Comparison

Lock Learn vs Glim

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

Head to head
About

Lock Learn

Learn new vocabulary effortlessly by having words and definitions appear on your phone's lock screen every 10 minutes. Create custom word lists for any subject, from languages to professional terms, and tap to explore them further. Start with 20 free words and unlock unlimited access with a one-time purchase.

Highlights
  • Lock screen vocabulary widget
  • Customizable word lists by topic
  • Definitions and grammar labels
  • Tap to view word details
  • One-time purchase for unlimited words
Features
Read full description

Lock Learn puts a vocabulary word on your lock screen and swaps it out every 10 minutes, all day. You're checking your phone constantly anyway, so you might as well pick something up in the meantime. There are no study sessions, no streaks to maintain, and no extra time required. How it works: Add the Lock Learn widget to your lock screen. From that point on, every time you glance at your phone you'll see a different word from your list along with its definition and grammar type. The widget refreshes in the background every 10 minutes without you doing anything. Build your own word lists: Lock Learn isn't tied to a preset word bank. You create topics for whatever you're working on: a language you're studying, industry terminology, SAT prep words, culinary terms, anything you want. Every entry includes a definition and a grammar label so you understand how to actually use the word, not just what it means. Tap to go deeper: Spot a word you want to explore? Tap the widget and Lock Learn opens directly to that word's topic so you can review, edit, or add related words. Free to start: You get up to 20 vocabulary words completely free, with no trial period and no expiration date. If you want more, a small one-time purchase unlocks unlimited words and there's no subscription. Features: - Lock screen widget that rotates vocabulary every 10 minutes - Organize words into topics and categories - Grammar labels included with every entry - Tap-to-open deep link goes directly to the word currently on your lock screen - Free up to 20 words, one-time purchase for unlimited

About

Glim

Read full description

Learning that happens while you glance, not while you study. Glim puts one word on your Lock Screen and Home Screen. You check your phone dozens of times a day, and every one of those glances becomes a repetition. Learning continues on days you never open the app. ■ The widget is the product, not a feature The Lock Screen widget holds one word and one meaning. No progress bar, no streak, no app icon. Every pixel goes to the word — if it doesn't read in one second, the widget gets deleted. ■ Answer without opening the app Tap "Know" or "Not yet" right on the Home Screen widget. Your progress is recorded and the widget moves to the next word. The app never opens. ■ A different word each time you look The app precomputes a queue that the widget simply reads. No spinner on your Lock Screen, and it works with no network at all. ■ Your vocabulary map Twelve areas — emotion, food, work, nature and more — show what you already know in one screen. A one-minute test at the start fills the map in, so you never begin at zero. The empty tiles tell you what to do next. ■ A wrong answer becomes a sentence, not a penalty Glim takes the meaning you picked and writes the sentence it would actually produce, side by side with the real one. Sentences like "I ate a bank this morning" are hard to forget. ■ Feel Card momentum, a soft tap on a correct answer, and a tone that rises a semitone with every card in a row. You'll do this hundreds of times a day, so the feel of one swipe decides everything. Sound and haptics can be turned off completely. ■ Built on concepts, not language pairs A Korean learning English and an American learning Korean read the same data in opposite directions. Switching your target language doesn't erase what you've built. ■ Counted honestly iOS never tells an app whether a widget was actually seen. So Glim labels widget exposure as "brushed past (estimated)" rather than "viewed", and never weighs an estimate the same as real study. No account. Your progress stays on your device.

Screenshots

Lock Learn4 screens
Glim4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Glim at none against Lock Learn's 1. Lock Learn's advantage is update cadence (every 2 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, ads, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Lock Learn sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Glim asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Lock Learn ships an update every 2 days, Glim every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
Lock Learn versus Glim: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLock LearnGlim
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (3 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings3 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 days — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS18.617.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB19 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMaxQ Consulting Services LLCdae seung kim

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Lock Learn

One-time1
  • LockLearn$1.99
None

Glim

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Lock Learn free?
Lock Learn is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Glim free?
Glim is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Lock Learn or Glim have ads?
Neither Lock Learn nor Glim shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Lock Learn or Glim?
Lock Learn ships an update every 2 days, and Glim every 2 weeks. Most recently, Lock Learn was updated on October 19, 2026 and Glim on October 29, 2026.

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