Emphasis vs Focused Work
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Emphasis
This app helps you achieve deep focus using the Pomodoro Technique. It blocks distracting apps, provides ambient sounds, and tracks your focused time to help you understand your work patterns and reach your goals.
- Customizable focus timers
- Distracting app blocking
- Ambient soundscapes
- Focus time statistics
- Focus hours scheduling
- Home screen widgets
- Cross-device synchronization
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Emphasis is an ADHD-friendly Focus Timer. It is built around the principles of the Pomodoro Technique, which in a nutshell are bursts of intentional focused work followed by short breaks. Every couple of hours you take a longer break to recharge and get ready for the next cycle. Following this approach lets you get into the flow state without much effort. Plan your day ahead with time blocks for focused work and start the timer. Emphasis will take care of blocking out distracting apps like social media or video streaming services. It will also provide you with a steady layer of ambient sound that helps your brain feel anchored instead of hunting for the next distraction, because for an ADHD mind, silence can feel restless. Emphasis tracks the time you spent focused and gives you a nice overview of how you spend your days. Use it long enough and you will see patterns that will help you move towards your goals. Emphasis is fully integrated into the Apple ecosystem with Widgets and a watchOS app. You can also use it on your MacBook, all synced together seamlessly. Here is the full list of features: * Customizable focus timers. You define the duration of your focus time, short and long breaks, as well as the length of the focus cycle. You can also set up reminders for each timer. * Block Distracting Apps. You can select the apps that get you out of your flow and Emphasis will block those apps during your focus sessions. * Sonic Spaces. Emphasis comes with a set of ambient sounds & binaural beats. You can fully customize and create ambients that are aimed to aid your focus or relax you during your yoga session. * Statistics. Emphasis tracks your focused time and displays it in the form of interactive stats. Each focus timer has a color assigned to it so you can see how you spend your days at a quick glance at an Emphasis calendar. * Focus hours schedule. Emphasis lets you block out time-wasting apps during your focus hours. I can't tell you how many times this feature brought me back to what matters when my hand reached out for a phone to scroll some social media, only to get reminded by Emphasis that I'm on focus hours. * Widgets. Emphasis comes with a set of widgets that let you start your timers or have your focus time statistics right on your home screen. * Works on your Apple Watch, MacBook & iPad all seamlessly synchronized. https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Focused Work
This app helps users improve focus and productivity through structured timed sessions. It offers customizable timers, goal setting, and distraction blocking to build healthy work habits.
- Customizable focus sessions
- Pomodoro and Flowmodoro templates
- Distraction blocking
- Reflection and goal tracking
- Statistics and charts
- Live Activities and widgets
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## Featured by App Store in 150+ Countries & Regions # Hot This Week # Apps We Love Right Now # Big Apps From Small Teams # New Apps, Features, and Content ## What People Are Saying "A simple, but valuable utility for creating timed focus sessions of productivity." - MacStories "Focused Work helps you stay on track better than ever" - iMore "Focused Work makes it easy to create and manage Focused Sessions." - 9to5Mac "A tool that helps overcome that first step." - Knapsack Focused Work is a powerful timer that helps you focus and be productive. It's purpose-built for people who want to focus for long periods and struggle with this. Add structure to your day with "Focus Sessions" that encourage you to complete goals, tasks, and help you divide your time into Focus, Break, and Prepare stages. Pick from a selection of templates, including a simple timer, Pomodoro - inspired by the Pomodoro Technique, Flowmodoro - inspired by the Flowtime Technique, and other various sessions. You can also create repeatable sessions specifically tailored to your needs. Add stages, set time limits, and much more. Ultimately, Focused Work helps you be more accountable by reminding you to focus, reflect, and build healthy productivity habits by completing various daily goals. **Core Features** · A simple, powerful timer that keeps you on-task Choose what to focus on. Start the timer. Get stuff done! · Curated Basic Sessions to get started Run a Pomodoro session, Flowmodoro session, or even just a simple timer · Create Focus Sessions Tailor them to your needs with a plethora of configurable options · Reminders Be reminded to stay focused, when to take breaks, and also to start a focus session! · Reflection Track what went well for you during your focus session and what you can improve upon · Scratch Pad Jot down thoughts that come to mind during your session and return to them after · Daily Goals Completing your daily focus goals earns you a streak and helps you form healthy productivity habits · Statistics & Charts Review recent productivity across the past week, month, and year · Block Distractions Select apps and websites you want to restrict access to during a session · In-app Shortcuts Automation Automatically perform actions as you progress through your session, such as turning on Focus · Link with Toggl Track Explore advanced time tracking by linking with Toggl to create time entries, assign projects and tags · Productivity Export Export completed sessions in CSV format **iOS & iPadOS Features** Focused Work is available on iPhone, iPad, and Mac, with extensive support for each platform; · Live Activities Control your session from the Lock Screen or Dynamic Island · Interactive Widgets Control your session, view daily goals, and start a session from the Home Screen · Control Center Widgets Start a session or access the Scratch Pad with Control Widgets · StandBy Interact with your session while iPhone is in StandBy · Spotlight Search Quick start and interact with sessions from search · Focus Filters Filter which sessions can be viewed & started based on the active Focus · App Shortcuts & Siri Start and interact with a session via various shortcuts that can also be linked together · Picture-in-Picture Show a floating timer above other apps with Picture-in-Picture mode · Session Alerts on all devices Start a session on one device and receive update alerts on others with Focused Work installed · iCloud Syncing Sync productivity stats & created sessions between devices · Privacy Focused Your data is securely stored and managed via iCloud. No account registration. · And much more Mac Support, Share Sheet controls, App Icons, Keyboard Shortcuts, VoiceOver, Split View & Slide Over, Low Power Mode, Drag & Drop, Dark Mode, URL Schemes If you have any questions, please reach out to focusedworkapp@michaeltigas.com.au Privacy Policy: https://focusedwork.app/privacypolicy/ Terms of Use: https://focusedwork.app/terms/
Screenshots
Verdict
Emphasis and Focused Work are too close to call on the numbers: across 10 compared parameters — price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.
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. Emphasis sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $3.49 per month and Focused Work sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Emphasis against 4.7 for Focused Work. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.1K and 608 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 84% of Emphasis's written reviews are positive against 85% of Focused Work's.
Emphasis ships an update fortnightly, Focused Work weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and November 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Emphasis | Focused Work |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (1.1K ratings) | 4.7 (608 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 83.9% of reviews | 85.3% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 1.1K — better | 608 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Freemium | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 91 MB | 155 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Aleksandr Fiodorov | Michael Tigas |
Customer experience
Emphasis
Focused Work
User reviews
Emphasis
From 1.1K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Minimalistic and simple design
- 👍 Customizable timer settings
- 💡 Helpful for productivity and focus
- 🚀 Sleek and intuitive interface
- 👍 Visually appealing countdown timer
Room to improve
- 🔒 Subscription model required for full features
- 🐛 Sync and login issues
- 🐛 Bugs and crashes after updates
- 🔋 Battery drain issues
- 🐛 Unreliable notifications and alerts
Focused Work
From 608 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 GAME CHANGER
- 👍 Good app
- 👍 Good Product
- 🚀 Phenomenal
- 👍 Great productivity app!
Room to improve
- 🔒 Shouldn't be a subscription
- 🐛 Reminders are annoying
- 🔒 Stop nagging people for reviews
- 🔒 App for iwatch is still missing in 2025.
- 🔒 Could be an amazing timer
Bugs and requests
Emphasis
Reported bugs
4 issues- Timer not working correctly after breaks
- Task lists not saving properly
- App crashing on launch for some users
- Sync issues causing data loss
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to track individual tasks and time spent
- Landscape mode support
- Apple Watch app integration
- More color theme options
- Improved statistics and progress tracking
Focused Work
Reported bugs
4 issues- Login screen freezes
- Incompatible with older devices
- Stuck on a session: Gap time
- Desktop doesn't sync with phone
Requested features
4 requests- Need iwatch app
- Calendar integration?
- Dark mode option
- Advanced analytics dashboard
In-app purchases
Emphasis
- Emphasis Premium Subscription$3.491 Month
- Emphasis Premium Subscription$4.991 Month
- Premium Feature (Yearly Promo)$12.991 Year
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- Emphasis Premium Subscription7 Days trial$29.991 Year
- Lifetime premium$29.99
- Lifetime premium$59.99
Focused Work
- Focused Work Pro (1 month)$2.991 Month
- Focused Work Pro - Monthly$4.991 Month
- Focused Work Pro (1 month)$6.991 Month
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- Focused Work Pro (1 year)3 Days trial$19.991 Year
- Focused Work Pro - Yearly3 Days trial$29.991 Year
- Focused Work Pro (1 year)3 Days trial$39.991 Year
- Little Tip$0.99
- Medium Tip$4.99
- Focused Work Pro Lifetime$89.99
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- Focused Work Pro Lifetime$119.99









