Comparison

Shift Meal Timer vs ShiftRhythm

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

Head to head
About

Shift Meal Timer

Features
Read full description

Stop eating breakfast at 4 AM because your shift ended and you have no idea what to call this meal. Shift Meal Timer gives night shift workers and 12-hour shift workers a structured four-meal schedule built around their actual hours. Every night shift worker knows the problem: your body wants food at strange times, you skip meals because you do not know if it counts as lunch or dinner, and the coffee you drank at 3 AM is still keeping you awake at 9 AM. Generic meal apps assume you wake up at 7 AM and sleep at 11 PM. You do not. HOW IT WORKS 1. Pick your shift pattern: 12hr Night, 12hr Day, 8hr Day, 8hr Evening, Rotating, or Custom. 2. Set your usual sleep time and average sleep duration. 3. Shift Meal Timer calculates four meal windows tuned to your hours: Pre-shift Main, Mid-shift Meal, Late-shift Snack, Post-shift Wind-down. A caffeine cutoff is set six hours before sleep. Set up in under a minute. No account required. No tracking. CORE FEATURES Four-Meal Schedule Each meal slot shows the time, meal type, and food suggestions. Meals falling between midnight and 6 AM are tagged Light protein-focused with a dark background so you can see at a glance which ones are night-shift meals. Caffeine Cutoff A red indicator shows the latest time you should stop caffeine before your sleep window. Protects your daytime sleep on rotating shifts. Work Day and Off Day Toggle Switch between your shift schedule and a fixed off-day schedule (7:30 AM, 12:30 PM, 6:30 PM) with one tap. Next-Up Countdown The bottom bar always shows the next upcoming meal with a live countdown so you know what to grab and when. Notifications Local push notifications fire 15 minutes before each meal. Toggle individual meals on or off. No server, no tracking. PRO FEATURES Upgrade to Pro for deeper tools: - Check-in: log whether you ate or skipped each meal - Adaptation Report: your schedule shifts based on your hunger signals and skip patterns over 30 days - History: monthly calendar view of your eating record - Custom notification timing (5 to 60 minutes before each meal) - Multiple shift presets and quick switching - Caffeine cutoff adaptation based on your sleep quality PRIVACY FIRST - No account, no login, no email required - All data stored locally on your device using Hive - No tracking, no ads, no third-party analytics - RevenueCat handles subscription transactions only; no personal data sent Shift Meal Timer provides meal-timing guidance based on your shift schedule and general nutrition principles. It is not a substitute for medical or dietary advice from a qualified clinician or registered dietitian. Adapt the suggestions to your personal needs and consult a clinician or registered dietitian for individual recommendations. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

ShiftRhythm

This app helps night shift workers optimize their sleep and light exposure based on their unique roster. It provides personalized guidance for sleep, naps, and light timing to align with your body clock and manage sleep debt.

Highlights
  • Personalized sleep and nap timing
  • Light exposure guidance
  • Circadian rhythm dial
  • Sleep score and debt tracking
  • Roster presets and custom schedules
  • Apple Watch app and widgets
Features
Read full description

Night shifts flipped your sleep? Enter your roster and ShiftRhythm tells you when to sleep, when to nap, and when to seek or avoid light โ€” today. WHAT IT DOES โ€ข 24-hour body-clock dial โ€” see your estimated melatonin onset (DLMO) and biological night (CBTmin) at a glance โ€ข Light, nap & caffeine guidance โ€” timed to your circadian rhythm and updated as your shifts change โ€ข Sleep score, sleep debt & recovery โ€” last night's sleep plus HRV and resting heart rate from Apple Watch, telling you whether to push or recover โ€ข Presets that match real rosters โ€” Panama 2-2-3 schedule (day/night), Pitman, DuPont, Fire 48/96, 12-hour rotating shifts, plus Korean and Japanese patterns. Or build your own custom rotation โ€ข Melatonin timing card (optional) โ€” an informational window based on your estimated body clock. Not a recommendation to take melatonin; talk to your doctor or pharmacist first BUILT FOR SHIFT WORKERS Whether you're a night shift nurse, a firefighter on 48/96, a plant operator on a DuPont rotation, or a driver on a rotating roster โ€” ShiftRhythm adapts to your schedule, not the other way around. โ€ข Tap any calendar day to correct that day's shift โ€ข Works from your schedule alone โ€” no Apple Watch required โ€ข Apple Watch app and widgets included; available in English, Spanish, Korean, and Japanese PRIVATE BY DESIGN โ€ข No account. No server. Your data stays on your phone. โ€ข All circadian math runs on-device โ€” health data never leaves your iPhone โ€ข No ads, no tracking PRICING โ€ข 30-day free trial โ€” full features, no account needed โ€ข Then Monthly or Annual (Annual saves vs. monthly), or a one-time Lifetime purchase if you'd rather not subscribe โ€ข Subscriptions auto-renew; cancel anytime in Settings > Apple Account > Subscriptions Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://yoonspower.github.io/shiftrhythm/privacy.html ShiftRhythm is for general wellness and reference only. It is not a medical device and does not diagnose, treat, or monitor any medical condition. Values shown are estimates and may be inaccurate. Consult a professional for health concerns.

Screenshots

Shift Meal Timer4 screens
ShiftRhythm4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: ShiftRhythm at every 2 days against Shift Meal Timer's every 2 months. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. Shift Meal Timer sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $4.99 per month and ShiftRhythm sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Shift Meal Timer ships an update every 2 months, ShiftRhythm every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on September 10, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference ยท 7 level
Shift Meal Timer versus ShiftRhythm: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShift Meal TimerShiftRhythm
PriceFreeFree
Positive reviewsโ€”100.0% of reviews
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 days โ€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetizationโ€”Free with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details โ€” not scored
Size29 MB16 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJUHWAN PARKJaeyoun Kim

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Shift Meal Timer

Subscriptions1
  • Pro โ€” Full Access7 Days trial$4.991 Month
3 purchases

ShiftRhythm

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly$2.991 Month
  • Yearly$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$39.99

Questions

Is Shift Meal Timer free?
Shift Meal Timer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ShiftRhythm free?
ShiftRhythm is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Shift Meal Timer or ShiftRhythm have ads?
Neither Shift Meal Timer nor ShiftRhythm shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Shift Meal Timer or ShiftRhythm?
Shift Meal Timer ships an update every 2 months, and ShiftRhythm every 2 days. Most recently, Shift Meal Timer was updated on September 10, 2026 and ShiftRhythm on September 21, 2026.

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