Opal vs. Brick vs. Screen Time: which app blocker works for students

Three things come up whenever students talk about staying off their phone: Screen Time, which is already on your iPhone; Opal, an app; and Brick, a small object you tap your phone on. They solve the same problem in different ways, and the right one depends on how you cheat.

Prices and features below are what we found in early October 2026. They change, so check each company's own site before you buy.

The short version

• Screen Time: free and built in. Weak unless someone else holds your passcode.
• Opal: the easiest to start a focus session with. The strict settings are in the paid plan, which is a subscription.
• Brick: about $59 once, no subscription. The hardest to cheat, as long as the Brick isn't sitting next to you.

Screen Time

What it is: Apple's own controls, in Settings. Downtime blocks most apps on a schedule, and App Limits block chosen apps after a set amount of use each day.

Cost: free.

How you get out: a button that ignores the limit for a minute, fifteen minutes, or the rest of the day. If you know the passcode, it's one tap.

Best for: a fixed routine, like every weeknight from 7 to 9, with a roommate holding the passcode.

Where it falls short: there's no quick way to say “block my apps for the next 45 minutes,” and it knows nothing about what's due. We wrote up the full setup in how to block apps on your iPhone while you study.

Opal

What it is: an app that uses the same Screen Time system underneath, with a much better front end. You start a focus session or set recurring ones, and it shows how much time you spent where.

Cost: free to start, with limits on how much you can set up. Opal Pro is a subscription; the yearly price we saw listed was around $100, with a monthly option that costs more over a year.

How you get out: on the free plan you can end a session early. The mode that stops you from cancelling is part of Pro.

Best for: someone who wants one tap to start a session and likes seeing their numbers.

Where it falls short: the part that makes a lock hold is the part you pay for, every year. One student we talked to had used Opal and only ever the free version; she was back on Screen Time.

Brick

What it is: a small magnet-backed square with a free app. You pick the apps to block, tap your phone on the Brick, and they stay blocked until you tap it again.

Cost: about $59 for the device, once. No subscription.

How you get out: walk to the Brick. If you can't, each device comes with five emergency unlocks, total, not per month.

Best for: someone who has beaten every software lock they've tried. Leave the Brick in your dorm and go to the library, and your phone stays boring until you get back.

Where it falls short: if it's on your desk, it's a two-second unlock. It's also one more thing to lose, and it doesn't know when your homework is. Of the eight students we interviewed, one had paid for anything to stay off his phone, and this is what he bought.

Which one to pick

• You've never tried anything: start with Screen Time. It's free, and you'll learn in a week whether a soft block is enough for you.
• You tap “Ignore Limit” every time: you need distance or a lock you can't cancel. That's Brick, or a friend holding your Screen Time passcode, which costs nothing.
• You want sessions on demand and don't mind a subscription: Opal.
• Your problem is one or two apps: delete them during the semester and use the website on a laptop when you need it. Be honest about how long it lasts: one student we talked to deleted Instagram, and it stayed deleted about two weeks.

What none of them know

All three answer “when should my phone be locked?” with a time you chose in advance or a tap you make in the moment. None of them know that your lab report is due at 11:59 tonight, or that you already turned it in and have earned the scroll. You're still the one deciding when to lock, which is the decision you were trying to hand off.

If your system is working, keep it. If the lock keeps coming off right when a deadline is close, the thing to fix is what the lock is tied to.