Unlockr
01 / MAKE IT YOURSWork hours.
Work hours.
Wind-down hours.
Your hours.
Set the apps, schedule, challenge and reward for each rule. Start with one rule and one app free; Premium supports up to 8 rules.
NEW IN 1.2 Rules, Math and Memory
Less autopilot.More real life.
Your next scroll starts with a small win. Lock distracting apps, take a movement or mind challenge, and earn your way back in.
A little effort. A better kind of break.
Actual app UI · sample data
A small win first.Then the scroll.
35 seconds
Where the time goes.
And how to take it back.
Read the video
Just one more scroll. In one study, adults picked up their phones about 85 times a day. They guessed 37 (Andrews et al., 2015, PLOS ONE). Each extra hour on a screen in bed was linked to 24 minutes less sleep (Hjetland et al., 2025, Frontiers in Psychiatry). Focus breaks. Evenings disappear. Moments pass.
What if the scroll had a price? Unlockr: lock the apps that pull you in, during work hours, evenings or your own schedule. Earn time with a small win: squats, push-ups, a plank, Math or Memory. Then enjoy the break you chose; minutes only count down while you use the app.
In one study, a short pause before opening an app led to 57% fewer app openings after six weeks (Grüning et al., 2023, PNAS; a study of the app one sec, not of Unlockr). Less autopilot. More real life. Free with one protected app.
BREAK THE LOOP
One small pause.
A different next move.
You know that “just a quick look” feeling. Put something worthwhile between the impulse and the app.
- 01
Pick what pulls you in.
Choose the apps you want a little distance from, and give each rule its own hours and challenge.
- 02
Do a little. Earn a little.
Squat, hold a plank, or try a Math or Memory round. Finish the challenge to earn app time.
- 03
Enjoy the break you chose.
Minutes count down while you use the protected app. Put your phone down and they pause. Unused minutes reset at midnight.
YOUR EFFORT. YOUR WAY.
How will you
earn your next break?
Move when you can. Think when you can’t. Math and Memory sit alongside camera-counted movement, so there is always a way in.
10 questions10 minutes
A quick mental reset. Solve a short round of arithmetic before heading back to your app. No camera needed.
Push-ups and Plank are available, too. Example rule; set your own target and reward in the app. Movement earns 5–60 minutes; mind challenges earn 5–15.
Need a softer start? A minute of guided breathing adds 5 minutes, once a day.
A FRESH START, BUILT IN
Your day has a rhythm.
Your rules should, too.
New in 1.2: rules that fit your day, a warmer Home, and progress that feels good to come back to.
02 / SEE THE SMALL WINSA little today.
A little today.
Look what it
adds up to.
Follow your earned minutes, completed challenges and weekly progress. Your streak counts a challenge completed, not another app opened.
Private by design
The camera never leaves the room.
Counting reps needs a camera. It does not need a server.
-
Frames stay on device
Pose detection runs through Apple's Vision framework on your iPhone. No frame is saved or uploaded.
-
Your app list stays private
Apple hands your choices to Unlockr as opaque tokens. They cannot be read back into app names.
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No ads
No advertising and no ad tracking. Math, Memory and Breathe work without camera access at all.
Pricing
One app is a great place to start.
Start free with one rule and one protected app. Upgrade when you want more. The App Store shows your local price before purchase.
Free
$0
- One rule protecting one app
- Any challenge, with your own target and reward
- Schedules, streak and stats
- Daily Breathe bonus
Premium
$2.92 / month, billed yearly
- Protect multiple apps, whole categories and websites
- Up to 8 rules for different times of day
- If Premium ends, your rules stay saved
Prices in US dollars; the App Store shows the price for your country before you buy. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the period ends. Manage them in your Apple Account settings. Lifetime is a one-time purchase.
From the App Store
What people are saying.
★★★★★
Really help me reduce screen time 🥹
★★★★★
Very helpful app. Should use this to improve your health and reduce using your phone every day.
★★★★★
This app is very useful. It offers different ways to improve your health, and it also helps curb overusing your phone for entertainment.
★★★★★
Really suited to helping cut down daily phone use.
From the blog
Research, not pep talks.
Guides on cutting screen time, built on what studies actually show.
Straight answers
Questions people actually ask.
Still stuck? Support has setup and troubleshooting, or see why Unlockr is different.
Is there an app that makes you exercise before you can open other apps?
Yes, that is how Unlockr works. Pick the apps that take up your day and set when they lock. Opening one shows a shield instead, and a quick set of squats, push-ups or a plank earns time back. The camera counts reps on your iPhone and nothing is recorded. What the research says about exercise and screen time.
Do I have to exercise to unlock my apps?
No. Each rule can use Math questions or Memory rounds instead, and neither needs the camera. Mind challenges earn up to 15 minutes, so movement stays the better deal. A one-minute breathing session on Home also adds 5 minutes once a day.
Does the earned time keep running when I lock my phone?
No. Earned minutes count down only while you are using the protected app, not while the phone is locked or you are in another app. Unused minutes reset at midnight.
Is the camera recording me?
No. Pose detection runs through Apple's Vision framework on your iPhone. Frames are processed in memory, never saved and never uploaded.
Is Unlockr free?
You can start free with one rule protecting one app, with any challenge, a schedule, your streak and stats. Premium adds more apps, whole categories, websites and up to 8 rules. Weekly, monthly, yearly and one-time Lifetime options are available, and eligible users can try yearly free for 3 days.
How do I set it up?
Install Unlockr, allow Screen Time access, then create a rule: choose the apps, the hours they lock, the challenge and how many minutes it earns. From then on, opening one of those apps during its hours shows a shield with one button to start the challenge.
Your next small win
starts here.
One minute of intention can change the next hour.
Download on theApp Store