Comparison

BrainFree vs SocialZen

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

Head to head
About

BrainFree

Regain control of your phone usage by blocking distracting apps and websites. Schedule focused work or personal time with customizable templates or build your own. Protect your attention and reclaim your day from endless scrolling.

Highlights
  • Block distracting apps and websites
  • Schedule focus time
  • Ready-made and custom schedules
  • App locking
  • Deep focus mode
  • Website blocking
  • App usage time limits
Features
Read full description

You pick up your phone to check one thing. An hour later, you’re still scrolling. The average person spends 7+ hours a day staring at their phone. That’s nearly half your waking life gone to scrolling, tapping, and swiping. BrainFree gives it back to you. Brain Rot stops the cycle. Block distracting apps and websites, schedule focus time, and start living your life again all in under 60 seconds. READY-MADE SCHEDULES OR BUILD YOUR OWN Don’t waste time figuring out what to block. Choose from built-in templates like Work, Study, Sleep, or Family Time: each designed for real life. Want something custom? Create your own schedule in seconds. Pick the apps and websites to block, set your hours, and BrainFree handles the rest. Every day. Automatically. APP LOCK See an app that wastes your time? Lock it. One tap. Done. App Lock is the fastest way to remove a distraction from your day. No settings to configure, no timers to set. Just tap, block, and move on with your life. DEEP FOCUS For the moments when you need zero distractions. Deep Focus blocks your most distracting apps and websites for a set period and you can’t undo it until the timer runs out. Perfect for exams, deadlines, or when you just need your brain back. TIME & DAILY + WEBSITE BLOCKER Most screen time apps only block apps. BrainFree blocks websites too across every session and schedule. Reddit, YouTube, news sites, whatever pulls you in. No loopholes. No switching to Safari to cheat. Your focus is fully protected. Limit your app usage by days, or just set how much time you can afford to use it. Links Terms of Service: https://brainfree.app/legal/terms/ Privacy: https://brainfree.app/legal/privacy/

About

SocialZen

Features
Read full description

SocialZen opens the social apps you already use, with the parts built to keep you scrolling taken out. Messages, profiles, search and posting all work exactly as they did. Reels, Shorts, Spotlight, For You and Explore do not appear at all. WHAT GETS REMOVED • Short-form video — Reels, Shorts, Spotlight and the For You feed • Explore, trending rails and "suggested for you" injected between real posts • Ads and trackers, refused at the network rather than hidden after they load • Like and view counts, comment sections and story trays — each one optional WHAT STAYS • Direct messages and group chats • Profiles, followers and search • Posting, replying and reacting • A video someone sends you in a chat plays once, then takes you back to the conversation instead of sliding into the next one OPEN THE REAL APP, LAND IN THE CALM ONE Turn on interception and opening Instagram brings you to the filtered version instead. iOS enforces it with Screen Time, so it survives a reboot and cannot be killed in the background. DECIDE IN ADVANCE • Sleep Mode locks the apps overnight, on a window you set while you are not tired • Daily limits give each network a budget. Lowering one applies at once; raising one you have already spent waits until tomorrow • Schedules turn interception on for work hours, evenings or weekends • Strict Mode commits you to a window with no early exit SEE WHERE THE TIME WENT SocialZen shows how long you spend inside the filtered apps, per platform, per day. PRIVATE BY CONSTRUCTION There is no account and no server. No analytics, no crash reporting, no ad SDK. Your logins belong to the sites themselves, exactly as they would in a browser, and SocialZen has no way to read them. Every number is computed on your device and stays there. FREE, AND PRO Every platform, every content filter, the scroll-stop and the ad blocking are free forever. Pro adds the enforcement and the depth: blocking the real apps, Sleep Mode, daily limits, unlimited schedules, a home-screen widget per network and thirty days of history. SocialZen Pro is an auto-renewable subscription. Monthly or yearly, billed to your Apple Account. It renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period; manage or cancel it any time in your Apple Account settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://socialzen-cwb.web.app/privacy

Screenshots

BrainFree4 screens
SocialZen4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: SocialZen at none against BrainFree's shown. SocialZen also leads on update cadence (every 3 days vs every 6 weeks) and iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26). On price, in-app purchases 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. BrainFree sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days and SocialZen sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $10.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

BrainFree ships an update every 6 weeks, SocialZen every 3 days. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
BrainFree versus SocialZen: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBrainFreeSocialZen
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (3 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings3 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 3 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS2618.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size25 MB17 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperThe App, Inc.Christian Brown

In-app purchases

3 purchases

BrainFree

Subscriptions3
  • BrainFree Pro3 Days trial$3.997 Days
  • BrainFree Pro$7.991 Month
  • BrainFree Pro7 Days trial$19.991 Year
3 purchases

SocialZen

Subscriptions3
  • Pro Monthly$10.991 Month
  • Pro Yearly3 Days trial$74.991 Year
  • Pro Yearly7 Days trial$74.991 Year

Questions

Is BrainFree free?
BrainFree is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SocialZen free?
SocialZen is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do BrainFree or SocialZen have ads?
BrainFree shows ads; SocialZen does not.
Which is updated more often, BrainFree or SocialZen?
BrainFree ships an update every 6 weeks, and SocialZen every 3 days. Most recently, BrainFree was updated on October 31, 2026 and SocialZen on October 31, 2026.

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