Comparison

CLEPSYDRA vs Focal

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

Head to head
About

CLEPSYDRA

Features
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CLEPSYDRA is a quiet sequential timer for routines, focused work, study, practice, and any day that refuses to go exactly as planned. Instead of setting separate alarms, restarting timers, or forcing your life into rigid calendar blocks, you create a simple chain of tasks with durations. CLEPSYDRA runs them one after another, shows your progress visually, and helps you keep moving through your plan. Think of it as an upgrade to the Pomodoro technique. Classic Pomodoro timers work well when nothing interrupts you. CLEPSYDRA is built for real days: interruptions, delays, unfinished tasks, changing priorities, and the small chaos of ordinary life. If something cannot be finished now, you can send it back to the queue and continue. Your session can bend without breaking. The goal is simple: get everything done, one task after another, even when the day interrupts you. At the end, CLEPSYDRA gives you a clear session report: what you planned, what actually happened, how long things took, and what remained unfinished. Over time, this helps you understand your real working rhythm and plan future sessions more honestly. CLEPSYDRA is also AI-ready. Your AI assistant can easily create a list of tasks and durations, and you can paste the whole plan into CLEPSYDRA at once. Features: โ€ข Create a sequence of timed tasks โ€ข Paste multiple tasks at once โ€ข Move through your plan one task after another โ€ข Handle interruptions without losing the session โ€ข Finish a task later and return it to the queue โ€ข easily extend or reduce the active timer by one minute โ€ข Receive iOS notifications when a locked-screen timer finishes โ€ข Review and share a session report โ€ข Works locally, without accounts or sign-in CLEPSYDRA is intentionally minimal. No feeds, no tracking, no gamification, no complicated setup, and nothing to learn. Open it, add your tasks, start the first one, and the idea becomes clear immediately.

About

Focal

Features
Read full description

See the time you have left. Focal turns a countdown into something you can look at: a colored disk that shrinks as your time runs out โ€” the same idea as the timer on a classroom wall, in your pocket, on your lock screen, and on your desk while the phone charges. ONE THING AT A TIME A routine in Focal is a chain of short steps, each with its own length. Focal shows you the step you are on and nothing else, then moves to the next one by itself. Morning launch, shutdown, cleaning sprint, a study block โ€” start with ten ready-made routines or build your own. TIME YOU CAN SEE, EVERYWHERE โ€ข Full-screen timer in three shapes: disk, bar, or pie โ€ข Live Activity and Dynamic Island โ€” the countdown keeps running on your lock screen โ€ข Home and Lock Screen widgets for your next routine โ€ข Put the phone on its side while charging and StandBy becomes a desk timer โ€ข Start from Siri, the Action Button, or Control Center BUILT FOR THE WAY ATTENTION ACTUALLY WORKS โ€ข Gentle haptics at the halfway mark and in the final minute โ€ข When time is up the clock keeps counting, and Focal taps you on the shoulder at five and fifteen minutes โ€” the alarm for when you fall into something too deep โ€ข Add a minute without losing your place โ€ข Eight themes, including high-contrast and a quiet monochrome one NOTHING LEAVES YOUR PHONE. No account. No cloud. Nothing you make ever leaves your phone โ€” the timer works in airplane mode, because it never needed the internet. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

CLEPSYDRA4 screens
Focal4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Focal at Free against CLEPSYDRA's $2.99. CLEPSYDRA's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On update cadence, ads and device support 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

Focal is free to download; CLEPSYDRA costs $2.99 up front. Focal sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. CLEPSYDRA asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

CLEPSYDRA ships an update every 2 days, Focal every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and September 18, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences ยท 3 level
CLEPSYDRA versus Focal: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCLEPSYDRAFocal
Price$2.99Free โ€” better
Update frequencyEvery 2 days โ€” betterEvery 3 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo โ€” betterYes
DevicesiPhone, iPod โ€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.0 โ€” better18.0
Further details โ€” not scored
Size21 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMichal JuraszekHo Van Dai

In-app purchases

None

CLEPSYDRA

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Focal

Subscriptions2
  • Focal Pro โ€” Monthly$0.991 Month
  • Focal Pro โ€” Yearly$7.991 Year
One-time1
  • Focal Pro โ€” Lifetime$24.99

Questions

Is CLEPSYDRA free?
CLEPSYDRA costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Focal free?
Focal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do CLEPSYDRA or Focal have ads?
Neither CLEPSYDRA nor Focal shows ads.
Which is updated more often, CLEPSYDRA or Focal?
CLEPSYDRA ships an update every 2 days, and Focal every 3 days. Most recently, CLEPSYDRA was updated on October 1, 2026 and Focal on September 18, 2026.

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