Freedom

Freedom is the only major distraction blocker as of May 2026 that syncs blocklists and active sessions across iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, and every browser at once, with a Locked Mode that prevents you from ending a session early. It is the right choice when you need the block to follow you from phone to laptop without manual reconfiguration.

At a glance

Field	Value
Pricing	Freemium — $39.99/yr (sale) / $119.88/yr (standard) / $199 lifetime
Platforms	Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari
Sync across devices	Yes — only major blocker with full cross-device sync
Locked / unbypassable mode	Yes (cannot be ended early once started)
Last verified	May 20, 2026

What Freedom does well

• True cross-device sync. Start a session on your laptop, and your phone is locked into the same blocklist the moment it ships. Cold Turkey, Opal, and SelfControl can’t do this.
• Locked Mode is real. Once a Locked session starts, you cannot stop it — not by uninstalling the app, not by restarting, not by deleting your account. This is the failure-mode you actually want from a blocker.
• Schedules. Recurring sessions (“every weekday 9–12”) run without you remembering to start them.
• Whitelist mode. Block everything except an allowlist — surprisingly rare and surprisingly effective for writing days.

What Freedom doesn’t do

• Keyword-level filtering. Freedom blocks whole sites and apps, not topics within them. If you want to keep using Reddit but block politics, you want Ultimate Reddit Filter, not Freedom.
• A real free tier. Seven lifetime sessions and you’re done. Treat the free plan as a trial.
• VPN coexistence on iOS. Freedom’s iOS blocking uses a local VPN profile. If you already run NextDNS, Mullvad, or any always-on VPN, expect conflicts.

Best for

Anyone who works across multiple devices and gets pulled into the same handful of sites on whichever screen is closest. If that’s you, the cross-device sync alone justifies the price.

Setup in 5 minutes

1. Install Freedom on every device you want covered (Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, plus the browser extension on each browser).
2. Sign into the same account on all of them.
3. Build one blocklist — name it “Default” — and add the 5–10 sites that actually eat your day.
4. Create a recurring session (e.g. weekdays 9:00–12:00) and tick Locked Mode.
5. Walk away.

Alternatives

• Cold Turkey — desktop-only but a one-time $39 purchase and arguably stricter blocking. No cross-device sync.
• Opal — iOS only, slicker UI, $99/yr. Pick if your problem is exclusively a phone problem.
• SelfControl — free Mac-only, unbypassable timer, no schedules.