Screen Time Control vs Drift Productivity
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Screen Time Control
This app transforms your to-do list into screen time. Complete tasks to earn logs, which you can then use to extend your allowed usage of distracting apps. When your screen time runs out, those apps are blocked until you earn more time by being productive.
- Task and habit creation with custom rewards
- Screen time management with app blocking
- Interactive flame companion with mood states
- Home and lock screen widgets
- Customizable screen time limits and app selection
- Private by design, no cloud sync or tracking
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Stop doomscrolling. Earn your screen time instead. Burn turns your to-do list into screen time. Get things done, earn logs, and feed them to Burn, a little flame who lives on your phone. Scroll too much and Burn's fuel runs out, and so do your distracting apps. No willpower required. Just a flame worth keeping lit. HOW IT WORKS • Start each day with a screen time budget you choose • Scrolling the apps you pick burns through it, minute by minute • Hit zero and those apps lock • Finish tasks to earn logs • Feed logs to Burn: every log buys 10 more minutes GET STUFF DONE • Give every task its own log reward, so big jobs pay more • Daily, weekday, or custom repeating tasks for your habits • Plan Today, Tomorrow, and the days ahead • Sort tasks into color-coded categories • Shake to undo if you tap too soon A FLAME WORTH KEEPING LIT • Burn reacts to your day: happy when you're on track, worried when time runs low, out cold when it's gone • Tap, pet, and drag logs in to feed him • Dozes off at night with a sleepy face • Keep Burn lit at midnight to build your streak YOU'RE IN CONTROL • Choose exactly which apps and categories burn fuel • Everything else stays open • Set your own daily budget • No account, no sign-in, no ads. BURN+ (ONE-TIME PURCHASE) • 13 flame colors, each with a matching app icon • Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets, including a task list you can check off without opening the app • Live Activity: watch your fuel count down in the Dynamic Island • Low fuel warnings before your apps lock • Screen Time Insights: see which apps ate your time, by day, week, and month Burn uses Apple's Screen Time to track and limit only the apps you choose. What you do in them never leaves your device.
Drift Productivity
This app helps you build productive habits by completing real tasks before accessing distracting apps. Earn screen time minutes by finishing your to-do list and unlock your favorite apps guilt-free. It integrates with your device's screen time features to manage access.
- Task-based screen time
- Apple Screen Time integration
- Friend challenges
- Social accountability
- Smart task scheduling
- AI task suggestions
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Drift blocks your distracting apps until you've earned your screen time. Pick the apps you want blocked. TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, whatever's eating your hours. Set real tasks like homework, exercise, chores, or reading. Complete them, take a photo to prove it, and Drift unlocks your screen time as a reward. It runs on Apple's Screen Time API, so the block happens at the operating system level. You can't bypass it by deleting the app or restarting your phone. HOW IT WORKS 1. Choose which apps to block and when 2. Add tasks. Homework, exercise, chores, anything you want 3. Complete the task and verify it with a photo 4. AI checks your proof and awards screen time 5. Your apps unlock. You earned it. WHY DRIFT IS DIFFERENT - Real OS-level blocking, not a reminder you can swipe away - AI photo verification. No honor system - XP, leveling, and streaks that make it stick - Challenge friends and compete on leaderboards - Family mode. Parents can send tasks and approve work - Focus sessions with a Pomodoro timer for bonus time Built by two high school students who got tired of losing seven hours a day to their phones. Every feature exists because we needed it ourselves. Free to start: block up to 3 apps and earn screen time from 3 tasks a day. Drift Pro unlocks unlimited apps and tasks, Lockbox, blocked hours and every stage of your plant. No ads. Terms of Use (EULA): https://driftproductivity.com/terms/ Privacy Policy: https://driftproductivity.com/privacy/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is monetization model: Drift Productivity at free against Screen Time Control's free with in-app purchases. Drift Productivity also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7) and update cadence (every 9 days vs every 3 weeks). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads 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
Both are free to download. Screen Time Control sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Drift Productivity sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Drift Productivity holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 7 and 9 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.
Screen Time Control ships an update every 3 weeks, Drift Productivity every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 11, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Screen Time Control | Drift Productivity |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (7 ratings) | 5.0 (9 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 7 | 9 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 9 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | 17.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 11 MB | 41 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Vincent Nguyen | RIDI LABS LLC |
Customer experience
Screen Time Control
Drift Productivity
In-app purchases
Screen Time Control
- Burn+$9.99
Drift Productivity
- Drift Pro Monthly7 Days trial$4.991 Month
- Drift Family (1 Child)$7.991 Month
- Drift Family (2 Children)$10.991 Month
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- Drift Family (3 Children)$13.991 Month
- Drift Family (4 Children)$16.991 Month
- Drift Family (5+ Children)$19.991 Month
- Drift Pro7 Days trial$29.991 Year
Questions
Is Screen Time Control free?
Is Drift Productivity free?
Which has better reviews, Screen Time Control or Drift Productivity?
Do Screen Time Control or Drift Productivity have ads?
Which is updated more often, Screen Time Control or Drift Productivity?
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