Comparison

Hourlyo vs Precursor

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

Head to head
About

Hourlyo

Read full description

Hourlyo helps freelancers and independent professionals track time, plan their day, manage client work and export clean reports - without switching between multiple tools. Whether you are working on client projects, preparing for meetings, tracking billable hours or reviewing your weekly focus patterns, Hourlyo gives you a calm workspace for your solo workday. KEY FEATURES Smart Time Tracking Start, pause and log work sessions in seconds. Keep a clear record of where your time actually goes. Projects & Clients Organize work by project and client, so every tracked hour has context. Agenda & Daily Focus Plan your day, prepare for meetings and keep important tasks close to your tracked work. Focus Insights See when you do your best work, spot context switching patterns and understand your most productive hours. Clean Reports Review daily, weekly and monthly summaries. Export clear reports when you need to share progress or support your billing. Built for Independent Work Hourlyo is designed for freelancers, consultants, designers, developers, writers and solo professionals who want less tool switching and more clarity. WHY HOURLYO? • Track work without breaking your flow • Protect billable client hours • Understand your focus patterns • Keep projects, clients, meetings and reports in one place • Replace scattered notes and spreadsheets with a focused workflow Hourlyo is not a heavy team management platform. It is a focused time tracking and productivity workspace for people who run their own workday. Track your time. Own your day. Subscription Information: Hourlyo offers auto-renewable subscriptions. Payment will be charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions automatically renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can manage or cancel your subscription in your App Store account settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://hourlyo.com/privacy-policy Terms of Service: https://hourlyo.com/terms-of-service Refund Policy: https://hourlyo.com/refund-policy

About

Precursor

This app offers a unique approach to screen time management by setting hourly limits for app usage. It aims to break the cycle of daily limit exhaustion and impulsive overrides by providing a sustainable, guilt-free solution that resets limits every hour.

Highlights
  • Set hourly app limits
  • Automatic hourly limit resets
  • Customizable limits by day
  • Friction to prevent impulsive overrides
  • Private by design, on-device processing
  • Optional Precursor+ upgrade
Features
Read full description

Most screen time solutions give you one daily limit. Often we spend the whole limit by late morning, leaving us locked out of our apps for the rest of the day and feeling stranded; all it takes is one vulnerable moment and we hit that tempting "Ignore Limit For Today" button. That one impulsive moment costs you not only your time, but also the motivation to keep working on whatever it is you meant to do. PRECURSOR BREAKS THE CYCLE With Precursor you can finally set an hourly app limit. For example, you allot yourself five minutes of social media scrolling per hour, and you can trust that Precursor will reset that limit at the top of the next hour. Every hour, all day, automatically. You get the brainrot break you needed, but the scroll ends right before it turns into a mindless habit. Your brain doesn't panic because you know you'll get more time to scroll in just a short hour. So you never have to feel guilty for ignoring a limit ever again. No streaks. No guilt. No shame. Just a sustainable screen time solution your day can lean on. HOW IT WORKS - Pick the apps (or group of apps) that you'd like to limit and give them an hourly allowance: 5, 10, or 15 minutes (Precursor+ extends limits up to 30). - Pick the specific days you want your limits to run (for example, on weekdays you can set stricter limits and on weekends you can set more lenient limits). - When the allowance is spent, those apps get blocked. - At the top of the next hour, your limit resets. - You set your limits once and that screen time rhythm repeats every hour, all day, automatically; so you never have to think about them again. - Precursor also allows you to stop your limits, for whatever reason, but we add some friction to help you in those impulsive moments: 1) Before stopping your limits Precursor will prompt you to write a short reflection on why you need to in this moment. 2) You can add a passcode to lock in your limit (consider allowing a trusted person in your life to set it for you if you know you'll likely bypass it). 3) Unlike other screen time solutions that give you an "ignore limit" prompt right there in the blocked app screen, Precursor requires that you intentionally open the Precursor app to stop your limits. Restrictions and punishments don't work. They never have. Precursor is built on one principle: Real change comes from one's own ability to be honest and accountable. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Precursor is built on Apple's Screen Time technology. Your app choices are opaque tokens: we never see which apps you pick, and neither can anyone else. Your usage history stays on your phone, and Insights are computed on-device. There are no accounts and no ads. Optional, anonymous usage analytics are off unless you turn them on, and they still never include which apps you choose. HONEST BY DEFAULT Precursor is free to use, with an optional Precursor+ upgrade for more groups, other reset windows, longer limits, scheduled active hours, and Deep Focus sessions. Available as a one-time Lifetime purchase if you prefer to own your productivity tools rather than subscribe. Monthly and Yearly both start with one month free. No subscription is required to keep the core, and the terms are spelled out plainly before anything renews. Please note: Deleting Precursor removes every limit. Precursor is an independently developed app by a one-person studio, Precursor Labs. Precursor+ Monthly and Yearly are auto-renewable subscriptions. Payment is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation of purchase. A subscription renews automatically unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the current period ends, and you can manage or cancel anytime in your Apple ID settings. Lifetime is a one-time purchase, not a subscription. Privacy Policy: https://precursorlabs.studio/privacy.html Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Apple's Terms and Policies: http://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services

Screenshots

Hourlyo4 screens
Precursor4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: Hourlyo at 15.1 against Precursor's 17.6. 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. Hourlyo sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Precursor sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
Hourlyo versus Precursor: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHourlyoPrecursor
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—5 — better
Update frequency—Every 6 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Freemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.1 — better17.6
Further details — not scored
Size39 MB17 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBAHADIR TEZERPrecursor Labs

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Hourlyo

Subscriptions3
  • Hourlyo Propospals$1.991 Month
  • Monthly Subscription$4.991 Month
  • Yearly Subscription$48.491 Year
3 purchases

Precursor

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly1 Month trial$4.991 Month
  • Yearly1 Month trial$49.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$99.99

Questions

Is Hourlyo free?
Hourlyo is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Precursor free?
Precursor is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Hourlyo or Precursor have ads?
Neither Hourlyo nor Precursor shows ads.

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