Comparison

Nerve vs Spendly

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

Head to head
About

Nerve

Transform unproductive app usage into a brain-training challenge. Answer logic puzzles and brainteasers to earn back access to blocked apps, with higher difficulty offering greater rewards and risk.

Highlights
  • App blocking via Apple Screen Time
  • 6 difficulty tiers with escalating rewards
  • Pick Your Risk and Gauntlet modes
  • Double-or-Nothing gambling mechanic
  • 1000 handcrafted brainteaser questions
  • ELO-inspired Brain Score tracking
  • Daily quests and achievements
Features
Read full description

Nerve turns screen time into a game of brains and risk. Block the apps you waste time on, then answer brainteaser questions to earn your screen time back. Harder questions unlock more time — if you have the nerve to try them. HOW IT WORKS Pick the apps you want to block. When you try to open one, Nerve challenges you with a brainteaser. Answer correctly and the app unlocks. Answer wrong and you're locked out on a cooldown. It's that simple. PICK YOUR RISK Choose from 6 difficulty tiers — Gimme, Easy, Medium, Hard, Expert, and Genius. Gimme questions earn you a few minutes. Genius questions earn you hours. But if you get it wrong, harder questions have shorter cooldowns while easier ones make you wait longer. Risk and reward, every time. DOUBLE OR NOTHING Got it right? Gamble your winnings on a harder question for double the screen time. Keep going until you cash out or lose it all. THE GAUNTLET Think you can go all the way? Start at Gimme and climb through all 6 tiers. Every correct answer adds time. One wrong answer and you stop — but you keep what you've earned. Complete all 6 for the ultimate payout. 1000 BRAINTEASER QUESTIONS Logic puzzles, lateral thinking, pattern recognition, wordplay, math tricks, spatial reasoning, number sense, sequencing, deduction, and visual puzzles. These aren't trivia — they're brainteasers designed to make you think. BRAIN SCORE Track your intellectual growth with an ELO-inspired rating system. Start at 1000 and climb through 7 ranks: Novice, Student, Scholar, Expert, Master, Grandmaster, and Genius. See your strengths and weaknesses across 10 question categories. DAILY QUESTS & ACHIEVEMENTS Three new quests every day to keep you on track. Earn streak multipliers for consecutive days. Unlock 20+ achievements as you progress. The more you play, the more screen time you earn per question. FEATURES - Block any app using Apple Screen Time - 6 difficulty tiers with escalating rewards - Pick Your Risk and Gauntlet challenge modes - Double-or-Nothing gambling mechanic - 1000 handcrafted brainteaser questions - 10 question categories - ELO-inspired Brain Score tracking - Daily quests with bonus rewards - 20+ unlockable achievements - Streak tracking with time multipliers - Per-category performance analytics - Weekly progress reports - Cooldown skip packs - Works entirely on-device — no account required SUBSCRIPTION Nerve requires a subscription. Plans: - Monthly: $7.99/month - Yearly: $34.99/year (save 63%, includes 3-day free trial) Payment is charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. Subscription automatically renews unless canceled 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 in your App Store account settings. Privacy Policy: https://www.bestdaylabs.com/nerve/privacy.html Terms of Service: https://www.bestdaylabs.com/nerve/terms.html Support: https://www.bestdaylabs.com/nerve/support.html Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Spendly

Easily track your spending with manual entry, receipt scanning, or voice input. Organize expenses with built-in and custom categories, and visualize your financial habits with interactive charts and statistics. Stay on top of your budget with clear progress indicators.

Highlights
  • Manual expense entry
  • Receipt scanning
  • Voice input for expenses
  • Customizable categories
  • Interactive spending charts
  • Monthly budget tracking
  • Data export/import
Features
Read full description

SPENDLY – Smart Expense Tracker SPENDLY helps you track every dollar with ease. Whether you’re managing daily spending, monitoring monthly budgets, or analyzing where your money goes, SPENDLY gives you the tools to stay on top of your finances. TRACK EXPENSES YOUR WAY • Add expenses manually with a simple, clean form • Scan receipts with your camera—capture and attach receipt images to any expense • Use voice input to add expenses hands-free—speak the amount and details, and SPENDLY transcribes it for you • Choose from multiple currencies to match your region ORGANIZE WITH CATEGORIES • 10 built-in categories: Food, Transportation, Shopping, Entertainment, Utilities, and more • Create unlimited custom categories with your own icons and colors • Add subcategories for fine-grained organization (e.g., Food → Groceries, Restaurants) • Color-coded categories for quick visual identification BEAUTIFUL ANALYTICS • Interactive pie charts show your spending breakdown by category • Monthly, weekly, and daily statistics at a glance • Spending trends and category comparisons • Set a monthly budget and track your progress with visual indicators • Dashboard with recent transactions and quick stats FLEXIBLE & ACCESSIBLE • Light, Blue (premium), and Dark themes—choose what suits you • Match system appearance or auto-switch by time of day • Optimized for both iPhone and iPad with adaptive layouts • Clean, modern design following Apple Human Interface Guidelines YOUR DATA, YOUR DEVICE • All data stored locally on your device—no account required to start • Export and import your data for backup or transfer • Profile picture/avatar on your dashboard • Manage categories, budgets, and preferences in Settings GET STARTED IN SECONDS • Friendly onboarding for first-time users • Optional currency and theme setup • Sample data option to explore features before adding your own Download SPENDLY today and take the first step toward smarter spending habits. Terms of Use: http://smart-apps.us/contents/apps/spendly/docs/terms-of-service.html

Screenshots

Nerve4 screens
Spendly4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Spendly at free against Nerve's subscription. Nerve's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 6 weeks) and ratings volume (15 vs 2). On price, rating, review sentiment 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Nerve sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per 7 days and Spendly sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Nerve against 5.0 for Spendly. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Nerve has 15 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Nerve ships an update every 4 days, Spendly every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 17, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Nerve versus Spendly: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNerveSpendly
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (15 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings15 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFree — better
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS18.618.6
Further details — not scored
Size15 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBest Day Labs, LLCIbrahim Abouhaikal

Customer experience

Nerve

All ratings15 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Spendly

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Nerve

Subscriptions3
  • Nerve Weekly$0.997 Days
  • Nerve Monthly$2.991 Month
  • Nerve Yearly7 Days trial$9.991 Year
One-time2
  • Cooldown Skip Pack$0.99
  • Nerve Pro Lifetime$14.99
1 purchases

Spendly

One-time1
  • Lifetime Price$6.99

Questions

Is Nerve free?
Nerve is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Spendly free?
Spendly is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Nerve or Spendly?
Spendly is rated higher. Nerve averages 4.9 out of 5 from 15 ratings, while Spendly averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Nerve or Spendly have ads?
Neither Nerve nor Spendly shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Nerve or Spendly?
Nerve ships an update every 4 days, and Spendly every 6 weeks. Most recently, Nerve was updated on October 24, 2026 and Spendly on October 17, 2026.

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