Comparison

StoicLock vs AppLimiter Screen Time Control

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

Head to head
About

StoicLock

This app offers a unique approach to digital detox by integrating Stoic philosophy with app blocking. Instead of just timers, it uses philosophical exercises and reflections to help users build attention and discipline when they reach for distracting apps.

Highlights
  • Stoic philosophical interventions
  • Customizable app blocking
  • Daily philosophical prompts
  • Progress tracking based on virtues
  • Pomodoro and deep focus timers
  • Lock screen widgets and Live Activities
Features
Read full description

You checked your phone 150 times yesterday. Marcus Aurelius ran an empire and wrote: "Confine yourself to the present." StoicLock gives you the philosophy — and the architecture — to do it. Start your 7-day free trial. No card required. THE PRACTICE OF ATTENTION Other apps block your phone. StoicLock transforms why you reach for it. Every time you open a blocked app, a Stoic intervention begins — breathing, virtue reflection, mortality visualization, or a philosophical challenge from 2,000 years of Stoic teaching. One question: who are you choosing to be right now? Not a timer. A practice. THE SIX STOIC EXERCISES RESPIRATIO — Box breathing (4-4-4-4) calms the dopamine impulse in 48 seconds before you decide whether to continue. QUATTUOR VIRTUTES — Reflect on the four Stoic virtues: Wisdom, Courage, Justice, Temperance. Which do you need now? PROPOSITUM — Write your intention in Latin before you scroll. Not a rule. An oath. MEMENTO MORI — Your life as a grid. 80 years × 52 weeks = 4,160 dots. Lived weeks are dark. The current week glows gold. Is this app worth three of your remaining days? PROVOCATIO — Complete Marcus Aurelius quotes, identify philosophers, sort virtues. 2,000 years of wisdom in a 30-second challenge. SAPIENTIA STOICA — A Stoic quote with source and theme. Reflect on 2,000 years of wisdom before you continue. Free for all users. Every exercise is randomized. Every urge becomes a different practice. YOUR STOIC ARCHETYPE A quiz reveals your archetype — Sage, Soldier, or Emperor — and personalizes your practice with its own philosophical framing and progression path. THE PHILOSOPHER'S JOURNAL Daily prompts from Marcus Aurelius and Seneca. Rate your four virtues. Track gratitude. Record voice notes. 210+ curated quotes from six Stoic philosophers, each with source and theme. A new quote on your Home Screen every day. Morning practice. Evening examination. The rituals the Stoics never skipped. FOCUS LIKE A PHILOSOPHER Pomodoro and Deep Focus timers with a sundial interface. Block distracting apps during sessions. Schedule blocking automatically — morning, midday, evening — the schedule holds whether you feel like it or not. WIDGETS & LIVE ACTIVITIES Stoic quotes on your Lock Screen. Discipline streak as a widget. Live Activities show focus sessions in real time on the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island. DESIGNED FOR ADHD StoicLock does not rely on willpower. Interventions trigger automatically when you open a blocked app. Nothing to remember, configure, or maintain. The system works for you. Scheduled blocks hold structure — even when your attention does not. YOUR PROGRESS Track your level from Aspirant to Sage. Earn drachma through discipline, not dopamine. Monitor virtue averages and streaks. Your metrics are virtue records, not screen time statistics. ROOTED IN SCIENCE Stoicism is the direct historical source of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. StoicLock's approach combines ancient practice with clinically validated methods. Available in 7 languages. PRIVACY Apple FamilyControls. Your app list never leaves your device. No VPN. No traffic routing. Encrypted on-device by Apple. STOICLOCK PRO Unlock the full Stoic toolkit: — Unlimited app and website blocking with custom schedules — All six Stoic interventions (Respiratio, Virtutes, Propositum, Memento Mori, Provocatio, Sapientia Stoica) — Philosopher's Journal with daily prompts and voice notes — Memento Mori life grid with mortality counter — Widgets, Live Activities, and daily quote rotation — Full progress tracking, virtue analytics, and streaks Free trial included. Annual, weekly, and lifetime plans available. Auto-renews unless cancelled 24 hours before period ends. Payment charged to Apple ID. Manage subscriptions in Account Settings. Privacy: http://stoiclock.vercel.app/privacy Terms: http://stoiclock.vercel.app/terms

About

AppLimiter Screen Time Control

Features
Read full description

AppLimiter helps you break automatic scrolling by limiting how often distracting apps can be opened - not just how long they can be used. Use it for yourself, or protect the settings with a PIN when setting limits for your child. Traditional screen-time limits fade into the background. AppLimiter puts a deliberate pause at the door. Before access is granted, you see how many opens remain and decide whether the session is worth one. HOW IT WORKS Choose apps or categories, set a daily number of opens, and decide how long each session lasts. When a session ends, close the app or spend another opening to continue. When the budget is empty, selected apps stay blocked until the next daily reset. BUILD LIMITS THAT FIT YOUR LIFE • Daily opening budgets for individual apps or entire categories • Session lengths from 1 to 60 minutes • PIN-protected settings for parent-managed limits • Separate limits for weekdays, weekends or custom days • Cooldowns to prevent immediately reopening an app • Blocked hours for sleep, school, work, or focused time • Friction mode adds a short delay before an opening is used • Always Allowed list for essential apps • Emergency passes for moments that genuinely need one • Daily goals, streaks, and weekly progress reports FOR YOURSELF OR YOUR CHILD Use AppLimiter to build healthier habits on your own device, or enable PIN protection when setting limits for your child. Protected rules and settings cannot be changed inside AppLimiter without entering the PIN. DESIGNED TO RESIST IMPULSE AppLimiter uses Apple’s Screen Time technology to enforce limits, even when AppLimiter is not open. Self-managed limits require a deliberate typed confirmation to change, so one impulsive tap cannot undo your plan. PRIVATE BY DESIGN No account. No sign-up. No ads. No analytics. No backend servers. Your settings stay on the iPhone, and selected apps are handled through Apple’s privacy-preserving Screen Time framework. REQUIREMENTS AppLimiter requires Screen Time authorization to apply limits. You grant it once during setup and can revoke it at any time in Settings. Requires iOS 26 or later.

Screenshots

StoicLock4 screens
AppLimiter Screen Time Control4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: AppLimiter Screen Time Control at none against StoicLock's 3. AppLimiter Screen Time Control also leads on ads (none vs shown). StoicLock's advantage is iOS requirement (16.1 vs 18.0). On price, update cadence 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. StoicLock sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days. AppLimiter Screen Time Control asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

StoicLock ships an update weekly, AppLimiter Screen Time Control every 6 days. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
StoicLock versus AppLimiter Screen Time Control: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStoicLockAppLimiter Screen Time Control
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 6 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.1 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size72 MB7 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperRamin AfandiyevPawel Garbarz

In-app purchases

3 purchases

StoicLock

Subscriptions2
  • StoicLock Pro — Weekly$3.997 Days
  • StoicLock Pro — Annual$49.991 Year
One-time1
  • StoicLock Pro — Lifetime$99.99
None

AppLimiter Screen Time Control

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is StoicLock free?
StoicLock is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is AppLimiter Screen Time Control free?
AppLimiter Screen Time Control is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do StoicLock or AppLimiter Screen Time Control have ads?
StoicLock shows ads; AppLimiter Screen Time Control does not.
Which is updated more often, StoicLock or AppLimiter Screen Time Control?
StoicLock ships an update weekly, and AppLimiter Screen Time Control every 6 days. Most recently, StoicLock was updated on October 31, 2026 and AppLimiter Screen Time Control on October 31, 2026.

Other comparisons