DerotWhat this comparison covers
Derot and Opal are both third-party screen time apps that can block apps you choose, instead of only showing you a report. People often search for them together because both talk about schedules, time limits, and limits on how often you open an app.
They are not the same product. Opal is a broader focus system with a desktop app, a daily score, and a Pro “Hard Mode.” Derot is a phone-first app blocker for iPhone and Android that sets proactive rules around usage time, the number of app opens, or a fixed schedule. In Derot, habits are only a supplementary way to spend less time scrolling. Completing a habit is not how you earn or unlock screen time.
This page uses public facts from each product’s website and store listing, checked on 11 November 2026. Features and prices change. Confirm them in the app or store before you buy.
How Derot blocks apps
Derot’s App Store and Google Play listings describe the same core model: you pick distracting apps (for example TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, or games, where the device allows it), then you set rules so those apps are blocked when a limit is reached.
You can:
- Set a usage-time limit, so an app is blocked after you have used it for the time you chose.
- Set an app-open limit, so an app is blocked after you have opened it a certain number of times — not after you unlock your phone.
- Set a schedule, so apps are blocked during fixed hours you choose, such as work, study, or late evening.
Derot also tracks screen time, shows a Brain Health Score that the listing describes as motivation rather than a clinical assessment, and offers a 7-day digital detox with streaks and daily challenges. You can add supportive habits next to those rules. The official listing is explicit: habits and rewards are extra motivation; they are not a requirement for unlocking apps or gaining more screen time.
No account is required, and the listing says much of your data, including habit logs and app-blocking selections, is stored locally on the device.
How Opal blocks apps
Opal’s marketing site presents the product as a screen time and focus app for iPhone, Mac, and Android. The main building blocks it highlights are Rules (block the apps you choose on phone or desktop), a Focus Timer you start for a session, and Opal Score, which it describes as a single daily measure combining signals from sleep, focus, and rest.
Opal’s pricing page lists a free plan that includes one rule covering schedule, time limits, and open limits; basic timers and soundscapes; app blocking; and Opal Score for today only. Opal Pro is listed with unlimited rules, advanced timers and soundscapes, an “Allow Only” mode, Opal Score with history, and Hard Mode, which Opal describes as a setting with “no way out” — you cannot turn Opal off. The App Store listing also describes Deep Focus as a protection level you cannot bypass or cancel, plus app and website blocking, focus reports, rewards (“Focus Gems” / milestones), and a leaderboard.
Opal’s help center wording on the free tier has not always matched the pricing page (the help article has referred to more than one recurring rule). Treat the in-app or pricing-page limits as the source of truth when you sign up.
Platforms and who each one fits
| Topic | Derot | Opal |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms (public listings) | iPhone and Android | iPhone, Android, and Mac |
| Rule types described | Usage time, number of opens, or schedule | Schedule, time limits, open limits, plus focus timers |
| Website / desktop blocking | Not described on Derot’s current store listings | Website blocking and a Mac app are described by Opal |
| Hard / deep lock | Not described on Derot’s store listing | Hard Mode / Deep Focus on Pro |
| Habits | Optional support; not a gate to screen time | Rewards and milestones around focus; not an earn-to-unlock habit system |
| Account | Store listing: no account required | Opal’s site walks new Pro users through signing in |
Choose Derot if you want a straightforward blocker on your phone, including Android, and you want open counts and schedules without turning real-life habits into a currency for more scrolling.
Choose Opal if you also need a Mac app, a desktop-and-phone setup, or Pro features such as Hard Mode and Allow Only, and you like Opal Score, gems, and session timers as the main experience.
If you need to block the entire internet on a work laptop, look at a cross-device tool such as Freedom. That is a different job from either of these phone-focused products.
Pricing (public list prices, may vary)
Prices vary by region, store, and current offer. These are list prices observed on 11 November 2026, not a promise of what you will see at checkout.
Derot (US App Store in-app purchases): Weekly $4.99, Monthly $9.99, Annual $59.99, Lifetime $99.99. Google Play lists the app as free to install with in-app purchases; regional pricing differs.
Opal (opalapp.com/pricing): Free plan at $0/month. Pro yearly at $99.99 billed annually (shown as $8.29/month). Pro monthly at $19.99/month (the page also shows $239 as the annualized monthly cost). Lifetime $399. Opal states a student discount of up to 50% off Pro, and a 30-day money-back guarantee for purchases made via Stripe (Apple in-app purchases are refunded under Apple’s rules, not by Opal directly). The pricing page also mentions a free week or free three-day trial depending on the plan.
A lower sticker price is not automatically a better fit. What matters is whether the blocking model matches how you actually slip back into a feed: a daily time budget, too many pickups, or a regular time of day.
Can you use both?
Some people keep Apple Screen Time or a desktop blocker alongside a phone app. Derot and Opal both lean on system screen-time or blocking APIs, and stacking two aggressive blockers can be confusing. Pick one set of rules on your phone first. Add a desktop tool later if that is where the problem is.
