Wait a Minute vs Wait
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Wait a Minute
This app helps build self-control by creating a pause between the impulse to open an app and the action itself. It offers customizable friction tasks like holding the screen or tapping, reflection prompts, and suggestions for alternative activities to reduce compulsive phone use.
- Customizable friction tasks (hold, tap)
- Personalized reflection prompts
- Suggestions for alternative activities
- Per-app settings and intensity adjustment
- Time-of-day and usage-based holds
- Urgent Block for immediate phone lockdown
Read full descriptionHide full description
Wait a Minute — Take Back Your Screen Time You don't need another app blocker. You need a tool that helps you build real self-control. Wait a Minute creates a pause between your impulse and the app you're reaching for. Instead of locking you out, it asks you to wait — giving you the moment you need to decide if you really want to keep scrolling. How It Works When you open a managed app, Wait a Minute steps in with a friction task. You choose what that looks like: Hold Mode: Touch and hold the screen for a set amount of time. The longer you sit with the urge, the more it fades. Tap Mode: Tap the screen a set number of times to unlock. Your progress saves even if you leave and come back. Reflection Prompts: See a personal reminder you wrote to yourself about why you're cutting back. Try Instead Suggestions: Get a nudge toward a better activity — go for a walk, pick up a book, or call a friend. Customize Everything Every app gets its own settings. Set a 5-minute hold for one app and 100 taps for another. Adjust the intensity as your habits change. The app grows with you. Per-app friction type and intensity Usage time limits that trigger friction after a set amount of use Time-of-day holds for overnight or focus hours Phone usage holds that kick in at regular intervals Earn Screen Time: require time in a positive app before unlocking a distracting one Urgent Block Need to lock in right now? Urgent Block shields every app on your phone for a duration you choose — from 15 minutes to 3 hours. Set a friction task to end it early, or commit fully and wait it out. Built on Research Every "Did You Know?" fact inside the app is backed by behavioral science. Friction-based interventions are one of the most effective tools for reducing compulsive phone use. Wait a Minute puts that research in your hands. Privacy First Your data stays on your device. Wait a Minute uses Apple's Screen Time API — we never see which apps you use or what you type. We collect anonymous usage analytics (like how often features are used) through TelemetryDeck, a privacy-focused service that doesn't store IP addresses or track you across apps. No accounts, no ads. Just $4.99/year Less than a cup of coffee for a full year of tools that help you take back your time. No hidden fees, no premium tiers, no upsells. Perfect the time you spend on your phone. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Wait
Read full descriptionHide full description
You know the word or name — of course you do. You can almost taste it, but it won't come up. Wait-Wait is built for exactly that maddeningly frustrating moment. Just describe what you're reaching for — type it or say it out loud — and Wait-Wait suggests the word or name you're after. Tap the right one and it's yours again. Not quite? Add another detail and it tries again, like a friend who's good at this game. But finding the word is only half of it. Wait-Wait quietly saves every word you recover — along with the description you gave it — into your personal Lexicon, so the ones that trip you up can stop tripping you up: • Look Up — describe a word or name, get smart guesses in seconds. • Warmup — a short daily round that re-tests words from your Lexicon, in your own words. • Wait-Loss Center — a one-minute speed drill to trim the "wait" between a thought and the word for it. • Rematch — gentle, spaced check-ins on the words you've found, so they stick. Speak or type, your choice. Hear any word read aloud. No account, no clutter — and it's free. A note on privacy: your descriptions are sent to an AI service to generate the guesses; your speech is transcribed on your device. Wait-Wait doesn't track you. That word has been hiding long enough. Let Wait-Wait help you find it — and remember it next time.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Wait at none against Wait a Minute's 1. Wait a Minute's advantage is iOS requirement (16.6 vs 26.0). On price, ads 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
Both are free to download. Wait a Minute sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $4.99 per year. Wait asks for nothing beyond the download.
| Parameter | Wait a Minute | Wait |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 3 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Weekly | — |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Subscription | — |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.6 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 5 MB | 2 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Nicholas Salmi | David Simon |
In-app purchases
Wait a Minute
- Yearly Access$4.991 Year
Wait
No in-app purchases









