Comparison

Work & Break Timer vs Hour by Hour

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

Head to head
About

Work & Break Timer

Features
Read full description

Simple Focus Timer is a lightweight Pomodoro-style timer for working in short sessions with regular breaks. Start a 25-minute work session, take a short break, and repeat. After four work sessions, enjoy a longer break before continuing. The app is designed to be calm, minimal, and easy to use. No accounts, no distractions, and no unnecessary features. Free version: โ€ข Up to 4 work sessions per day โ€ข Standard 25-minute work timer Upgrade: โ€ข Unlimited daily work sessions โ€ข Multiple work lengths Simple Focus Timer is ideal for studying, working, or staying focused without complexity.

About

Hour by Hour

Features
Read full description

Time blocking, made visual. Stop writing to-do lists that hide where your hours actually go โ€” color-block every hour on one vertical timeline and see your entire day, work to rest, at a single glance. Instead of typing tasks into a flat list, you drag colored blocks onto an hourly timeline and adjust them with a pinch. Each block gets a category and a color, so your whole day reads like a map: focus in blue, meals in orange, rest in green. One look tells you if your day is balanced or overloaded before it even starts. WHAT YOU GET - Drag colored blocks onto an hourly timeline instead of typing lists - Color categories for work, focus, meals, social time and sleep - A week view with a density heatmap showing how full each day was - Time insights: category breakdown, most productive hours and day balance - A daily reflection journal with a mood check and a day streak - Quick-start templates and an optional daily reminder to plan PERFECT FOR - Time-blockers who want to see their schedule, not just read it - Remote workers and students shaping focus and break time - Anyone rebalancing a day that feels busy but unproductive - Journalers who want mood and reflection tied to how they spent time WHY NOT JUST USE A TO-DO LIST A checklist tells you what to do but never where your hours go. DayCanvas puts every task on a real timeline, so you see gaps, overloads and how much of your day is truly focus versus filler โ€” then reflect and rebalance for tomorrow. PRIVACY No account, no ads, no tracking. Every plan and reflection stays on your device. FULL ACCESS Premium unlocks unlimited blocks every day, the week heatmap, full time insights and your complete reflection journal history. Available as a weekly plan, a yearly plan, or a one-time lifetime purchase. Open the timeline and drop your first colored block on today. Terms of Use (EULA): https://web-levi.web.app/terms Privacy Policy: https://web-levi.web.app/privacy-policy Questions? tphuc.work@gmail.com

Screenshots

Work & Break Timer4 screens
Hour by Hour4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Work & Break Timer at daily against Hour by Hour's every 6 weeks. Work & Break Timer also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. Work & Break Timer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Hour by Hour sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Work & Break Timer ships an update daily, Hour by Hour every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences ยท 4 level
Work & Break Timer versus Hour by Hour: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterWork & Break TimerHour by Hour
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyDaily โ€” betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPod โ€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.1 โ€” better17.0
Further details โ€” not scored
Size36 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRakib KhanPhuc Pham

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Work & Break Timer

One-time1
  • Unlock Unlimited Access$1.99
3 purchases

Hour by Hour

Subscriptions2
  • Schedule Insights Weekly$3.997 Days
  • Daily Routine Yearly$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Time Blocking: Pay Once$39.99

Questions

Is Work & Break Timer free?
Work & Break Timer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Hour by Hour free?
Hour by Hour is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Work & Break Timer or Hour by Hour have ads?
Neither Work & Break Timer nor Hour by Hour shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Work & Break Timer or Hour by Hour?
Work & Break Timer ships an update daily, and Hour by Hour every 6 weeks. Most recently, Work & Break Timer was updated on October 30, 2026 and Hour by Hour on October 31, 2026.

Other comparisons