Comparison

App Lock vs Dimly

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

Head to head
About

App Lock

Features
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See your focus, don't just lock your Phone. Most focus tools are designed to block distractions. This app focuses on something more important: helping you understand your habits and build lasting, sustainable focus over time. With Focus Reports and Focus Mode, you can gain clear insights into your focus trends, distraction patterns, and usage habits. Move from being constantly interrupted by your phone to gradually taking control of your time. FEATURES Focus Reports The app continuously tracks and analyzes your focus behavior, providing intuitive data insights to help you identify key factors affecting your efficiency. Through these reports, you can monitor: - Focus shielding count - App launch attempts - Category-specific access stats - Focus trend changes - Distraction-prone hour analysis - Detailed unlock history Focus Mode Inspired by the Pomodoro Technique, Focus Mode helps you maintain a healthy rhythm between focused work and breaks. App Lock Quickly select apps that need management and configure exclusive locking modes based on different scenarios, keeping your attention strictly on what truly matters. Contextual Triggers Automatically switch focus modes based on changes in your device's environment, such as: - Connecting to a specific Wi-Fi network - Connecting to a specific Bluetooth device Whether you are at the office, the library, home, or commuting, the app seamlessly adapts to the ideal focus state for your current environment. Quick Triggers To make focusing second nature, the app provides multiple convenient shortcuts to trigger focus mode: - Flip your phone face down - Double/Triple tap the back of your phone - Configure via the Action Button Privacy Protection Beyond managing your focus, we prioritize your privacy. The app supports multitasking preview blurring, minimizing the risk of sensitive information being accidentally exposed in public spaces. WHO IS IT FOR? - Students and exam candidates - Working professionals - Freelancers - Creators and developers - Deep work practitioners - Anyone looking to reduce screen time and phone distractions Focus isnโ€™t about willpower alone. Itโ€™s a skill that can be measured, understood, and continuously improved. Gain insights through data, stay on track with Focus Mode, and reduce distractions with powerful automations. Start taking control of your time today.

About

Dimly

Features
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Your phone is too bright. Not the screen, the pull. Dimly turns it down. Pick the apps, categories and websites that take your hours. When you open one, Dimly's shield appears instead, with a note you wrote to yourself. The app stays closed until your time is up. DIM IN ONE TAP Choose 5, 15, 25, 45 or 60 minutes, or any length up to 8 hours, and start. Ending early is always possible, but Dimly asks first and shows how far you got, because the moment you want out is exactly when one tap is too easy. PLANS THAT RUN ON THEIR OWN Set the hours when the pull is strongest: weekday mornings, deep work, after dinner, in bed. Plans switch on and off by themselves on the days you pick, even when Dimly is closed, and can run past midnight. STRICT MODE Turn it on and, while a session or plan is running, no app can be deleted from your device, Dimly included. No easy way out. WEBSITES TOO Type any address and it is blocked in Safari and other browsers whenever Dimly is dimming. HOURS BACK, EVERY WEEK History shows the time you protected, the sessions you saw through and every time you reached for something paused, so you can watch the pull fade week by week. SEE WHERE THE TIME GOES Screen Time reports show your daily total, pickups, notifications and the apps that took the most, right inside Dimly. YOUR SHIELD, YOUR WORDS Change the shield's title, message, icon and colors, so the note you see is the one that works on you. ALWAYS WITHIN REACH Widgets show what is paused today, a Control Center control starts a session from anywhere, and on iPhone a Live Activity counts down on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island, with an End button. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Dimly works through Apple's Screen Time. The apps you pick stay on your device and Dimly never learns which ones they are. No account needed. iCloud sync of plans and history is optional and off by default. SUBSCRIPTION Dimly Plus unlocks sessions, plans, websites, strict mode and the custom shield. It is available as an auto-renewing subscription (weekly or yearly; a free trial is available to new subscribers on the yearly plan) or as a one-time Lifetime purchase. The price is shown in the app before you confirm. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase, or when the free trial ends. A subscription renews automatically unless auto-renewal is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can manage or cancel it anytime in your Apple Account settings. The Lifetime purchase is a single payment and never renews. Privacy Policy: https://dimlyfocus.app/privacy Terms of Use: https://dimlyfocus.app/terms Apple EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

App Lock4 screens
Dimly4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: App Lock at none against Dimly's 3. On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. Dimly sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. App Lock asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard1 real difference ยท 5 level
App Lock versus Dimly: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterApp LockDimly
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 4 daysโ€”
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo โ€” betterYes
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.6 โ€” better17.0
Further details โ€” not scored
Size33 MB36 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developerๅฎ้”‹ ๅผ Yaysoft LTD

In-app purchases

None

App Lock

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Dimly

Subscriptions2
  • Dimly Plus Weekly$4.997 Days
  • Dimly Plus Yearly1 Month trial$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • Dimly Plus Lifetime$79.99

Questions

Is App Lock free?
App Lock is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Dimly free?
Dimly is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do App Lock or Dimly have ads?
Neither App Lock nor Dimly shows ads.

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