Updated 9 November 2026 by Spencer Lay, who makes FocusFlow.
TaskLock
A to-do list with an app blocker built in. You tie apps to tasks, habits or calendar events, and they stay locked until you check those off on your iPhone or Apple Watch. Checking off, removing a lock or pushing a start time later goes through a confirmation countdown, so it relies on you being honest about done.
FocusFlow
You pick the apps that get locked. You add the tasks you need to do. When you finish a task, you take a photo of it, an AI model checks the photo against the task, and you earn 15 minutes by default. The minutes count down only while you are in the locked apps, and when they run out the apps lock again, even if FocusFlow is closed. Once every task for the day is done, the apps stay open for the rest of the day.
It is built around a student's day: blockouts for class and bedtime, daily caps on each app, and tasks from your calendar, Reminders or Canvas. Photo proof can be switched off for tasks a photo can't show.
Which to pick
- You trust yourself to only tick off what's done, and want an Apple Watch app: TaskLock.
- You've ticked off tasks you hadn't finished just to get back into TikTok: FocusFlow.
- Your parents are setting it up for you: FocusFlow's family plan lets them give tasks and check the photos.
| TaskLock | FocusFlow | |
|---|---|---|
| Unlocks when | You check the task off | A photo of the finished task is checked |
| Proof of work | A countdown before it counts | A photo, checked by AI |
| Apple Watch | Yes | No |