Comparison

shells screen time controls vs Hourally

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

Head to head
About

shells screen time controls

Features
Read full description

Take some of your hours back. Shells shows you where your phone time really goes, then helps you use it a little less. It gives you the whole range, from a gentle nudge to a short pause to a firm block, so you can start gentle and only go firmer for the apps that keep pulling you in. LIGHT: GENTLE NUDGES, NOTHING BLOCKED • Soft Nudges: a Volume Warning at 90% of your daily goal, Usage Milestones as your day adds up, a Daily Check-in Reminder for your streak, and Reach Alerts when you keep reaching for a paused or blocked app. MEDIUM: A SHORT PAUSE BEFORE AN APP OPENS • Mindful Pauses (iOS 26 or later): a Shortcuts automation brings up a calm 15 second breath when you open a chosen app, then you pick how long you'd like it for. Its notifications still come through. • Mindful Pauses + No Notifications: the Screen Time version. The app stays behind a shield between pauses, which can also keep its notifications out of the way. • Exercise Unlock: a few squats or a plank first, counted on your iPhone by the camera. • Steps Unlock: a short walk first. • Quick Session: an optional 20 second pass for a quick reply. STRICT: APPS STAY CLOSED WHEN YOU NEED THEM TO • Morning Block: keep your phone down first thing, apart from the essentials you pick. • App Limits: a daily allowance. Once it's used up, the app stays blocked until tomorrow, with 5 minutes of Emergency access if you really need it. • Scheduled Blocks: close apps at set times, like 9 to 5 on weekdays. • Location Blocks: block apps at the places you choose, or allow them only there. • NFC Locks: apps stay locked until you tap your own NFC sticker. AND A FEW EXTRAS • Holiday Mode: pause or relax any control while you're away. Everything switches back on by itself after the last day you pick. • Focus Sessions: block apps for a set time, with a Lock Screen countdown. • Calm browsing: open Instagram, YouTube, X, TikTok, Facebook and Reddit inside Shells with the parts you choose hidden, like the feed, Reels or Shorts. • Widgets: time left today, trends, the apps you choose, and one-tap Focus Sessions. SEE YOUR DAY CLEARLY • Three rings for productivity, screen time and a daily health score. • An hour by hour chart, pickups, a 30-day heatmap and a closer look at any app. • If you like, a timeline of the places where you use your phone most. YOUR DATA Your screen time, places and location history stay on your iPhone. What goes online: your optional Sign in with Apple account, referrals and feedback (Supabase), Pro status (RevenueCat), and product analytics with a device ID and your account ID (Statsig), never your screen time or location. Turn on iCloud backup and your settings, check-in notes, places and recent location history go to your own iCloud. We never sell your data. SHELLS AND PRO Each app you pause, each limit or block, each NFC Lock group and each Calm browsing site uses a Shell. Everyone starts with 1, and inviting friends earns up to 2 more. A free account adds basic Insights. Shells Pro gives you unlimited Shells, so every control runs at once, plus every Insights card. Widgets and Holiday Mode are free, and every control works on the free plan using your Shells. Pro comes as Monthly, Annual or Lifetime (one-time purchase). Annual and Lifetime have launch pricing, and new Monthly and Annual subscribers get a 1-month free trial (eligibility applies), until 31 December 2026 unless changed or extended. Payment is charged to your Apple ID. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the period ends; manage them in your App Store account settings. WHAT YOU NEED iOS 18 or later, Screen Time access and notifications (the Screen Time pause opens from a notification). Mindful Pauses via Shortcuts need iOS 26 or later. Location, Motion, Camera and NFC are optional. Privacy Policy: https://consciousscreentime.netlify.app/privacy.html Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Hourally

This app helps you regain control of your screen time by setting hourly limits for specific applications. It offers customizable time blocks that reset every hour, with optional features like app scheduling and a "closed till midnight" mode. Classic quotes appear when time is up to encourage mindfulness.

Highlights
  • Hourly app time limits
  • Customizable time blocks
  • App-specific time allocation
  • Scheduled app usage
  • "Closed till midnight" mode
  • Motivational quotes
  • Hour Key for extended access
Read full description

Hourally is the simple way to get your hours back. Pick your hourly limit: 1, 3, 5, 10 or 12 minutes. Pick the apps that pull you away. Your blocks reset every hour, right on the hour. When time's up, a classic quote pulls you back. No daily budget to blow by lunch. Just a few minutes, every hour, so you can check in and get back to your life. A TIME FOR EACH APP Give every app its own time. Your apps, your minutes, and it all resets every hour. Apps you don't change keep your usual time. Included with Hourally Plus. WHY WE MADE HOURALLY The apps we love, like social media, news and entertainment, aren't the problem. It's how much time they quietly take, while the things that matter most keep waiting: family, relationships, the workout plan you've been wanting to start, the business idea you've had on the back burner, the garage you've been meaning to clean. We live so much on our phones. It's time to get our hours back! So we made Hourally simple, with no thinking involved. No graphs, no extras. Just a set amount of time for your apps that resets every hour, so you can get back to what's important. A NOTE FROM THE CREATOR I've always found quotes motivating. With so many things fighting for our attention, a simple quote can reel us back in. A few words can give you strength, peace, a hard lesson, or real understanding. That's why every time an app's time is up, Hourally shows you one. CLOSED TILL MIDNIGHT Done for the day? One tap locks every app you chose until midnight. No undo, no excuses. At 12:00 AM your apps open back up with your regular hourly minutes. Included with Hourally Plus. SCHEDULE Put your apps on a schedule. Pick the hours Hourally is off, the same every day or different by day, and your hourly limits run the rest of the time. Included with Hourally Plus. HOUR KEY Sometimes an app really has to open. Once an hour, use your Hour Key on a locked app's screen to open it for 5 more minutes. With Hourally Plus, you get 2 keys every hour. HOURALLY PLUS Give every app its own time, set your way. Plus also lets you pick up to 20 apps, put them on a schedule and use 2 Hour Keys every hour, and adds Closed Till Midnight. Hourally is free for 2 apps. Choose yearly, with a 3-day free trial, or weekly. Payment is charged to your Apple Account when you confirm your purchase, or when the free trial ends unless you cancel at least 24 hours before. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel anytime in your Apple Account settings. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://hourally.com/privacy.html Bring life back.

Screenshots

shells screen time controls4 screens
Hourally4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: shells screen time controls at none against Hourally's shown. Hourally's advantage is update cadence (daily vs every 3 weeks). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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. shells screen time controls sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Hourally sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

shells screen time controls ships an update every 3 weeks, Hourally daily. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
shells screen time controls versus Hourally: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parametershells screen time controlsHourally
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—5 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksDaily — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Free with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS18.017.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size99 MB20 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAndi YaoNathaniel Cowan

In-app purchases

3 purchases

shells screen time controls

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Monthly1 Month trial$4.991 Month
  • Pro Annual1 Month trial$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • Pro Lifetime$49.99
6 purchases

Hourally

Subscriptions5
  • Hourally Plus (Monthly)$5.991 Month
  • Hourally Plus (Weekly)2 variants$9.997 Days
  • Hourally Plus (Yearly)$24.991 Year
Show 2 more
  • Hourally Plus (Yearly)7 Days trial$39.991 Year
  • Hourally Plus (Yearly)3 Days trial$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • Hourally Plus (Lifetime)$69.99

Questions

Is shells screen time controls free?
shells screen time controls is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Hourally free?
Hourally is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do shells screen time controls or Hourally have ads?
Hourally shows ads; shells screen time controls does not.
Which is updated more often, shells screen time controls or Hourally?
shells screen time controls ships an update every 3 weeks, and Hourally daily. Most recently, shells screen time controls was updated on October 25, 2026 and Hourally on October 29, 2026.

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