Recess: Stop Doomscrolling

dy labs

In-app purchases

About this app

Spending hours on Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube Shorts and hating it afterward? Recess helps you take your attention back by putting a firm limit on the apps that eat your day — and making that limit stick when your willpower doesn't.

Recess is a commitment device. You decide how long you get each day; once you hit it, the app is blocked. There's no "just five more minutes" button to talk yourself into — that's the whole point.

WHY RECESS

• Daily limits on any app — cap how long you spend in Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, games, or anything else on your phone, per day.
• A real block, not a nudge — when you hit your limit, a full-screen block stops you. No escalating timer, no easy override.
• The 24-hour commitment lock — once you set a limit, you can't raise or remove it for 24 hours (you can always make it stricter). It stops the impulse to undo your own rules in a weak moment.
• Locked once you've hit it — a limit you've already spent for the day stays locked until it resets, so you can't remove it to sneak back in.
• Schedule & Focus modes — block an app during set hours (no Instagram after 10pm), or start a focus block that runs for a set time.
• Tied to your account — your limits follow you across devices and can't be wiped by uninstalling and reinstalling.
• Private by design — your app-usage data stays on your device. An app about protecting your attention shouldn't sell it.

HOW IT WORKS

Recess uses Android's usage access to measure your screen time and enforce the limits you set, and an accessibility service purely to notice when you open an app you've chosen to limit — so it can show the block screen. It never reads your screen content, messages, or what you type, and your usage history never leaves your phone.

PRICING

Recess starts with a 7-day free trial. After the trial, a subscription (monthly or annual) keeps your limits active. Cancel anytime from Google Play. If you cancel before the trial ends, you won't be charged.

Take a recess from the scroll. Your future self will thank you.

What’s new

Recess is free during early access. Set daily limits, schedules, or focus sessions for distracting apps, and a full-screen block keeps you honest once you hit them.