Comparison

Kaizen vs Nooklo

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

Head to head
About

Kaizen

Features
Read full description

Kaizen is a focus timer that blocks your distracting apps, tracks your habits, and lets you study alongside others in live focus rooms. Start a session and the apps you picked stay blocked until your break. Free to use, with no ads. Premium features are marked below. POMODORO TIMER & STOPWATCH • Presets: Classic (25/5/15), Quick (15/3/10), Extended (50/10/30), Long Focus (90/15/30), or your own • Focus 5 to 180 minutes, short breaks 1 to 60, long breaks 5 to 120 • Stopwatch: count up with no fixed end and finish when you're ready • Auto-start runs sessions back to back while Kaizen is open, up to your long break • Keeps time in the background and notifies you when a session or break ends • Fullscreen mode that shows only the timer • Tag each session (Work, Study, and more) to see where your focus goes APP BLOCKER Kaizen uses Apple's Screen Time to block the apps and websites you choose: • Your apps are blocked during focus sessions and open again on your break • Block now: block them right away, until you turn it off • The block stays in place even if Kaizen is closed • An optional "Open anyway" button: you set how often, how long to wait, and for how long • Block up to 3 apps or websites free • Premium: up to 50 apps, plus Strict mode (stays blocked when you pause) and Locked mode (after the first minute the session can't be skipped or ended, with one emergency end a week) Your choices stay on your device. Kaizen can't see which apps you picked. HABIT TRACKER • Check-off habits, or timed habits your focus sessions count toward • Schedules: daily, specific weekdays, or a number of times per week • Forgiving streaks: a skipped day doesn't break them • A consistency score and trend chart for every habit • Backdate any past day and keep your full history • Reminders that follow each habit's schedule • Up to 5 active habits free, unlimited with Premium FOCUS ROOMS Stay on task next to other people, without a video call: • Join public rooms, or private ones with an 8-character code • See who's focusing, on a break, or paused, with live countdowns • No camera or microphone, just quiet company • Premium: create your own public or private rooms (2 to 50 people), manage them as host, and share the task you're working on Many people with ADHD use this kind of body doubling to get started and keep going. TASKS • Jot a task down in one line now, plan the details later • An unlimited inbox, so capturing a thought never hits a limit • Priorities, due dates, subtasks, time estimates, and reminders • Pick a task before a session and your focus time counts toward it • Today, Tomorrow, and Overdue badges keep deadlines in view • Up to 7 planned tasks free, unlimited with Premium THEMES & FOCUS MUSIC • 60+ backgrounds across Lofi, Nature, City, Cozy, Space, and Minimal, including animated ones • Lo-fi, ambient, nature, white noise, and classical tracks, saved for offline listening • Mute music on your breaks • Premium: every theme, the full music library, and your own photo as the background STATISTICS & STREAKS • Daily, weekly, and monthly focus totals • Charts for focus over time, by hour, by weekday, by tag, and by session type • Session history showing which tasks and habits each session counted toward • Re-tag or delete any past session • A daily focus streak • Premium: yearly and all-time statistics MADE FOR • Students studying for their exams • Remote workers and freelancers who need time for deep work • People with ADHD who focus better with structure and company • Anyone who reaches for their phone when they should be focusing WORKS EVERYWHERE Use Kaizen on iPhone, iPad, your computer, or the web. Your tasks, habits, and stats sync across all of them. Start a focus session, block your distracting apps, and see how much more you get done. Terms of Use (EULA): https://my-kaizen.com/eula Privacy Policy: https://my-kaizen.com/privacy Terms & Conditions: https://my-kaizen.com/terms Questions? Reach us at support@my-kaizen.com

About

Nooklo

This app allows you to study or work alongside friends remotely. See who's focused, join their synchronized work sessions, and track your progress together without distractions.

Highlights
  • Live feed of friends working
  • One-tap session joining
  • Synced Pomodoro timer
  • Session recaps
  • 7-day commit grid
Features
Read full description

Houseparty for studying. Most study apps are timers. Nooklo is a place where your friends already are. Open the app, see who's locked in right now, and join them with a tap. Same synced timer, same room. No chat, no video, no pressure. HOW IT WORKS The Tonight feed shows which friends are in a session right now. Tap one to slip in beside them. You'll run the same focus blocks and breaks, in sync. Or start your own session, and your friends get a push the moment you lock in. BLOCK THE APPS THAT PULL YOU AWAY Pick your distracting apps once. Nooklo blocks them at the iOS level every time a session starts, lifts the shield at breaks, and re-locks when focus resumes. It survives force-quits and phone locks. You never touch the picker again. You can also set recurring windows (sleep, class hours, deep work) where your picked apps stay blocked automatically. PLAN THE WEEK TOGETHER Schedule Nooks on a 7 day grid and invite up to 4 friends. Your existing calendar (iCloud, Google, Outlook, Exchange) shows through as ghost blocks so you never double-book, and scheduled Nooks mirror back to your calendar. A JOURNAL THAT WRITES ITSELF Every day pulls in what you actually got done: completed Nooks, checked-off tasks, session reflections. Add your own to-dos, check them off mid-session, and get quiet receipts, not a scoreboard. PROOF YOU SHOWED UP A heatmap of when you actually study, hours per subject, weekly rhythm, and share-stats cards. Stats are intimate, not competitive. FOCUS MECHANICS THAT HOLD UP • Pomodoro (25/5 by default, 50/10 or custom) and free study • Lock Screen Live Activity and Dynamic Island countdown • Home screen widgets to start a session without opening the app • Session intentions: capture what you want to get done, check it off mid-session PRIVATE BY DEFAULT Only friends you add can see when you're in a session. No public profiles, no follower counts, no algorithm. Calendar and reflection data stays on your device. Everything is free right now, including app blocking. Plus is free until September.

Screenshots

Kaizen4 screens
Nooklo4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Nooklo at none against Kaizen's 2. Kaizen's advantage is iOS requirement (16.4 vs 26.0). 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. Kaizen sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Nooklo asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Kaizen ships an update every 2 weeks, Nooklo weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Kaizen versus Nooklo: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterKaizenNooklo
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS16.4 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size68 MB18 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMK Developmentriley lau

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Kaizen

Subscriptions2
  • Premium (monthly)14 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Premium (yearly)14 Days trial$44.991 Year
None

Nooklo

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Kaizen free?
Kaizen is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Nooklo free?
Nooklo is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Kaizen or Nooklo have ads?
Neither Kaizen nor Nooklo shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Kaizen or Nooklo?
Kaizen ships an update every 2 weeks, and Nooklo weekly. Most recently, Kaizen was updated on October 1, 2026 and Nooklo on September 30, 2026.

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