Comparison

App Blocker vs Sanctum

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

Head to head
About

App Blocker

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App Blocker: Lockscreen helps you stop opening distracting apps on autopilot. Pick the apps or websites you want to block, choose a small task, and start a lock. Your task gate keeps the selected distractions blocked until the timer is finished and you mark the task complete. Use it for work, study, bedtime, morning routines, or any moment when one tap turns into twenty minutes. Main features: - Block selected apps and websites with Apple's Screen Time permission - Choose common unlock tasks like clear desk, drink water, write one sentence, breathe, or open homework - Add custom tasks and custom timers - Pick gentle, timed, or stricter lock styles - Use quick lock templates for work, study, sleep, and emergency moments - Track private stats like completed locks, tasks, and protected minutes - Restore purchases and manage subscription status from Settings The app is ADHD-aware but not medical treatment. It does not diagnose, treat, or cure ADHD or any health condition. It is a practical productivity tool for creating friction before distracting apps. Privacy: the app is designed to keep lock rules, task choices, and stats on device. It does not read messages, passwords, or content inside the apps you block. Terms of use: https://smartaitomation.github.io/appblockerlockscreen/terms.html

About

Sanctum

This app helps you regain focus by locking your phone during designated sessions with no easy bypass. It offers scheduled blocking and daily limits to manage app usage and includes a reflective practice for early exits.

Highlights
  • Unbreakable session lock
  • Scheduled blocking
  • Daily app limits
  • Reflective early exit practice
  • Immersive themes
  • Zero configuration
Features
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Two months. That's what four hours of screen time a day costs you every year. Sanctum sets you free. Press start and your phone locks. No pause. No snooze. No "five more minutes." There is no button that lets you back in. Most app blockers leave an easy back door. A skip. An "extra time" unlock. So the scroll always wins, because it always can, in one tap. Sanctum has no quick exit. Leaving early takes a short mindful practice first. Weakness is never one tap away. WHY THE COMMITMENT MATTERS Willpower fails when you need it most. Cutting screen time is a decision your phone makes you re-take every minute. Sanctum moves the choice to before you start, then holds the line. HOW IT WORKS Choose a duration. Press start. Sanctum will block apps system-wide until the timer runs out. Leaving early means completing a short reflection first, and by then the urge has usually passed. No categories, no decisions once you begin. Need one app for a few minutes? Unblock it: it opens, the timer runs, and the app blocker comes back on its own. It is the simplest way to block apps you will ever use. BLOCK APPS ON AUTOPILOT Beyond one-off locks, Sanctum can block apps and cut screen time on its own: - Schedules. Block apps automatically on the days and hours you choose. Work mornings, study blocks, sleep. - Daily App Limits. Set app limits that cap screen time on the apps you pick. Shared budget or one each. When the time runs out, they close until midnight. SOCIAL MEDIA SCREEN TIME, HANDLED Social media is engineered to beat your willpower. Block social media for an hour, put social media behind daily app limits, and your screen time falls without a fight. BUILD BETTER PHONE HABITS Every lock you finish and every urge you resist scores five traits: Stillness, Discipline, Restraint, Grounding and Breath. Watch them rise as your screen time falls. WHEN AN URGE HITS Reach for a blocked app and Sanctum meets you with a moment, not a wall: a short practice. Sit in stillness, breathe it out, walk it off, or write the urge down and watch it burn. By the time it is done the pull is usually gone, and the stress with it. YOU'RE NEVER TRAPPED Calls, the camera and the essential system apps iOS protects keep working, so you can reach someone anytime. Sanctum adds friction to a habit, never a lock on your life. BEAUTIFUL LIVING THEMES Sanctum is built to be experienced. New immersive scenes arrive regularly, each one transporting you into a living natural world, with a large ambient clock that helps calm the mind. Lock your screen time and your phone becomes a beautiful desk clock with calming sleep sounds, not a thing to escape. WHO IT'S FOR - Anyone whose focus is stolen by social media and doomscrolling - ADHD and executive-function struggles, where "just put it down" never works - Anyone whose screen time keeps climbing no matter which app blocker they try PRIVATE BY DESIGN Offline-first and ad-free. No account, no cloud. Sanctum is built on Apple's own Screen Time framework, and your screen time data never leaves your device. FEATURES - Uncompromising system-wide screen time blocker. No pause, no snooze, no one-tap exit - Block apps right now, on a schedule, or behind daily app limits - Hard Mode: the strictest app blocker setting, no unblocks until the timer ends - Timed unblocks: one app opens for a few minutes, then the block returns by itself - Block social media on the days and hours you set - Cap screen time per app with shared or individual app limits - Streaks, medals and five traits that track your progress - Live Activity: your countdown and your unblock, right on your Lock Screen Sanctum is the screen time app for people done negotiating. Block apps, set daily app limits, tame social media, and watch your screen time finally drop. Not just an app blocker. Your sanctuary from your screen. Learn more at https://sanctum.clovinyx.io Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

App Blocker4 screens
Sanctum4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Sanctum at every 6 days against App Blocker's every 2 months. Sanctum also leads on iOS requirement (16.4 vs 18.2). 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. App Blocker sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days and Sanctum sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

App Blocker ships an update every 2 months, Sanctum every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
App Blocker versus Sanctum: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterApp BlockerSanctum
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—3 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 6 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Free with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.216.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size6 MB134 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSmart Automation SRLClovinyx

In-app purchases

2 purchases

App Blocker

Subscriptions2
  • Weekly$3.997 Days
  • Yearly$24.991 Year
4 purchases

Sanctum

Subscriptions3
  • Sanctum Pro Weekly$4.997 Days
  • Sanctum Pro Monthly$9.991 Month
  • Sanctum Pro Yearly$59.991 Year
One-time1
  • Sanctum Pro Lifetime$179.99

Questions

Is App Blocker free?
App Blocker is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Sanctum free?
Sanctum is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do App Blocker or Sanctum have ads?
Neither App Blocker nor Sanctum shows ads.
Which is updated more often, App Blocker or Sanctum?
App Blocker ships an update every 2 months, and Sanctum every 6 days. Most recently, App Blocker was updated on October 5, 2026 and Sanctum on October 16, 2026.

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