Disclosure: we make Habiroot, one of the apps below. We’ve tried to be fair, including about where other apps are better. Prices are US App Store prices checked on October 26, 2026; they change, so check each listing before you buy.
Forest made the “grow a tree while you focus” idea famous: you start a session, a tree grows, and if you leave the app to check something, the tree dies. It’s simple and it works. So why look for an alternative? Usually for one of these reasons:
- You want to track daily habits, not just focus sessions.
- You need real app blocking, not just a reason to feel guilty.
- You’d rather not pay a subscription, or want a different price.
- You want something cuter, calmer or more social.
At a glance
| App | Main idea | Blocks other apps? | Tracks habits? | Price (US) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forest | Focus timer; a tree grows while you stay off your phone | No; leaving the app kills the tree (Plus adds an allowlist of apps you may use) | No | Free with ads; Forest Plus $5.99/month or $35.99/year |
| Flora | Focus timer with friends, optional money pledges | No, uses a stay-in-the-app approach like Forest | Has to-do and habit features | Free; optional pledges are charged only if you fail |
| Opal | Screen-time control and app blocking | Yes, schedules and focus sessions | No | Free tier; Pro $19.99/month or $99.99/year |
| one sec | Adds a pause before you open distracting apps | Interrupts rather than blocks | No | 1 app free; Pro $6.99/month or $19.99/year |
| Apple Focus & Screen Time | Built-in notification filtering and app limits | Limits and Downtime, easy to override without a passcode | No | Free |
| Habiroot | Habit tracker where every streak grows a plant, plus a focus timer | Coming: Screen Time blocking awaits Apple approval | Yes, build and quit habits | Free today; optional Plus planned from $29.99/year |
The tree-growing timer that started it all
What it does well: a dead-simple core loop, years of polish, lots of tree species, and a real-world impact angle. Coins you earn can fund real trees planted through Trees for the Future (a Plus feature, capped at five per account). It’s on both iPhone and Android, which matters if you switch phones or study with friends on different platforms.
Things to know: Forest moved from a paid app to free-plus-subscription in December 2025. The free version includes the timer, Deep Focus mode and basic stats, with occasional ads (never during a session). Forest Plus adds allowlists, pauses, custom tags, advanced analytics, all species, more coins and removes ads (Forest).
Best for: people who mainly want a motivating focus timer and like the real-tree element.
A free, social focus timer
Flora also grows plants while you focus, and adds friend challenges. Its business model is unusual: the app is free, and you can choose to pledge money that’s charged only if you fail a session; pledges help fund real trees with Trees for the Future and Eden (Flora FAQ).
Best for: studying with friends, and people who are motivated by stakes rather than subscriptions.
When you need real app blocking
Opal is a screen-time app first. It uses Apple’s Screen Time framework to block apps on a schedule or during a session, with a stricter “hard mode” in Pro. There are no plants, but if your problem is that you can’t stay off certain apps, real blocking helps more than a dying tree.
Best for: heavy phone users who need hard limits. Trade-off: it’s one of the more expensive options, at $99.99 a year for Pro.
A pause, not a wall
one sec takes a lighter approach: when you open a distracting app, it makes you pause and take a breath first, and you can still continue. Many people find that the moment of friction is enough to break an automatic habit loop.
Best for: reflexive app-opening (“I didn’t even notice I’d opened it”). Trade-off: the free tier covers one app.
Apple’s free tools
Before paying anyone, try what’s already on your iPhone: a Focus mode to silence notifications and show a stripped-down Home Screen, and Screen Time App Limits and Downtime for schedules. They’re free and private. The catch is that limits are easy to dismiss unless someone else sets your Screen Time passcode. Our Pomodoro and app blocking guide walks through the setup.
Habiroot: habits first, with a focus timer
Here’s how Habiroot differs. Forest grows a tree for each focus session. Habiroot grows a plant for each habit, and that plant keeps growing as long as your streak continues, reaching new stages at 3, 7, 14, 30 and 50 days. All your habits live together on a garden island. You can also track habits you want to quit: a rotten plant recovers as your clean days add up. Habits can be chained into routines that share one streak. And there’s a focus timer, 25 to 120 minutes, where a pot plant grows while you work, with per-project stats, widgets and a Live Activity in the Dynamic Island.
Where Forest is better: Forest is on Android today; Habiroot is iPhone-only for now (an Android version is in the works). Forest plants real trees; Habiroot doesn’t. Forest’s focus features are more mature, and Habiroot’s app blocking isn’t available yet; it’s waiting on Apple’s approval.
Best for: people who want one calm app for daily habits and focus, and like watching a garden fill up. Habiroot is free today; an optional Plus subscription is planned. See Free vs Plus and the plant gallery.
How to choose
- “I just need to stop picking up my phone while I work.” Forest, or Apple’s Focus mode for free.
- “I need apps actually blocked.” Opal, or Screen Time with a passcode someone else knows.
- “I open apps without noticing.” one sec.
- “I study with friends.” Flora or Forest.
- “I want to build habits, not just focus.” Habiroot, or a dedicated habit tracker alongside your focus app.
There’s no single best app, only the one whose approach matches your problem. Most of these have a free tier, so try a couple for a week each and keep the one you actually open.