with a single webhook call. Your device does the work, so there is nothing to host and nothing to sign up for. WATCH THE WEB • Visual change detection with side-by-side comparisons, so you see exactly what changed • RSS, Atom, and JSON Feed monitoring: paste a site address and Notify! finds the feeds for you • Check intervals from 15 minutes to 7 days, per site • CSS selectors narrow a watch to one part of a page, like a price or a stock status ALERTS FROM YOUR OWN SCRIPTS • Every device gets a personal webhook URL that anything can call: a shell script, a CI pipeline, Home Assistant, Homebridge, or plain curl • Custom sender icons and full-size images • Device Groups give several devices one shared URL, so one call reaches every screen you own LIVE ACTIVITIES • Put a live tile on your Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island, driven by the same simple URLs • Progress bars move in place and countdowns tick on their own, even while the app is closed • Made for anything with a duration: a build, a backup, a delivery, a 3D print, a wash cycle BEACONS: MONITORING IN REVERSE • Instead of telling you when something happens, a beacon tells you when something STOPS happening • Paste its ping URL into a cron job or backup script. If the ping does not arrive in time, you hear about it • The only way to find out that the thing which was supposed to alert you has itself gone quiet EVERY SCREEN YOU OWN • Home screen widgets, and a full year of searchable history SIMPLE FOR EVERYONE, DEEP FOR PROS No coding needed for websites and feeds. Developers get a documented API, Shortcuts and Siri support. YOUR PRIVACY, YOUR CHOICE Local Mode: everything runs on device. No external connections. Notifications Only: a pure push receiver for your webhooks and automations. Server Mode: connect your own ChangeDetection.io instance. MDM ready: alert your teams across managed devices. Notify! can run in local-only mode, which shares nothing but a random device ID and token not tied to any personal information. Notifications Only and Server modes process data with your consent to enable cloud functions such as automation tools, cross-device delivery, and Shortcuts support, and are likewise not tied to any personal information. WHY NOTIFY! Traditional monitoring wants a server, a subscription, and an afternoon. Notify! works in seconds, whether you are tracking a price, following a release feed, or catching alerts from your own code. Start simple and go as deep as you like. Download now and start monitoring in seconds.

About

Focen

This app automatically blocks distracting applications during your work sessions. It syncs with your Mac to shield your phone from interruptions without manual intervention. Customize your focus level for a distraction-free experience.

Highlights
  • Fully automatic focus sessions
  • Syncs with Mac for cross-device blocking
  • AI-powered site classification
  • Customizable focus firmness
  • Privacy-focused design using Screen Time
  • Settings sync across devices
Features
Read full description

The fully automatic focus app that watches when you work and does everything for you. Most focus apps put the work on you. You set timers, build blocklists app by app, and remember to switch everything on before you start. Focen doesn't. Once a session begins, it handles the rest on its own. When you start a focus session on your Mac, your phone follows along by itself. Focen watches for the apps that tend to pull you away, gives you a little time, and if you keep drifting it quietly shields them so you can get back to what you were doing, all without you lifting a finger. How it works - Choose the apps you work in, once. On Mac, new sites are classified through AI, so that you never set a blocklist. - Start a session on your Mac and your phone shields distractions on its own, in both places. - Focen gives you a short window before it acts, so you can check a notification or two on Instagram without being hard-blocked. - Pick how firm it should be: strict, balanced, or lenient. Turn on Focus mode to have distractions close the moment you open them. Your settings stay in sync between your phone and your Mac automatically, so you never have to worry about things getting jumbled. Private by design. Focen uses Apple Screen Time to shield apps on your device, and the apps you choose to block never leave your phone. Focen for iPhone is part of Focen AI, which connects your phone to your desktop focus sessions. Learn more at focen.app. Focen is a subscription with a 7-day free trial. Terms of Use: https://focen.app/app/terms. Privacy Policy: https://focen.app/app/privacy.

Screenshots

Notify4 screens
Focen4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Notify at none against Focen's 2. Notify also leads on ratings volume (39 vs 3). Focen's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.8) and review sentiment (100% vs 88%). On price, update cadence, ads 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. Focen sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per month. Notify asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Focen holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notify has 39 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 88% of Notify's written reviews are positive against 100% of Focen's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Notify ships an update every 6 days, Focen every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 11, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Notify versus Focen: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNotifyFocen
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (39 ratings)5.0 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews87.5% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings39 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 6 daysEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS18.516.2 — better
Further details — not scored
Size19 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLVL35 LLCLian Duan

Customer experience

Notify

All ratings39 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive87.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative12.5%

Focen

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Notify

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Focen

Subscriptions2
  • Focen AI Monthly7 Days trial$19.991 Month
  • Focen Yearly7 Days trial$149.991 Year

Questions

Is Notify free?
Notify is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Focen free?
Focen is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Notify or Focen?
Focen is rated higher. Notify averages 4.8 out of 5 from 39 ratings, while Focen averages 5.0 from 3 ratings.
Do Notify or Focen have ads?
Neither Notify nor Focen shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Notify or Focen?
Notify ships an update every 6 days, and Focen every 3 days. Most recently, Notify was updated on October 11, 2026 and Focen on October 14, 2026.

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