EarnLock vs Takeback
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
EarnLock
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It's 11pm again, and you couldn't name a single thing you saw. You opened one app for a minute, and the evening went with it. Willpower lost that argument, the way it usually does at that hour. EarnLock hands the decision to your daily activity goal instead, and Apple Health keeps the count. MOVE FIRST. SCROLL LATER. Pick the apps that keep eating your evenings. Set a daily goal in steps, or in active minutes or active calories with Premium. Until you reach it, those apps stay locked. Reach it, and they open by themselves until midnight. Half a goal still counts. Halfway there, some of your locked apps open for about an hour, once a day. WHERE THE KEY LIVES Other blockers leave the key in your pocket: a password you set yourself, or a delay you can wait out. EarnLock keeps it on the far side of your daily goal. You can always get in. You have to move first. A WEEK OF WATCHING FIRST For your first week, EarnLock blocks nothing. It watches, so you see your real pattern before any lock begins. WHAT YOU GET • Lock any app or category with Apple's own Screen Time controls • Open a locked app and see how many steps stand between you and it • Answer "what am I actually looking for right now?" in one tap • A math-gated emergency unlock for real needs, once a day • Every widget in every size for free, including full-page widgets on iOS 27 • Available in 33 languages PRIVATE BY DESIGN Nothing leaves your iPhone. You don't create an account, and EarnLock has no server or analytics to send your data to. It's made for locking your own apps on your own iPhone. FREE TO START Free forever: lock one app or category, earn with steps, and use every widget. Premium adds: • Unlimited locked apps and categories • Active minutes and active calories as your goal • Smart Schedules, with separate goals for workdays, evenings, and weekends • Insights • Streak shields: rest days you bank by going further • A Live Activity with a Dynamic Island countdown • Focus sessions • A weekly bypass for the goal cooldown • Alternate app icons Monthly and Yearly each start with a one-week free trial. Or pay once for Lifetime. Every plan works with Family Sharing, for you and up to five family members. Start with one app for free. Move first. Scroll later. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation. 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/
Takeback
This app uses an AI coach to help you quit doomscrolling and regain control of your phone usage. It offers various modes to restrict access to social apps, requiring valid reasons for entry and learning your scrolling habits to adjust your plan.
- AI-powered screen time coaching
- Customizable app access modes
- Reason-based app entry
- Adaptive daily limits
- Earn extra time through activities
- Focus blocks and proof of activity
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Takeback is Sarge, an AI coach who lets you into your social apps when you have a real reason and cuts off the doomscrolling. Not another app blocker. Other blockers lock everything, so you delete them by Friday. Or they're easy to skip. Sarge is tougher, but fair. A REAL REASON GETS YOU IN DMing a friend? Work? You get in. Doomscrolling? He cuts you off. He knows how long you've already scrolled today. 5 MODES. FIND YOURS. Some days your apps stay open, and the second you start doomscrolling, they lock. Some days every open costs a short wait while he tries to talk you out of it. On Blackout days, only a strong reason or a real emergency gets you in. Sarge picks your first modes, then you choose the one that works. HARDCORE WHEN YOU NEED IT On Hardcore days you say it out loud. Hold to talk, tell him why you need your apps, and he talks back. HE LEARNS YOU How you scroll. When you slip up. Then he adjusts your plan, and your daily limit steps down to your goal. YOUR ANTI-ALGORITHM Thousands of engineers. Billions of dollars. One job: keep you scrolling. Willpower can't beat that. It was never your fault. Sarge is an AI on your side against a billion-dollar feed. WANT MORE TIME? EARN IT. Go for a walk, work out, touch real grass, or hold a focus block. He checks the proof: your steps, a fresh photo, or 45 minutes with no unlocks. Pictures of pictures don't work on him. WHAT CHANGES Evenings that end in sleep, not a 2am feed. An attention span you can feel coming back. Hours that used to vanish with nothing to show for them. A phone you finally trust yourself with. WHO'S BEHIND IT Takeback is run by Stan Tatarnykov. He built games played by 80M+ people, so he knows how apps keep you hooked. Now he's on your side. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://trytakeback.com/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: EarnLock at none against Takeback's shown. Takeback's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs fortnightly). 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
Both are free to download. EarnLock sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Takeback sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
EarnLock ships an update fortnightly, Takeback weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | EarnLock | Takeback |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | — | 75.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | — | 2 — better |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | — | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, Apple Watch — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 16 MB | 88 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Antti Aittamaa | Gatarn Games Ltd. |
In-app purchases
EarnLock
- EarnLock Premium Monthly7 Days trial$1.991 Month
- EarnLock Premium Yearly7 Days trial$9.991 Year
- EarnLock Premium Lifetime$19.99
Takeback
- Takeback Weekly Plan$4.997 Days
- Takeback Monthly Plan$8.991 Month
- Takeback Monthly Plan$9.991 Month
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- Takeback Pro Weekly$9.997 Days
- Takeback Yearly Plan$19.991 Year
- Takeback Annual3 Days trial$24.991 Year
- Takeback Annual$44.991 Year
- Takeback Annual3 Days trial$44.991 Year
- Takeback Annual Plan3 Days trial$59.991 Year
- Takeback Pro Annual$69.991 Year









