Comparison

Nocturn vs Big Time Clock

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

Head to head
About

Nocturn

Features
Read full description

Nocturn is the ultimate minimalist nightstand clock designed specifically to look beautiful in the dark while protecting your device's screen. Whether you're charging your phone overnight or just want a distraction-free desk clock, Nocturn delivers a premium, distraction-free experience with a pure, true-black background that saves battery on OLED displays and eliminates harsh glare in dark rooms. Key Features: • Burn-In Protection: The clock face slowly and imperceptibly drifts across your screen to prevent OLED burn-in, keeping your display completely safe during long hours of use. • Dual Modes: Choose between our signature, ultra-crisp digital display or the elegant, minimalist analog clock face featuring sleek tick markers. • Customizable Colors: Match your room's aesthetic or mood with a fully customizable color picker. • Always-On Wakelock: Keep the screen awake indefinitely so the time is always just a glance away. • True Dark Mode: Pure black backgrounds mean the pixels on OLED screens actually turn off, saving battery and keeping your room dark. • 12 & 24 Hour Formats: Easily toggle your preferred time format. Elegant, functional, and completely safe for your screen. Upgrade your nightstand with Nocturn.

About

Big Time Clock

Transform your device into a large, easy-to-read full-screen clock for any room. Enjoy a clear display with customizable typography and orientation, perfect for a nightstand or desk. This app offers a one-time purchase with all features unlocked, no ads or subscriptions.

Highlights
  • Full-screen digital clock
  • Elegant analog face
  • Always-on display
  • Portrait and landscape modes
  • Customizable typography
  • Day and date display
Features
Read full description

Big Time Clock turns your iPhone or iPad into a full-screen clock you can read from right across the room — on a nightstand, a desk, or a kitchen counter. Pay once and it's yours forever. No subscriptions, no in-app purchases, no ads — every feature included. Set it up once and the app remembers: your clock face, your time format, your theme. Open it and the clock has the screen to itself — settings live on their own page, a tap away. THE CLOCK • Full-screen digital clock with massive, easy-to-read numerals • Elegant analog face with a smoothly sweeping red second hand • 12-hour or 24-hour time • Seconds sized to read at a glance — tint them, or hide them completely • Day and date, on or off • Light or bold typography • Dark or light theme — deep black for the bedroom, soft paper-white for daylight ALWAYS ON, ALWAYS YOURS • The screen stays awake — it never locks while the clock is up • Every setting is remembered, so it opens exactly how you left it • Tap the clock, then the gear, to change anything — then it's just the time again • Reset to the default view whenever you want a clean slate • Portrait or landscape — just rotate your device • At home on a bedside table, a desk, a kitchen counter, in a gym or a studio — or on an old iPhone or iPad reborn as a dedicated clock BUILT RIGHT • Pay once, own it for life — the price you see is everything • No subscriptions, no in-app purchases, no upsells • No ads, ever • Megabytes, not gigabytes — no ad libraries, no analytics SDKs, nothing that isn't the app itself • No tracking, no accounts, no data collection — nothing about you ever leaves your device • Designed for iPhone and iPad Download Big Time Clock and always know the time at a glance.

Screenshots

Nocturn4 screens
Big Time Clock4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Nocturn at Free against Big Time Clock's $2.00. Nocturn also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 18.6). Big Time Clock's advantage is update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 5 months). On ads, 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

Nocturn is free to download; Big Time Clock costs $2.00 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Nocturn ships an update every 5 months, Big Time Clock every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Nocturn versus Big Time Clock: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNocturnBig Time Clock
PriceFree — better$2.00
Rating—5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 4 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
Monetization—Paid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size19 MB1 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAPPXIDIAN LABSMatthew Avery

In-app purchases

None

Nocturn

No in-app purchases

None

Big Time Clock

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Nocturn free?
Nocturn is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Big Time Clock free?
Big Time Clock costs $2.00, with no in-app purchases.
Do Nocturn or Big Time Clock have ads?
Neither Nocturn nor Big Time Clock shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Nocturn or Big Time Clock?
Nocturn ships an update every 5 months, and Big Time Clock every 4 weeks. Most recently, Nocturn was updated on October 14, 2026 and Big Time Clock on October 31, 2026.

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