the pause
between you
and doomscrolling.
Noru isn't a wall, it's a mirror. Screen Time taught you to click 'ignore for today.' Noru asks why you're opening the app in the first place — and keeps a record of the answer.
free to try · $9.99 once · no subscription, ever.
"one more minute" is a trap.
You've tried Screen Time. But 'one more minute' and 'ignore for today' are right there — and after a while your thumb finds them automatically, without thinking. You've trained yourself to bypass your own rules. The problem isn't willpower. It's awareness.
on infinite-scroll apps
per day
unintentional
three small steps. one big shift.
setup takes about a minute. Noru runs on Apple's native screen time API, so your messages, photos and browsing stay where they belong — on your device, untouched.
flag the apps that pull you under.
pick the ones that swallow your evenings — social feeds, short-form video, news apps. your call. add or remove any time.
write your north star.
one sentence — what you actually want your attention on. "be present with my kid." "finish the novel." we'll show it back when it counts.
get a pause, not a wall.
open a flagged app and Noru surfaces your north star and asks how you're feeling — bored, anxious, procrastinating. name it, then decide: open for a short window, or don't. every window requires a new check-in. there's no 'ignore' button.
most apps want your attention. Noru wants you to have it back.
it asks before it acts.
every pause begins with a question, not a denial. awareness is the point — not enforcement.
no shame. no streaks to break.
if you open the app, that's fine. Noru doesn't punish, lecture, or guilt-trip. it just makes the moment visible.
your north star, in your own words.
you choose what matters, in one sentence. Noru shows it back at the moment you're about to forget it.
everything stays on your phone.
no analytics. no ad pixels. no cloud sync. iOS native API means we literally cannot see what you do.
blockers
Noru
i thought i needed a blocker. turns out i just needed someone to ask me what i actually wanted. half the time, the answer was nothing.
pay once. own it.
no subscription. no upsell. no "premium tier." an app that wants you to use it less should not charge you every month.
no card, no commitment. pause on one app and see if it works for you.
- full pause + intention flow
- 1 flagged app
- everything on-device
one payment. all future updates. no subscription, ever.
- unlimited flagged apps
- every future feature, included
- everything on-device
honest answers.
is Noru a blocker?
technically, yes — but not a hard wall. when you open a flagged app, a pause screen appears and asks how you're feeling. after the check-in, you choose a short window (5, 10, or 15 minutes) to use the app. when that window ends, the pause returns and you check in again. there's no 'ignore for today' button. every window requires a check-in, every time.
how is this different from Screen Time?
Screen Time gives you an 'ignore for today' button. one tap and you're in — and your thumb learns the shortcut fast. Noru has no bypass that skips the check-in. every time you open a flagged app, you see your north star and name how you're feeling first. it also uses Apple's native API at the OS level, so it can't be sidestepped the way Screen Time limits can.
can I delete Noru to remove the block?
no. Noru uses Apple's native screen time API, which works at the OS level. deleting Noru does not remove the shield — the block stays active. to remove it, you have to explicitly turn off the blocks inside the app before deleting it.
how does it know when I'm about to scroll?
Apple's native screen time API lets Noru react when you launch a flagged app. that's the only signal it uses, and it's the only one it can use — your messages, photos, browsing, and location are all invisible to Noru.
what data does Noru collect?
nothing leaves your phone. no analytics, no event pixels, no account required. your north star, your flagged apps, your usage — all of it lives in local storage, encrypted by iOS.
why one-time pricing? everyone else is a subscription.
an app whose job is to help you use your phone less should not need you to keep paying it. $9.99 at launch funds development. that's it. no upsell, no "premium," no recurring charge.
android?
iOS first, because Apple's native API is what makes the gentle pause possible without root access or third-party tricks. Android is on the roadmap — join the list and we'll let you know when it lands.
get notified when Noru launches.
we'll send one email the day it hits the App Store. no spam, no follow-ups.
free to try · $9.99 once · no subscription, ever.