Comparison

Reset vs Ransom

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

Head to head
About

Reset

This app helps you regain control of your digital life by earning screen time through healthy behaviors. It acts as a behavioral operating system, rewarding effort with access to your device and providing insights into your reward system.

Highlights
  • Earn screen time through effort
  • Track daily dopamine balance
  • Measure behavior's impact on reward system
  • Dopamine Age comparison
  • Recovery-based performance insights
  • Real-time feedback on dopamine and unlocked minutes
  • Pattern insights for focus drops
Features
Read full description

Modern apps are engineered to hijack your dopamine. Reset helps you take it back. Reset is a subscription service. The features described below require an active Reset Premium subscription. Track your daily dopamine balance, earn your screen time through effort, and measure how your behavior shapes your reward system over time. Core Mechanic Start every day at zero. Healthy behaviors build dopamine. Dopamine unlocks intentional screen time. No restrictions. No guilt. Just a system. What Makes Reset Different Reset isn't a habit tracker. It's a behavioral operating system. You don't quit your phone. You earn it. Key Features (Reset Premium) Earn Your Screen Time Turn effort into access. Exercise, deep work, and recovery unlock intentional screen time. Dopamine Age See how balanced your reward system is compared to your actual age. Updated weekly based on real behavior. Recovery-Based Performance Sleep, consistency, and late-night usage affect how efficiently you earn. Real-Time Feedback Track your dopamine score and unlocked minutes throughout the day. Pattern Insights Understand when your focus drops and why. Who It's For Built for people who want to: • Improve focus • Reduce reactive scrolling • Build discipline without burnout • Operate at a higher level Closing Your brain adapts to what you reward. Reset it. — — — Subscription Details Reset Premium is an auto-renewing subscription. Pricing and available plans are shown in-app before purchase and may vary by region. Payment will be charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. You can manage and cancel your subscriptions by going to your App Store account settings after purchase. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Ransom

Features
Read full description

Get your evenings back. Keep your apps. Ransom locks Instagram, TikTok and whatever else eats your day, and asks for push-ups, squats or steps before it opens them. Most of the time you'll decide it isn't worth ten push-ups. That is the whole trick. WHAT CHANGES You stop opening apps by reflex. A set standing between you and the feed makes you notice your hand reaching for the phone, and noticing is most of the battle. The hour before bed comes back. Set a wind-down rule and scrolling takes twice the reps right when you'd normally lose the evening to it. You get a bit stronger without meaning to. Ten push-ups a few times a day adds up faster than you'd think. You watch the number drop. The Progress tab shows today against this time yesterday, and your whole week. HOW IT WORKS 1. Pick the apps that eat your day. 2. Rex, a buff T-rex with tiny arms, locks them. 3. Do a set. The front camera counts push-ups and squats. The pedometer counts steps. 4. A set earns coins, and coins are minutes, one for one. 15 coins opens your apps for 15 minutes. Spend them on whatever you like. When they run out, your apps lock again until your next set. NOTHING LEAVES YOUR PHONE No account, no sign-up. Your screen time never leaves your phone. The camera looks at your form on the device and never records, saves or uploads a frame. Your screen time is your business. EVERY DAY IS A FRESH START Coins clear at midnight, so unspent minutes never pile up. Had a bad day and scrolled through all of it? Tomorrow starts at zero, and Rex is not going to bring it up. REX COUNTS PROPERLY Half a push-up is not a push-up. The camera looks for real depth, so a bounce doesn't earn a minute. It also means the minutes you do earn actually feel earned. RULES FOR THE HOURS THAT MATTER Name an hour. Dinner, gym time, wind down. During it, opening your apps takes twice the reps. You still can, it just takes more work. PICK YOUR LEVEL Chill, Standard or Beast. Start easy. Move up when ten push-ups stops being a reason to put the phone down. WHAT IT DOESN'T DO It doesn't delete your apps. It doesn't shame you. It doesn't nag. Full access is a subscription that renews automatically unless you cancel at least 24 hours before it ends. Manage it in Settings > Apple Account > Subscriptions. Terms: https://lucascoles.github.io/ransom/terms/ Privacy: https://lucascoles.github.io/ransom/privacy/

Screenshots

Reset4 screens
Ransom4 screens

Verdict

The call

Reset and Ransom are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters — price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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. Reset sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days and Ransom sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Reset ships an update every 3 days, Ransom every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 11, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Reset versus Ransom: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterResetRansom
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (125 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews45.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings125 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 days — betterEvery 5 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscription—
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size215 MB78 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLife Development LLCLucas Coles

In-app purchases

12 purchases

Reset

Subscriptions12
  • Premium Access$4.997 Days
  • Monthly$9.991 Month
  • Premium Access7 Days trial$12.991 Month
Show 9 more
  • Premium Access2 variants$19.991 Year
  • Premium Access3 Days trial$19.991 Year
  • Yearly$29.991 Year
  • Premium Access$49.991 Year
  • Premium Access$59.991 Year
  • Premium Access$69.991 Year
  • Premium Access7 Days trial$79.991 Year
  • Premium Access3 Days trial$99.991 Year
  • Premium Access$99.991 Year
2 purchases

Ransom

Subscriptions2
  • Ransom Pro Weekly$3.997 Days
  • Ransom Pro Yearly7 Days trial$24.991 Year

Questions

Is Reset free?
Reset is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Ransom free?
Ransom is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Reset or Ransom have ads?
Neither Reset nor Ransom shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Reset or Ransom?
Reset ships an update every 3 days, and Ransom every 5 days. Most recently, Reset was updated on October 11, 2026 and Ransom on October 9, 2026.

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