Comparison

Focustown vs Swim Away

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

Head to head
About

Focustown

This app provides a virtual study environment where users can focus alongside others globally in cozy, low-poly settings. Earn in-app currency to customize your avatar and stay motivated through shared focus sessions.

Highlights
  • Cozy study environments
  • Study with real people globally
  • Earn coins and customize avatar
  • Study with friends
  • Built-in focus timer
Features
Read full description

Study with people from all over the world in a cozy low poly environment. Focustown helps you achieve your dreams one focus session at a time. Pick your vibe — a cozy cafe or a quiet library — and join a server where you can sit next to real people studying in real time. Whether you're a student grinding for exams or a working professional tackling your next big project, you're never alone on your journey. FEATURES: • Cozy Study Environments – Choose between beautifully designed cafes and libraries to set the perfect study mood. • Study With Real People – Join servers and focus alongside others from around the world in real time. • Earn Coins & Customize – Complete focus sessions to earn coins and decorate your character with fun accessories. • Study With Friends – Start sessions with your real friends and hold each other accountable. • Focus Timer – A built-in study timer to keep you on track and make every session count. Focustown was built to inspire millions of students and working professionals — reminding them that they're not alone in their journey to make a dent in this universe. Your dreams are worth every focus session. Start yours today. Similar apps include: Forest, Focus Tree, Flora, or Study Bunny Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Swim Away

This app offers a suite of tools designed to help users reduce their screen time. It features gamified challenges, app blocking, focus timers, mini-games, educational content, and a pixel art editor, all within a relaxing pixel-art aesthetic.

Highlights
  • Gamified screen time challenges
  • NFC-based app blocking
  • Pomodoro-style focus timer
  • Pixel-art mini-games
  • Ocean-themed educational content
  • Pixel art editor for custom mascots
Read full description

Swim Away is a calm, pixel-art toolkit for spending less time on your phone. One app, multiple tools, all built to help you put it down. OCEAN: The original. For every 45 minutes you stay off your phone, you earn a new fish, starting from small creatures like starfish and working your way up to the legendary Star Guppy. Merge matching fish to discover new species across 11 tiers, and customize your ocean with decorations, corals, and color themes using stars earned in game. Join shared oceans with friends, compete on leaderboards, and see everyone's best fish together. BLOCK APPS: Tap a small NFC Mascot Card on the back of your iPhone to lock or unlock your distracting apps. Pick which apps to block in each Mode, customize the Mode's color and icon, and track how much time you saved. FOCUS: A Pomodoro-style focus timer that blocks your apps during each focus phase. Pick a length, schedule a session for later, and watch a calm ocean scene while you work. ARCADE: Six pixel-art mini-games that pay you in stars. Memory, Whack-a-Fish, Connect 4, Tic-Tac-Toe, 2048, and Fish Slide. LEARN: A scrollable feed of ocean facts and quick quizzes. Answer correctly to bank screen time you can spend on your blocked apps. Five themed topics, hundreds of cards. STUDIO: A pixel art editor for designing your own mascot. Paint pixel by pixel on a 24×24 grid and save up to 12 designs, set one as your profile picture across every tool, or order a real NFC Mascot Card printed with your art. With Apple Screen Time integration, home and lock screen widgets, monthly archives, and a relaxing pixel-art style throughout, your ocean keeps evolving the more you disconnect.

Screenshots

Focustown4 screens
Swim Away4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Swim Away at none against Focustown's shown. Swim Away also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 77%). Focustown's advantage is ratings volume (9K vs 8) and update cadence (daily vs every 3 days). On price, rating, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Focustown sells 22 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days and Swim Away sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Focustown against 4.9 for Swim Away. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Focustown has 9K ratings behind it against 8, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 77% of Focustown's written reviews are positive against 100% of Swim Away's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Focustown ships an update daily, Swim Away every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Focustown versus Swim Away: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFocustownSwim Away
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (9K ratings)4.9 (8 ratings) — better
Positive reviews76.9% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings9K — better8
Update frequencyDaily — betterEvery 3 days
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS16.216.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size1.1 GB31 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSecond Round Inc.PMARC LLC

Customer experience

Focustown

All ratings8,898 ratings
Positive95.3%
Neutral2.5%
Negative2.2%
Written reviews986 reviews
Positive76.9%
Neutral9.7%
Negative13.4%

Swim Away

All ratings8 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

22 purchases

Focustown

Subscriptions7
  • Foucstown Pro Weekly$2.997 Days
  • Foucstown Pro Monthly3 Days trial$6.991 Month
  • Foucstown Pro Monthly$9.991 Month
Show 4 more
  • Foucstown Pro Yearly$19.991 Year
  • Foucstown Pro Yearly$39.991 Year
  • Foucstown Pro Yearly7 Days trial$39.991 Year
  • Foucstown Pro Yearly7 Days trial$49.991 Year
One-time15
  • Starter Pack$0.99
  • Pocketful Golden Beans$0.99
  • Purchase Coffee Boost$0.99
Show 12 more
  • Single Coffee Boost$0.99
  • Handful of Golden Beans$0.99
  • Sack of Golden Beans$2.99
  • Bag of Brown Beans$3.99
  • Bucket of Golden Beans$3.99
  • Super Boost Pack$3.99
  • Sack of Golden Beans$3.99
  • Bucket of Brown Beans$9.99
  • Cart of Brown Beans$9.99
  • Bucket of Golden Beans$9.99
  • Bucket of Golden Beans$19.99
  • Cart of Golden Beans$39.99
3 purchases

Swim Away

One-time3
  • 100 Stars$0.99
  • 600 Stars$4.99
  • 5000 Stars$12.99

Questions

Is Focustown free?
Focustown is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Swim Away free?
Swim Away is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Focustown or Swim Away?
Swim Away is rated higher. Focustown averages 4.8 out of 5 from 9K ratings, while Swim Away averages 4.9 from 8 ratings.
Do Focustown or Swim Away have ads?
Focustown shows ads; Swim Away does not.
Which is updated more often, Focustown or Swim Away?
Focustown ships an update daily, and Swim Away every 3 days. Most recently, Focustown was updated on November 1, 2026 and Swim Away on October 24, 2026.

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