Comparison

GlassTime vs Gentle Start

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

Head to head
About

GlassTime

Features
Read full description

GlassTime is a focus timer that feels calm, immersive, and distraction-free. Instead of numbers counting down, your time materializes into glass blocks — quietly, beautifully, one breath at a time. You don’t watch a timer. You build something. Whether you’re studying, working, reading, or simply trying to stay present, GlassTime creates a subtle sense of progress that keeps you focused without pressure. FEATURES • Real Liquid Glass focus surfaces, built for iOS 26 • Calm aurora backgrounds that adapt as you progress • Lock Screen + Dynamic Island — glance-able, never pulling you back • Apple Watch companion with the same glass blocks on your wrist • 15, 25, 45 or 60-minute sessions • Apple Health integration — sessions save as mindful minutes (we never read your Health data) • Private by default — no account, no tracking, no ads GlassTime is not just a timer. It’s a calmer way to focus.

About

Gentle Start

This app provides a simple, one-tap timer to help overcome procrastination. It focuses on the act of starting, counting up from zero without pressure or goals. Designed for those who struggle with initiating tasks, it offers a calm experience with visual themes and ambient sounds.

Highlights
  • One-tap timer start
  • Upward counting timer
  • Living themes with animations
  • Ambient soundscapes
  • Live Activities integration
  • No streaks or goals
Features
Read full description

Starting is the hardest part. Gentle Start makes it one tap. When a task feels too big to begin, this is the smallest possible push. Open the app, tap once, and a calm focus timer counts up from zero. That's it - you've started, and starting was the whole battle. There's no goal to reach. No streak to keep alive. No countdown racing you to a finish line. Gentle Start counts UP, not down - so there's nothing to fail and no way to fall behind. Stay thirty seconds or thirty minutes. Both count. Both are real. HOW IT WORKS - Tap to begin: one button, no setup, no plan, no account. - The timer counts up quietly inside a living, animated scene. Nothing on screen pressures you - it's just proof that you're doing it. - Stop whenever it feels right. You showed up, and that's enough. WHY IT'S DIFFERENT Most focus timers and productivity apps are built around finishing - streaks, daily goals, charts, pomodoro countdowns, reminders that nag. For a brain that already feels behind, that pressure is the very thing that makes starting feel impossible. So Gentle Start leaves it out. No metrics staring back at you. No guilt. No catching up. Just a gentle way across the one line that actually matters: from not-started to started. WHO IT'S FOR Made for procrastinators, people with ADHD and executive dysfunction, students facing down an assignment or a long study session, writers staring at a blank page, and anyone who knows the strange, heavy weight of simply beginning. Whether you call it procrastination, task paralysis, or "I just can't start" - if "just start" has never once worked as advice, this was built for you. CALM BY DESIGN - 28 living themes: drifting clouds, falling snow, rising bubbles, a quiet night sky, and more - soft animated scenes that are easy on the eyes while you work. Or pick random and come back to a fresh space each session. - Ambient soundscapes: rain, fireplace, forest, and other gentle audio to ease you into focus. - A companion while you work: a tiny animated sun keeps you company in the Dynamic Island and on your Lock Screen during a session - with a whole sky of suns to choose from. - Home Screen widgets and Live Activities keep your session calm and glanceable without opening the app. - Works with Siri and the Action Button, so you can start without even looking. WHAT GENTLE START WILL NEVER DO - No streaks - No daily goals - No guilt, no shame - No ads - No subscriptions - No account or sign-up - No tracking Your sessions stay on your device. There's nothing to log into, and nothing watching you work. Gentle Start isn't here to make you do more. It's here to make starting feel possible, especially on the days it doesn't. Tap once. Start small. That counts. Gentle Start is on iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. Wherever you are, make your next start a gentle one.

Screenshots

GlassTime4 screens
Gentle Start4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: GlassTime at daily against Gentle Start's every 3 days. Gentle Start's advantage is iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26.0). On price, 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

Both are free to download. GlassTime sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and Gentle Start sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

GlassTime ships an update daily, Gentle Start every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on September 26, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
GlassTime versus Gentle Start: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGlassTimeGentle Start
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Number of ratings—1 — better
Update frequencyDaily — betterEvery 3 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS26.018.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size29 MB46 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFelipe C CanhameiroJOHNNY LI

In-app purchases

4 purchases

GlassTime

One-time4
  • Minute Tip$0.99
  • Session Tip$2.99
  • Hour Tip$4.99
Show 1 more
  • Deep Tip$9.99
1 purchases

Gentle Start

One-time1
  • Gentle Start Premium$4.99

Questions

Is GlassTime free?
GlassTime is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Gentle Start free?
Gentle Start is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do GlassTime or Gentle Start have ads?
Neither GlassTime nor Gentle Start shows ads.
Which is updated more often, GlassTime or Gentle Start?
GlassTime ships an update daily, and Gentle Start every 3 days. Most recently, GlassTime was updated on September 26, 2026 and Gentle Start on October 1, 2026.

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