BAIL Set up the lock

Free app blocker for iPhone

The app blocker you can't switch off.

Bail blocks the apps that eat your day, for as long as you choose. Other blockers switch off in Settings in ten seconds, or charge you for the strict version. Bail is strict, and it's free.

Coming soon to the App Store See how it works
The Bail home screen: hour and minute drums and a Lock in button

How it works

Three steps. Then your phone is quiet.

Focus mode set to allow only the apps you choose; everything else is blocked
1. Choose what stays openBlock the apps that pull you in, or allow only the few you need and block everything else.
Lock in Focus: for 1 hour, blocks everything but the essentials, slide to lock in
2. Roll the time, lock inSet hours and minutes on the drums and slide. In a hurry? Hold the button for two seconds.
Locked in on Focus: the screen is dark and the drums count down
3. Get on with your dayBlocked apps won't open, and your screen goes dark until the drums run out.

What makes Bail different

Other blockers have an off switch. Bail doesn't.

Screen Time limits

Built into iPhone

  • One tap on "Ignore Limit"
  • You know the passcode
  • Free

Other blocker apps

Apps and gadgets

  • Switch off in Settings in seconds
  • Strict mode costs a subscription or a device
  • Block lists, schedules

Bail

Free for iPhone

  • Locked behind a passcode nobody knows
  • One way out: 3 pardons a month, each after a 15-minute wait
  • Free, all of it

See how Bail compares with Opal, Brick, ScreenZen and others →

Removing the off switch

Set up once. Three minutes.

Any blocker can be switched off by whoever knows the Screen Time passcode. So Bail helps you set one nobody knows. Not even you.

Step 01

Get your setup code

In Bail, open Settings → Lock Screen Time. Bail shows a code and a QR code for usebail.com/lock.

Bail showing a setup code and a QR code for usebail.com/lock
Step 02

Enter a passcode you never see

On a laptop or second phone, the page gives you each digit as a quick sum, with decoys to delete. You press the answers in iPhone Settings.

usebail.com/lock: press the answer to 2 + 3, two of four digits entered
The result

Switching Bail off asks for a passcode nobody knows

Your limits can't be turned off. If you ever truly need the code, email the encrypted recovery ticket Bail keeps on your phone. On purpose, that takes a human.

????
Screen Time is lockedTip: set a friend's Apple Account as Passcode Recovery, so only they can reset it.
Open the lock pageusebail.com/lock

The one way out

No off switch.
Three pardons a month.

Life happens, so Bail has exactly one exit. It's slow on purpose.

  1. Tap Bail outIt costs one of your three pardons this month.
  2. Wait 15 minutesChange your mind any time and keep the pardon. Most urges pass first.
  3. You're outPardons reset on the 1st. They can't be bought.
Bail out? It costs 1 pardon and starts a 15-minute wait

Nothing in the way.

Nothing to buy

No subscription, no in-app purchases, no device. The strict version is the only version, and it's free.

Nothing to carry

No puck, card or tag to keep with you, forget at home, or lose. It's all in the phone you already have.

Nothing to share

No account and no analytics. What you block and when stays on your iPhone.

Made for the moments that matter

One app. Every part of your day.

Deep work

Allow only your work apps from 9 to 12. Everything else waits.

Sleep

Lock in every night at 23:00 until 07:00, automatically, on a schedule.

Time with people

Dinner, family, a date. Hold Lock in for two seconds and put the phone down.

Off the feed

Block social apps and keep the adult filter on all the time, whatever mode you're in.

FAQ

Fair questions.

Is it really free?

Yes. Every feature, with no subscription, device, ads or account.

Why not just use Screen Time limits?

Because "Ignore Limit" is one tap away when you know the passcode. Bail uses Screen Time's own blocking, then removes the part you can cheat.

Why not ask a friend to set the passcode?

You can, and then you need them every time you want to change something. Bail lets you set a passcode nobody knows without putting anyone in the middle. A friend's Apple Account as Passcode Recovery is still a great extra lock.

Do I have to set up the passcode lock?

No. Without it, Bail is a good blocker. With it, Bail is one you can't switch off.

What if I really need an app right now?

Use a pardon. After a 15-minute wait you're out. You get three a month.

What if I need the Screen Time passcode back?

If a friend is your Passcode Recovery account, they can reset it with you. Otherwise, email the recovery ticket from Bail to support and we'll send it.

Can Bail see what I do?

No. Apple's Screen Time gives Bail sealed tokens for what you block, so we can't even see which apps they are. No account, no analytics; everything stays on your phone.

Is it truly impossible to bypass?

Nothing on a phone is. Another device, or erasing your iPhone, still works. Bail makes giving in slow and deliberate, and that's what breaks the habit.

Strict. Free. No off switch.

Bail is coming to the App Store.

Coming soon to the App StoreCompare blockers