Brick

Your Phone, Minus The Distractions

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Your Phone, Minus The Distractions

106 followers

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Time tracking apps

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Activity tracking

A device that temporarily removes distracting apps (and their notifications) from your phone - leaving only the powerful tools you choose. Now you don’t have to take the distractions with you everywhere - leave them behind with the Brick, and engage with more.

The Best Brick Alternatives

The best Brick alternatives are Focus Bear, Barrier: The FREE screen time focus app, BePresent, Session, and SurfPal.

Focus Bear

4.2 ·

Choose Focus Bear if...

✓you need cross-device blocking on desktop and mobile
✓you want guided routines built for ADHD
✓you need reminders and break prompting

See details ↓

Barrier: The FREE screen time focus app

5.0 ·

Choose Barrier: The FREE screen time focus app if...

✓you want a free, simple social scrolling interrupt
✓you prefer short usage windows over lockouts
✓you don’t want to buy hardware

See details ↓

BePresent

5.0 ·

Choose BePresent if...

✓you’re motivated by streaks, points, and challenges
✓you want group accountability with friends or family
✓you prefer rewards over strict blocking

See details ↓

Session

5.0 ·

Choose Session if...

✓you want Mac-first blocking during Pomodoro sessions
✓you need focus sessions with Slack status updates
✓you mainly battle desktop distractions, not phone apps

See details ↓

SurfPal

5.0 ·

Choose SurfPal if...

✓your biggest distractions are websites, not apps
✓you want per-site analytics and daily limits
✓you prefer a lightweight browser extension

See details ↓

What to Consider

Brick stands out in the digital wellbeing space for its phone-first, hardware-enforced approach—using a physical “key” to make locking and unlocking distracting apps feel intentional and hard to bypass. The alternatives landscape is broader and more varied: Focus Bear leans into cross-device (desktop + mobile) blocking plus ADHD-friendly routines, while Barrier offers a lightweight, free “doomscroll interruptor” built around short usage windows and friction. On the other end, BePresent uses gamification and group accountability to replace scrolling dopamine with streaks and rewards, Session brings Pomodoro-style focus and Mac-first blocking with work-friendly signals like Slack status, and SurfPal goes deep on browser-only analytics and per-site limits for web-heavy distraction.

In evaluating Brick alternatives, we looked at how each tool creates friction (hardware lockouts vs software nudges), whether it covers phone, desktop, or both, and how much structure it adds beyond blocking (routines, breaks, reminders, accountability). We also weighed pricing and subscription risk, ease of setup and day-to-day usability, reliability, and integration needs (especially for work and browser workflows), while factoring in the strength of available user-review evidence for each option.

Focus Bear

Block Distractions. Build Habits. For ADHDers by ADHDers.

4.2 · 17 reviews

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Focus Bear is built for people who need more than a hard “off switch” for distracting apps, especially when the real problem spans both phone and computer. Unlike Brick’s phone-first, hardware-enforced approach, Focus Bear tackles distraction across desktop and mobile so work sessions don’t fall apart the moment a browser is involved.

Where it really differentiates is executive-function support: guided routines, break prompting, and structured daily anchors that make it feel like a focus coach rather than just a blocker. It’s particularly compelling for ADHD and time-blindness challenges because it combines friction (blocking) with direction (what to do next).

The product also emphasizes staying on-task in the moment, helping users avoid drifting into unrelated tabs or content while reading online. Progress tracking and completion feedback add a motivational layer that can be easier to sustain than pure restriction.

The trade-off versus Brick is that it’s software-based, so success depends more on setup quality and consistent device permissions. If the goal is a holistic, cross-device focus system with routines and reminders—not just making distracting apps inaccessible—Focus Bear is a strong pick.

Best for

Best for students and professionals who want cross-device blocking plus ADHD-friendly routines and reminders.

Standout features

✓Desktop and mobile distraction blocking
✓Guided routines and habit prompts
✓Break scheduling and recovery time
✓On-task nudges while browsing
✓Progress and streak-style tracking

Barrier: The FREE screen time focus app

Stop doomscrolling by blocking your addictive apps!

5.0 · 1 review

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Barrier takes a lightweight, behavioral approach to reducing social media time: shorter usage windows with just enough friction to stop autopilot scrolling. Compared with Brick’s physical key model, Barrier is all-software and designed to interrupt the loop without requiring a separate device.

It’s a great alternative when the goal isn’t total lockout, but “controlled access” that still allows quick check-ins. That makes it appealing for people who need to stay reachable or keep certain apps available, while still cutting down the reflex to reopen them repeatedly.

Barrier also stands out on practicality: it’s free, quick to try, and easy to fit into everyday phone use. For many users, that low commitment is the difference between actually starting and endlessly researching.

The main trade-off is breadth: it’s purpose-built for curbing social usage rather than providing a full routine system or cross-device coverage. If simplicity and cost matter most, Barrier is an easy win over more heavyweight setups.

Best for

Ideal for budget-conscious iOS users who want simple friction to reduce social scrolling.

Standout features

✓Short timed app access sessions
✓Friction to reopen distracting apps
✓Lightweight, minimal setup
✓Free to use
✓Designed to interrupt doomscroll loops

BePresent

Duolingo for reducing screen time

5.0 · 1 review

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BePresent reframes screen-time reduction as a game, replacing “restriction” with rewards, streaks, and social accountability. While Brick relies on physical enforcement to make distractions harder to access, BePresent motivates behavior change by making staying off the phone feel like a challenge worth completing.

This is especially useful for people who bounce off strict blockers or who end up resenting lockouts. Points, streaks, and group dynamics can create a positive feedback loop that nudges habits in the right direction without making the phone feel forbidden.

BePresent also works well when you want accountability outside yourself, like friends, family, or small groups doing a reset together. That social layer can be more compelling than a solo commitment, particularly for teens, roommates, or partner challenges.

The trade-off versus Brick is enforcement: gamification encourages better choices, but it’s not the same as physically “locking” a device mode. If motivation, community, and a lighter touch beat hard barriers, BePresent is the better fit.

Best for

Best for people who want gamified, social accountability to cut screen time.

Standout features

✓Streaks and reward-based motivation
✓Challenges with friends or groups
✓Accountability loops for screen-time habits
✓Progress tracking and goals
✓Designed to feel like a game

Session

Start your momentum by focusing in 25-minute sessions

5.0 · 1 review

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Session is a strong Brick alternative when the real distraction problem lives on a Mac, not just on a phone. It’s built around focused work sessions, using timed sprints to block distracting sites and apps during the moments that matter most.

Instead of a physical “unlock” ritual, Session leans on Pomodoro-style structure that helps users start work faster and maintain momentum. That makes it a better match for knowledge workers who want a workday rhythm, not just reduced phone temptation.

A practical differentiator is workplace signaling: features like Slack status updates help teams understand when someone is in a focus block. That’s something Brick doesn’t target, since it’s centered on personal phone behavior rather than office coordination.

The trade-off is coverage: Session shines on desktop focus and work sessions, while Brick’s strength is phone-level, hardware-backed friction. If the goal is protected deep-work time on macOS with simple session analytics, Session is the clearer choice.

Best for

Best for Mac-based professionals who want Pomodoro focus sessions with blocking and work-friendly signaling.

Standout features

✓Pomodoro-style focus sessions
✓Mac app and website blocking
✓Session analytics and history
✓Slack status automation
✓Distraction-free work mode

SurfPal

Track, analyze, and limit your time spent on each website

5.0 · 2 reviews

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SurfPal is purpose-built for people whose distractions are primarily web-based, like YouTube, news, and social sites in the browser. Compared with Brick’s phone-centric model, SurfPal focuses on website-level control and visibility, which is often where work and procrastination blur together.

Its biggest advantage is granularity: per-domain tracking, limits, and dashboards make it obvious where time is going and what needs to be capped. That analytics-first approach can be more effective than broad lockouts when the goal is to manage specific sites rather than the entire device.

SurfPal’s browser-extension format also makes it lightweight and easy to keep in view during the day. The constant feedback loop helps users self-correct early, before a quick check turns into an hour.

The trade-off is scope: it won’t replace phone enforcement or hardware-based friction. But for users who mainly need precise browser guardrails with clear reporting, SurfPal is a sharper tool than a phone-first solution.