What's the main difference between Focuh and Be Focused?

Be Focused measures focus; Focuh enforces it. Be Focused is a well-made Pomodoro timer that counts your intervals and logs your sessions across Mac, iPhone, and iPad, but it has no website or app blocking. Focuh runs the timer and blocks your chosen sites and apps for the length of the session at the macOS system level. If your timer keeps running while you scroll, blocking is the missing piece, and that's the core difference.

Is Focuh free compared to Be Focused?

Both have free core features. Be Focused is free with a paid Pro upgrade that removes ads and unlocks extras. Focuh is free on macOS with no paid tier and no feature gates — the website and app blocking that sets it apart isn't locked behind a paywall. So you can run timed sessions with full system-level blocking on Focuh without paying, where Be Focused gives you a timer but no blocking at any tier.

Does Focuh have a Pomodoro timer like Be Focused?

Yes. The Focuh Mac app includes a focus timer with a live countdown in the menu bar, so you can run timed work sessions the way you would in Be Focused. The difference is what happens during the session: Focuh also blocks your distracting sites and apps for the duration, so the timer isn't just a stopwatch you can ignore. You get the same timed structure with enforcement layered on top of it.

Which app has better website and app blocking?

Focuh, by a wide margin, because Be Focused has none. Be Focused is a pure Pomodoro timer with no blocking of any kind. Focuh blocks at the macOS system level using Accessibility APIs, covering Safari, Chrome, Firefox, and Arc plus native apps in a single focus session. If staying off distractions during the timer is the point, Focuh does it and Be Focused leaves every distraction one click away.

Can I use Focuh and Be Focused together?

You can, but there's little reason to once you've tried Focuh, since it includes a Pomodoro-style timer of its own. If you're attached to Be Focused's stats or its iPhone app, you could run Be Focused for tracking and Focuh for the blocking during work sessions. For most people, Focuh's timer plus blocking replaces a timer-only app outright rather than running alongside it.

Who should choose Be Focused over Focuh?

Choose Be Focused if you want a clean, cross-device Pomodoro timer, you already keep yourself off distractions without help, and having the same timer on your phone, tablet, and Mac matters more than blocking. Be Focused is a deliberately small, polished single-purpose app, and that simplicity is a feature if you don't need enforcement. If your timer keeps running while you drift to other tabs, Focuh is the better fit.

How do I switch from Be Focused to Focuh?

Download the free Focuh Mac app, grant the macOS Accessibility permission so it can block across browsers and apps, and add the sites and apps that usually derail your sessions. Then start a focus session the same way you'd start a Be Focused timer — except this time the distractions are blocked while the clock runs. You can keep Be Focused installed and compare them side by side for a day before deciding.

Focuh vs Be Focused: 2026 Comparison

Q: Does Be Focused sync across iPhone and Mac better than Focuh?

Yes — that's Be Focused's real strength. It offers iPhone, iPad, and Mac apps with sync, so your timer and stats follow you across devices. Focuh concentrates on the desktop, where the distraction problem usually lives, and its system-level blocking is Mac-only by nature, since blocking sites and apps system-wide is something only a desktop OS allows. If cross-device timer sync matters most to you, that's a point for Be Focused.

Focuh vs Be Focused for Mac: Be Focused is a polished Pomodoro timer; Focuh runs the timer and adds system-level website and app blocking — free.

June 23, 2026

If you're weighing Focuh vs Be Focused, the decision comes down to one question: do you need a timer that measures your focus, or a timer that enforces it? Be Focused is a polished, cross-device Pomodoro timer that counts your intervals and stays out of the way. Focuh runs the same kind of timer but blocks your distracting websites and apps for the length of each session — for free, on macOS.

This comparison covers what each app does, where Be Focused still wins, and which one fits how you actually work.

What is Be Focused?

Be Focused is a clean, well-liked Pomodoro timer for Mac, iPhone, and iPad. It runs your work-and-break intervals, logs completed sessions, tracks your stats over time, and syncs across Apple devices. It's free with a paid Pro upgrade that removes ads and unlocks some extras.

What Be Focused doesn't do is block anything. It's a timer in the purest sense — it tells you how long you meant to focus, but it doesn't stop you from opening Reddit ninety seconds into a session. That's by design; Be Focused is a deliberately small, single-purpose app, and a lot of people like it precisely for that.

What is Focuh?

Focuh is a free macOS app that combines a focus timer with system-level website and app blocking, kanban-style task management, and Google Calendar sync. Built with Tauri, it uses macOS Accessibility APIs to block distractions at the operating-system level during a focus session.

When you start a session in Focuh, the sites and apps on your blocklist become unavailable until the clock runs out — across every browser and native app at once. The timer isn't a stopwatch you can ignore; it's tied to an environment that actually keeps the distractions away.

Focuh vs Be Focused at a glance

Feature	Focuh	Be Focused
Pomodoro / focus timer	Yes	Yes
Menu-bar countdown	Yes	Yes
Website blocking	Yes (system-level)	No
App blocking	Yes (system-level)	No
Task management	Kanban board	Basic task list
Google Calendar sync	Yes	No
iPhone / iPad apps	No	Yes
Cross-device sync	Desktop-focused	Yes (Mac + iOS)
Account required	No	No
Price	Free	Free + paid Pro

The single row that decides it for most people is website and app blocking. Be Focused has none; Focuh's is the whole point.

How does blocking compare?

This is where the two apps split completely. Be Focused has no blocking at all — it assumes you'll keep yourself off distractions for 25 minutes, which is usually the exact thing you couldn't do on your own. The timer runs; whether you actually focus is left entirely to you.

Focuh removes that assumption. When the session starts, the distracting sites and apps you listed are simply unavailable. Because Focuh blocks at the system level, switching from Chrome to Safari doesn't get you around it, and neither does opening a native app like Messages or Slack. The impulse to check X passes in seconds when there's nothing to check. For why that OS-level layer matters more than a browser extension or a timer, see system-level vs browser website blocking.

How does the timer compare?

Functionally, the timers are similar. Both run timed focus sessions with a countdown you can glance at — Be Focused on your devices, Focuh in the macOS menu bar. Both let you structure work into intervals.

The difference is what surrounds the timer. Be Focused pairs its timer with stats and cross-device sync. Focuh pairs its timer with blocking and a full task system — a kanban board with date-based columns, subtasks, drag-and-drop reordering, and time tracking per task. If you plan your day across several tasks and want the timer to actually hold you to them, Focuh gives you more structure. If you just want a clean interval timer on every device, Be Focused is leaner.

Where Be Focused still wins

A fair comparison says where the alternative is stronger. Be Focused has polished iPhone and iPad apps with sync, so your timer and your stats follow you everywhere. Focuh concentrates on the desktop, where the distraction problem usually lives, and its system-level blocking is Mac-only by nature — blocking sites and apps system-wide is something only a desktop OS allows. If having the same timer on your phone, tablet, and Mac is central to how you work, Be Focused does that and Focuh doesn't try to.

Be Focused is also intentionally minimal. If all you want is a clean Pomodoro timer and you already have the discipline to stay off distractions on your own, that simplicity is a genuine feature, and there's no reason to add blocking you won't use. For more on that exact decision, the Be Focused alternative page goes deeper.

How does pricing compare?

Be Focused is free with a paid Pro upgrade that removes ads and adds some features. Focuh is completely free on macOS — no premium tier, no trial clock, and no feature gating. Notably, the blocking that distinguishes Focuh isn't paywalled; you get the timer, system-level website and app blocking, task management, and calendar sync without paying.

So the cost comparison isn't really about price — both have free core features. It's about what "free" gets you. With Be Focused, free gets you a timer. With Focuh, free gets you a timer plus the blocking that makes the timer mean something.

When should you choose each?

Choose Be Focused if:

You want a clean Pomodoro timer on Mac, iPhone, and iPad with sync
You already keep yourself off distractions without help
Cross-device timer sync matters more to you than blocking
You prefer a small, single-purpose app

Choose Focuh if:

Your timer keeps running while you drift to other tabs
You want website and app blocking built into your focus sessions
You want a real task system and Google Calendar sync alongside the timer
You mostly work on a Mac and want blocking that holds across every browser

The bottom line

Be Focused is a polished, cross-device Pomodoro timer, and if you have the discipline to stay off distractions on your own, it does its one job well. Focuh is the better fit when the timer alone has never been enough — it runs the session and removes the distractions instead of just counting the minutes, and it's free.

If your Pomodoro keeps running while you scroll, blocking is the missing piece. Download Focuh free for Mac and start a session where your distractions are actually gone, or pair it with the free Chrome extension to cover the browser too. For another timer-versus-blocker matchup, see Focuh vs Session.