Be Focused vs Vitamin-R

Be Focused

• Apple users who want a Pomodoro timer tied to a task list
• People who prefer a one-time purchase to a subscription
• Automating focus sessions with the Shortcuts app

Vitamin-R

• People who keep postponing vague or intimidating tasks
• Mac users who want more structure than a bare countdown timer
• Light time tracking by project or client with CSV export
• Buyers who prefer a one-time purchase to a subscription

Be Focused

• Apple platforms only: iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac. No Windows, Android or web version is listed.
• The free apps show banners and ads, and sync, tags and filters, and CSV export need Pro.
• There are two ways to pay: Pro inside the free app, or the separate Be Focused Pro app at $19.99 per platform.
• The Focus Matrix integration needs the Pro version of Focus Matrix, which is sold separately.

Vitamin-R

• Mac only: the current version needs macOS 13 Ventura or later. No iPhone, Windows or web version is offered.
• There is no free plan: the trial stops working after 14 days until an unlock code is bought.
• The standard license stops before version 5.0; covering all future upgrades costs a further $29.95 for the Forever Upgrade.
• It is not a task manager. The vendor positions it alongside to-do apps such as OmniFocus and Things.

Be Focused

Interval timer

Set the length of work intervals, short breaks and long breaks, the number of intervals before a long break and a daily target. Intervals can be paused or skipped.

Task list

Tasks take notes and due dates and can be pasted in from other apps. You plan the intervals a task needs, and a task can have its own timer settings.

Reports

Progress is tracked by day, week or a custom period. Exporting the data as a CSV file is listed among the Pro features.

Sync between devices

Pro syncs tasks and progress across iPhone, iPad and Mac, and the iOS app includes an Apple Watch app.

Shortcuts automation

Tasks and timers can be controlled from Apple's Shortcuts app, and Pro can run a shortcut when an event happens in Be Focused.

App and website blocking on Mac

The Be Focused Pro listing for Mac includes blocking distracting apps and websites during work sessions, in Safari, Chrome, Edge, Opera and Brave.

Vitamin-R

Objectives and time slices

Each session starts with one specific, reachable objective and a time slice of 15 to 25 minutes. Visual, audio and spoken prompts keep it in view, and the app can shrink to a menu-bar countdown.

Now & Later Board

A stray thought, such as an email to send or an errand, is written down as one line on the board so you can return to the task and pick it up afterwards.

Log book and analytics

Every completed time slice is recorded. Charts show a week of focused time and the hours when you focus best, and slices can be tagged by project or client and exported to CSV.

Breaks and Pomodoro timing

Time slices alternate with timed breaks, which can lock the screen. The timing and rhythm of the classic Pomodoro Technique are built in as an option.

Keyboard command window

A global shortcut opens a command window from any app, where a time slice can be set up and controlled by typing instead of using the mouse.

Focus soundscapes

White noise and ambient soundscapes, from busy coffee shops to quiet beaches, can play while you work to mask distractions.

Be Focused

• Free$0

  Tasks, the interval timer, custom durations and reports on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac, with banners and ads.

• Monthly Pro$2.99

  per month, US App Store in-app purchase

  Sync across devices, tags and filters, CSV export, Shortcuts triggers and no ads. One purchase covers iPhone, iPad and Mac.

• Yearly Pro$19.99

  per year, after a 7-day free trial

  The same Pro features billed yearly through the App Store.

• Be Focused Pro app$19.99

  one-time purchase per platform (iOS or Mac)

  A separate paid app, listed at $19.99 for iPhone and iPad and $19.99 for Mac. The vendor's site says each is sold separately.

• Lifetime Pro$39.99

  one-time purchase

  Pro unlocked for good inside the free app, on iPhone, iPad and Mac, for a single payment.

Vitamin-R

• Single User$29.95

  one-time purchase

  Any number of installations for one person, minor updates up to but not including version 5.0, and a free Noise Machine license.

• Family$59.95

  one-time purchase, up to 5 people

  Any number of installations for up to 5 people in the same family. The order page lists it as $30.00 on top of the Single User price.

• Small Business$149.95

  one-time purchase, up to 20 people

  Up to 20 people in the same family or organization, listed as $120.00 on top of the Single User price.

• Business$299.95

  one-time purchase, up to 50 people

  Up to 50 people in the same organization, listed as $270.00 on top of the Single User price.

• Enterprise$749.95

  one-time purchase, unlimited people

  An unlimited number of people in the same organization, listed as $720.00 on top of the Single User price.

Be Focused

• Annual discount

  Yearly Pro costs about 44% less than monthly

  The US App Store lists Yearly Pro at $19.99 against Monthly Pro at $2.99, which comes to $35.88 over twelve months.

• Lifetime license

  Lifetime Pro for a one-time payment

  A Lifetime Pro in-app purchase is listed at $39.99, and the listing says a single purchase unlocks Pro on iPhone, iPad and Mac.

Vitamin-R

• Lifetime license

  Forever Upgrade for a further $29.95

  Adding the Forever Upgrade option on the order page costs $29.95 on top of the license and includes all future product upgrades.

• Other savings

  Upgrade pricing for existing owners

  Owners of any earlier version can buy the Single User upgrade to version 4 for $19.95, and anyone who bought after 1 January 2021 gets version 4 free.