Comparison

Focused vs Rune Secure Notes

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

Head to head
About

Focused

Regain control of your day by blocking distracting apps and building focus habits. This tool helps you reduce screen time, improve productivity, and break free from mindless scrolling with smart features and strict modes.

Highlights
  • Block distracting apps and websites
  • Strict focus mode for unbreakable concentration
  • Set daily time limits per app
  • Focus timer with session tracking
  • Customizable schedules for different times
  • Motivational reminders for blocked apps
  • Screen time insights and progress tracking
  • Build consistency with streaks and milestones
Features
Read full description

Your phone steals 5+ hours of your day. Focused helps you take them back starting today. Join 10,000+ people who cut their screen time in half. Block distracting apps, build real focus habits, and finally stop doomscrolling — with an app that actually works. ▸ WHAT USERS SAY ◂ "I went from 7 hours of screen time to under 2. This app changed my daily routine." "Finally something that doesn't let me cheat. Strict Mode is a game-changer." ▸ REAL RESULTS ◂ • Save 1h 30m+ per day on average • 91% of users report less mindless scrolling • 87% feel more focused and productive within one week • Users build streaks of 27+ days of consistent focus ▸ HOW FOCUSED WORKS ◂ Most screen time apps fail because they're easy to ignore. Focused adds smart friction exactly when distractions happen — so you pause, reflect, and choose intentionally. ▸ POWERFUL FEATURES ◂ BLOCK DISTRACTING APPS Block apps & websites instantly or on a schedule. One tap to block all social media. No willpower needed. STRICT FOCUS MODE Unbreakable focus when you need it. No bypassing. No cheating. No excuses. Perfect for deep work and study sessions. SMART APP LIMITS Set daily time limits per app. When you hit your limit, Focused steps in — no more "just 5 more minutes." FOCUS TIMER Beautiful countdown timer with session tracking. See exactly how long you stay focused every day. CUSTOM SCHEDULES Different rules for work, evenings, weekends, and sleep. Focused adapts to your life — not the other way around. SHIELD SCREEN When you try to open a blocked app, Focused shows a motivational reminder instead — helping you break the autopilot habit. SCREEN TIME INSIGHTS Track your focus time, daily progress, and improvement trends. Clear stats for the apps that distract you most. STREAKS & MILESTONES Build consistency with daily streaks. Stay motivated as you watch your habits transform week after week. ▸ BUILT FOR YOU ◂ • Professionals & remote workers • Students & deep work sessions • People reducing social media & phone addiction • ADHD-friendly focus support • Anyone who wants to be more present ▸ 100% PRIVATE & SECURE ◂ Focused uses Apple's Screen Time API. Your data never leaves your device. No tracking. No data selling. Privacy by design. ▸ TAKE BACK CONTROL ◂ Your time is your most valuable asset. Every hour you save from mindless scrolling is an hour for what truly matters — your goals, your health, your people. Download Focused. Start your focus journey today. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Rune Secure Notes

Features
Read full description

Rune is a calm, fast notes app for people who don't want to trust an app with their data. Your notes never leave your device, they are encrypted at rest, and the app makes no network connections at all. There is no account, no cloud, and no sign-up. Privacy by construction, not by promise: • No telemetry, no analytics, no crash reporting, no advertising, no tracking, none, not "anonymised", not "aggregated". • No networking code. Put your device in airplane mode and everything still works. If anything ever tries to reach the network, that is a bug. • No account and no server. There is no "we" that could hold your data. Real encryption: • Your passphrase derives a key with Argon2id; notes are sealed with XChaCha20-Poly1305 authenticated encryption. Only ciphertext is ever written to disk. • The passphrase is never stored and is not recoverable. If you forget it, your notes are gone, no reset, no backdoor. That is the price of real privacy. • A wrong passphrase simply cannot decrypt your notes. • Optional Face ID / Touch ID unlock: opt in to unlock with biometrics. Even then the passphrase is never stored — only the in-memory key is cached behind the biometric prompt. What you can do: • Create, edit, search, and organise plain-text notes with a clean, calm layout. • Auto-lock on inactivity and lock-on-background; the app starts locked. • Export an encrypted backup (safe to keep anywhere); plaintext export is gated behind an explicit warning. • Capture voice notes and transcribe them to text entirely on your device with on-device speech recognition — no audio and no transcript ever leaves your phone. Free and open source under the GNU GPLv3. The security-critical code is a small, dependency-light core so it can be read and audited. Releases ship with cryptographic provenance and are built reproducibly, so you can verify the binary was built from this source.

Screenshots

Focused4 screens
Rune Secure Notes4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Rune Secure Notes at none against Focused's 2. Rune Secure Notes also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 6 days) and device support (3 vs 1). On price and ads 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. Focused sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per month. Rune Secure Notes asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Focused ships an update every 6 days, Rune Secure Notes every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 5 level
Focused versus Rune Secure Notes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFocusedRune Secure Notes
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 6 daysEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemium—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS1815.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size154 MB58 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperVinx SolutionsRory Standley

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Focused

Subscriptions2
  • Focused Pro7 Days trial$14.991 Month
  • Focused Pro7 Days trial$39.991 Year
None

Rune Secure Notes

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Focused free?
Focused is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Rune Secure Notes free?
Rune Secure Notes is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Focused or Rune Secure Notes have ads?
Neither Focused nor Rune Secure Notes shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Focused or Rune Secure Notes?
Focused ships an update every 6 days, and Rune Secure Notes every 2 days. Most recently, Focused was updated on October 30, 2026 and Rune Secure Notes on October 25, 2026.

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