Comparison

Intentional vs ScreenTime Budget

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

Head to head
About

Intentional

This app helps you regain control of your phone usage by introducing a brief pause before opening distracting applications. Set time limits and lock apps automatically when your session ends, breaking autopilot behavior without relying on willpower.

Highlights
  • Brief pause before app opening
  • Set time limits for apps
  • Automatic app locking
  • Game mode during countdowns
  • Session reminders
  • Background enforcement
  • Distraction-free design
Features
Read full description

Your phone takes hours from you every day. Intentional gives them back. Instead of blocking your apps, Intentional adds one simple step — a brief pause before you open them. That moment is enough to break the autopilot and put you back in control. Pick the apps that waste your time. Set a time limit. Use them on your terms. When your session ends, they lock again — no willpower required. Features include game mode during countdowns, session reminders, background enforcement, and a clean distraction-free design. Subscription required for core app features. The average person spends over 4 hours a day on their phone. Intentional can help you reclaim over 400 of those hours this year.

About

ScreenTime Budget

This app transforms your phone's usage data into a daily attention system. Set time budgets for distracting apps, initiate focus sessions, and receive an attention score to build healthier digital habits without deleting your favorite applications.

Highlights
  • Set daily app time budgets
  • Initiate distraction-free focus sessions
  • Receive an attention score (0-100)
  • Mindful pause before overriding limits
  • Emergency passes for brief access
  • Locked intervals to enforce rules
  • Privacy-focused design with no ads
Features
Read full description

Take back your attention without deleting the apps you enjoy. ScreenTime Budget turns Apple Screen Time into a simple daily attention system. Set a time budget for distracting apps, let Screen Time shield them when the limit is reached, start Focus sessions when you need distraction-free time, and build a healthier relationship with your phone. Instead of judging your day by raw Screen Time minutes, ScreenTime Budget gives you an Attention Score from 0–100 based on focused time, mindful pauses, late-night unlocks, emergency passes, pickups, and how well you protected your attention. A subscription or Lifetime purchase is required to access ScreenTime Budget. SET DAILY APP BUDGETS Choose the apps, categories, or websites that pull you in, then decide how much time you want to give them each day. • Create custom attention budgets • Set daily limits from 5 to 240 minutes • Choose apps with Apple’s Family Activity picker • See time used, time remaining, and daily progress • Pause or enable saved budgets as your routine changes • When your active budget runs out, selected apps are shielded until tomorrow Only one budget is monitored at a time, keeping the system simple and predictable. BLOCK DISTRACTIONS WITH FOCUS Start a Focus session when you need to study, work, read, or spend time without distractions. ScreenTime Budget shields the apps you selected while the session is active. Track focused minutes, review recent sessions, and use locked intervals when you want fewer chances to back out. ATTENTION SCORE, NOT JUST SCREEN TIME Your phone usage is more than one giant number. ScreenTime Budget scores the quality of your attention from 0–100 and shows whether your day was Excellent, Great, Good, Needs Attention, or Off Track. See: • Your score for today • Change versus yesterday • A 7-day score trend • Focus time • Late-night unlock behavior • Pickups • Emergency-pass usage The goal is not perfection. It is seeing the habits behind your screen time and making better choices tomorrow. PAUSE BEFORE YOU OVERRIDE When a budget is exhausted, ScreenTime Budget can add a mindful pause between the impulse and the app. If you truly need access, emergency passes give you a short five-minute window without turning your whole system off. STRICT WHEN YOU NEED IT Locked intervals freeze budget edits and toggles during times you choose to protect. Your rules stay in place instead of disappearing the second motivation does. YOUR DAY AT A GLANCE The Today tab brings everything together: • Attention Score and daily trend • Time remaining on your active budget • Budget progress • Focus time and recent sessions • Locked interval status • Saved-place context • Emergency passes remaining PRIVACY BY DESIGN No ads. No sale of personal data. Your Screen Time app selections stay on your device. Apple’s picker handles the selection, so ScreenTime Budget does not receive your raw app list. Optional iCloud sync is limited to budget configuration. Screen Time usage data is not synced to iCloud. BUILT FOR REAL LIFE ScreenTime Budget is built for students, professionals, creators, and anyone tired of doomscrolling, constant pickups, social media rabbit holes, and Screen Time limits that are too easy to ignore. Use it to limit social media, stop mindless scrolling, protect study and deep-work sessions, reduce late-night phone use, and build better digital habits. ACCESS SCREENTIME BUDGET ScreenTime Budget requires a subscription or Lifetime purchase to access its features. Subscriptions automatically renew unless canceled through your Apple Account settings. Lifetime access is a one-time purchase where offered. Own your attention. Give distracting apps a budget and keep the rest of your day for yourself. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula

Screenshots

Intentional4 screens
ScreenTime Budget4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: ScreenTime Budget at freemium against Intentional's subscription. Intentional's advantage is ratings volume (3 vs 1). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases 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. Intentional sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $2.99 per month and ScreenTime Budget sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. 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 — 5.0 for Intentional against 5.0 for ScreenTime Budget. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 1 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Intentional versus ScreenTime Budget: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterIntentionalScreenTime Budget
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (3 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings3 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFreemium — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB21 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNicholas KneafseyELIKPLIM WORGBA

Customer experience

Intentional

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

ScreenTime Budget

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Intentional

Subscriptions1
  • Intentional Monthly1 Month trial$2.991 Month
3 purchases

ScreenTime Budget

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly3 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • Yearly7 Days trial$6.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$14.99

Questions

Is Intentional free?
Intentional is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ScreenTime Budget free?
ScreenTime Budget is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Intentional or ScreenTime Budget?
Intentional and ScreenTime Budget are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 3 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do Intentional or ScreenTime Budget have ads?
Neither Intentional nor ScreenTime Budget shows ads.

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