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BEST ADHD APPS

The best focus apps for ADHD in 2026

Blockers, timers, and focus audio, scored on what held during a genuinely boring task.

Split the job: Brain.fm for getting into work, one sec or Opal for staying out of the phone, Llama Life for staying on one task. No single app does all three well; the ranked table below shows which combination fits which failure mode.

Every score on this page comes from the same published rubric. how we score

The ranked table

Scored comparison of apps in The best focus apps for ADHD in 2026
AppScoreVerdictTapsPriceLitmus
Brain.fm84KEEPNot yet measured$$
  • Setup friction 18 out of 20
  • Capture friction 13 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 14 out of 15
  • Reward design 8 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 7 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 8 out of 10
one sec81KEEPNot yet measured$
  • Setup friction 16 out of 20
  • Capture friction 13 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 13 out of 15
  • Reward design 8 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 8 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 7 out of 10
Llama Life80KEEPNot yet measured$$
  • Setup friction 17 out of 20
  • Capture friction 12 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 12 out of 15
  • Reward design 9 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 7 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 7 out of 10
Forest78KEEPNot yet measuredone-time $ + optional
  • Setup friction 17 out of 20
  • Capture friction 12 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 9 out of 15
  • Reward design 7 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 9 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 8 out of 10
Endel82KEEPNot yet measured$$
  • Setup friction 17 out of 20
  • Capture friction 13 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 14 out of 15
  • Reward design 7 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 7 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 8 out of 10
Opal72TRIAL FIRSTNot yet measured$$$
  • Setup friction 14 out of 20
  • Capture friction 11 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 10 out of 15
  • Reward design 7 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 6 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 8 out of 10

Entry by entry

Brain.fm

KEEP84/100

Functional music engineered for focus, with an ADHD-aware mode.

Best for
People who need an audio on-ramp into work.
Watch out
Evidence is promising, not settled; we link what exists.
Price
$$

one sec

KEEP81/100

Adds a breathing pause before distracting apps open. The friction is the feature: most opens are impulses, and a short delay kills a surprising share of them. Cheap, and among the rare blockers with published research behind the mechanic.

Best for
Doomscroll interruption without going full lockdown.
Watch out
Determined-you can still get through; that is the design, not a flaw.
Price
$

Llama Life

KEEP80/100

Built on one idea: you get one task and a timer, and the rest of the list waits its turn. Playful without being patronizing, with time estimates that add up to an honest "your list ends at 6:40pm". Weak as a system of record; superb as a doing tool next to whatever stores your tasks.

Best for
People whose lists are honest but whose time sense is not.
Watch out
Not a system of record; pair it with wherever tasks live.
Price
$$

Read the full Llama Life review →

Forest

KEEP78/100

Plant a tree, stay off the phone, watch it grow. One-time price, high polish, no subscription pressure. The dead tree is a guilt mechanic and we score it as one.

Best for
Gentle, visual focus sessions with a one-time price.
Watch out
The guilt mechanic (dead trees) lands badly for some ADHD users; we score that honestly.
Price
one-time $ + optional

Read the full Forest review →

Endel

KEEP82/100

Adaptive soundscapes that shift with time of day and activity.

Best for
Ambient-leaning listeners; beautiful, low-decision audio.
Watch out
Less "work mode" punch than Brain.fm for some; taste-dependent.
Price
$$

Opal

TRIAL FIRST72/100

Opal is the locked door: sessions, schedules, and hard modes that make bypassing genuinely difficult. It costs more than every friction-based rival and the rigidity cuts both ways.

Best for
People who need the door actually locked.
Watch out
Premium price; hard modes can frustrate legitimate needs mid-block.
Price
$$$

Read the full Opal review →

Cards, if you scan

Brain.fmKEEP
  • Setup friction 18 out of 20
  • Capture friction 13 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 14 out of 15
  • Reward design 8 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 7 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 8 out of 10

Functional music engineered for focus, with an ADHD-aware mode.

84/100 · $$ · Not yet measured

one secKEEP
  • Setup friction 16 out of 20
  • Capture friction 13 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 13 out of 15
  • Reward design 8 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 8 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 7 out of 10

A forced breath before distracting apps open; the pause kills the impulse.

81/100 · $ · Not yet measured

Llama LifeKEEP
  • Setup friction 17 out of 20
  • Capture friction 12 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 12 out of 15
  • Reward design 9 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 7 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 7 out of 10

One task, one timer, and a list that tells you when your day actually ends.

80/100 · $$ · Not yet measured

ForestKEEP
  • Setup friction 17 out of 20
  • Capture friction 12 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 9 out of 15
  • Reward design 7 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 9 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 8 out of 10

Stay off the phone and a tree grows; leave and it dies.

78/100 · one-time $ + optional · Not yet measured

EndelKEEP
  • Setup friction 17 out of 20
  • Capture friction 13 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 14 out of 15
  • Reward design 7 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 7 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 8 out of 10

Adaptive soundscapes that shift with time of day and activity.

82/100 · $$ · Not yet measured

OpalTRIAL FIRST
  • Setup friction 14 out of 20
  • Capture friction 11 out of 15
  • Forgiveness 10 out of 15
  • Reward design 7 out of 10
  • Notification quality 8 out of 10
  • Price honesty 6 out of 10
  • Accessibility 8 out of 10
  • Staying power 8 out of 10

Heavy-duty app blocking with sessions, schedules, and hard modes.

72/100 · $$$ · Not yet measured

Questions people actually ask

Does focus music actually help?

For some people, reliably. The research is promising rather than settled, which is why we score the mechanic and the price honesty instead of promising outcomes.

Timer or blocker first?

Timer, if the problem is starting. Blocker, if the problem is the phone. Most people need one of each, not five of both.

Why is Pomodoro hard with ADHD?

Fixed intervals fight hyperfocus in both directions. Apps that let you end a session honestly, like Llama Life, score better on forgiveness.

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