The 8 Best Opal Alternatives in 2026

Key takeaways

• No Windows version: Opal's apps are for iPhone, Android and Mac only.
• Best for a Windows PC: Ascension, with blocks that cannot be edited or removed.
• Best for a PC and a phone together: Freedom, which runs on Windows, Mac, iOS, Android and Chromebook.
• Best free phone alternative: ScreenZen, which is free and funded by donations.
• On a phone, Opal itself remains a strong choice.

Feature comparison

Details reflect each app as of September 2026. Notice something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.

1. Freedom

Platforms: Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Chromebook

Price: Free plan, then $8.99/month, $3.33/month billed yearly, or $99.50 once

Freedom is a website and app blocker that syncs one blocking session across all your devices at once. One session blocks sites, apps or the entire internet on your phone and computer together. It is the closest match to Opal for someone who uses a Windows PC and a phone.

Key features

• Syncs sessions across a PC and a phone.
• Locked Mode: a session cannot be quit once it starts.
• Recurring schedules.

Limitations: Blocks run as sessions rather than staying on, and Locked Mode is a setting you turn on.

Best for: people who want one blocker on a Windows PC and a phone.

Read our guide to the website blocker that cannot be uninstalled →

2. Ascension

Platforms: Windows 10/11 (iOS and Mac in development)

Price: 15-day free trial, then $12.99/month or $50 one-time

Ascension is a powerful Windows application designed to improve digital habits and productivity. It blocks distracting content on the web and tracks your digital usage automatically to give insights on how one can improve.

Key features

• Uninstall protection.
• Deep analytics: reports, goal tracking, time projections.
• Premade block lists for adult content, gambling and social media.

Limitations: Windows only, with iOS and Mac in development.

Best for: people who want Opal style limits and reports on a Windows PC.

Read our guide to the best Freedom app alternatives →

3. Cold Turkey

Platforms: Windows, macOS

Price: Free version, Pro $45 once for all your personal computers

Cold Turkey is a website and app blocker for Windows and macOS with strong bypass prevention. It blocks websites, games and desktop applications on schedules or timers, and its Frozen Turkey mode can lock you out of the entire computer for a set period.

Key features

• Blocks desktop apps as well as websites (Pro).
• Frozen Turkey locks the whole computer.
• One licence covers every personal computer you own.

Limitations: No phone app, and a dated interface.

Best for: people who want strict blocking on a computer for a one-time price.

Read our guide to the best Cold Turkey alternatives →

4. one sec

Platforms: iOS, Android, macOS, browser extensions for Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari

Price: Free for one app, Pro about $19/year in the US

one sec is a screen time app designed to reduce habitual app opening. It shows a short pause, such as a breathing exercise, before a chosen app or website opens. It is known for research with the Max Planck Institute on how the pause changes app use.

Key features

• Breathing exercise before an app opens.
• Website blocking (Pro).
• One account across phones and computers.

Limitations: On a Windows PC it works only inside the browser, and the free plan covers one app.

Best for: people who want a pause before opening an app rather than a hard block.

5. ScreenZen

Platforms: iOS, Android, with macOS and Windows listed on ScreenZen's website

Price: Free, funded by donations

ScreenZen is a free screen time app designed to reduce mindless scrolling on a phone. It adds a pause before a distracting app opens and can limit how many times a day it opens.

Key features

• A pause that grows longer each time you open an app.
• Daily time limits and daily open limits.
• Lock mode protects settings and uninstalling.

Limitations: Built for phones first, with limited desktop support.

Best for: people who want a free Opal alternative on iPhone or Android.

6. Forest

Platforms: iOS, Android, Chrome and Firefox extensions

Price: Free, with a Plus subscription (price varies by region)

Forest is a focus timer designed to keep you off your phone during work or study. A virtual tree grows while the timer runs and dies if you leave the app. It is known for planting real trees through Trees for the Future.

Key features

• Focus timer with a tree as the record.
• Blocks distracting apps during a session.
• Group focus sessions with friends.

Limitations: No Windows app, and sessions only.

Best for: students who want a simple timer on a phone.

7. Apple Screen Time and Android Digital Wellbeing

Platforms: iPhone and iPad (Screen Time), Android (Digital Wellbeing)

Price: Free, built into the phone

Screen Time and Digital Wellbeing are the screen time controls built into iPhone and Android. They show how long you spend in each app and let you set daily app limits and scheduled downtime.

Key features

• Daily limits per app or category.
• Scheduled downtime.
• Daily and weekly usage reports.

Limitations: Limits can be extended by the same person who set them, and there is no Windows version.

Best for: people who want to try limits on their phone before buying an app.

8. RescueTime

Platforms: Windows, macOS, iOS, Android

Price: 14-day free trial, then $9/month or $84/year for Focus

RescueTime is a time tracking app designed to show where your working hours go. It records the apps and websites you use in the background and adds focus sessions that block distracting websites.

Key features

• Automatic time tracking.
• Focus sessions that block distracting sites.
• Daily and weekly reports.

Limitations: Blocking is light compared with a dedicated blocker, and it is subscription only.

Best for: people who valued Opal's reports more than its blocking.

Read our guide to the best RescueTime alternatives →

Frequently asked questions