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FocusMe VS Essentials

Compare FocusMe VS Essentials and see what are their differences

FocusMe

The website blocker you can't cheat, on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and iPhone.

Rating
5.0 · 4 reviews
Pricing
Paid Free trial $17.95 / Monthly ($17.95 a month, $119.40 a year or $449 once; 14-day free trial)
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Essentials

Essential tools and mods for Android nerds. Contribute to sameerasw/essentials development by creating an account on GitHub.

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Rating
0 reviews
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Sendaway.co
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Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

Which is more popular?

Based on our record, FocusMe seems to be more popular. It has been mentioned 11 times since March 2021.

social mentions
11 vs 0
Productivity popularity
100% vs 0%
alternatives listed
240+ vs 15

Base details

Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.

FocusMe
Essentials
Website focusme.com github.com
Pricing
Paid Free trial $17.95 / Monthly ($17.95 a month, $119.40 a year or $449 once; 14-day free trial) Official pricing
—
Company Startup from the United Kingdom · 50 - 99 employees —
Listed in
Productivity Websites Blocker Focus App Time Management +1
Utilities Windows Tools System Utility OS & Utilities +1

About FocusMe and Essentials

In their own words, as submitted to SaaSHub.

FocusMe
Essentials

FocusMe is a website and app blocker for Windows, Mac and Linux, with Android and iPhone apps that sync to it. Build plans that block sites and apps on a schedule, cap the time you spend on them each day, or start a focus session whenever you need one. Enforced Mode stops you switching a block...

Read more about FocusMe

No description of Essentials yet.

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

FocusMe 5 features
Essentials 5 features
  • Enforced Mode
    the strongest bypass protection of any website blocker
  • Flexible Scheduling
    Users can schedule focused work sessions and breaks with advanced customization options, which helps in maintaining a balanced work routine.
  • Pomodoro Time
    built-in work/break cycles with floating timer window
  • User Metrics and Reports
    FocusMe provides detailed reports and statistics on user activity, helping users to analyze and improve their productivity patterns.
  • Strong Security
    The software includes features like forced mode and password protection to prevent users from bypassing restrictions easily.
  • Clean and Minimal Design
    Essentials provides a clean, minimal browser startpage/new tab experience that focuses on simplicity and aesthetics, reducing visual clutter compared to default browser homepages.
  • Customizable
    The project allows users to customize various aspects of their startpage, including links, bookmarks, and visual elements, making it adaptable to individual workflows and preferences.
  • Open Source
    Being hosted on GitHub and open source, users can freely inspect, modify, and contribute to the codebase, ensuring transparency and community-driven improvements.
  • Lightweight
    The project is built with simple web technologies (HTML, CSS, JavaScript), making it fast to load and easy to deploy without heavy dependencies or frameworks.
  • Self-Hosted Friendly
    Users can easily host and run the startpage locally or on their own servers, maintaining full control over their data and not relying on third-party services.

Possible disadvantages

  • Limited Documentation
    The project has relatively limited documentation, which may make it harder for new users or contributors to understand setup, configuration options, and how to extend the project.
  • Niche Use Case
    As a browser startpage, it serves a very specific niche purpose and may not appeal to users who are satisfied with default browser new tab pages or more feature-rich alternatives like Notion or other dashboard tools.
  • Small Community
    The project has a relatively small user and contributor base, which can mean slower development, fewer feature additions, and limited community support for troubleshooting issues.
  • Manual Configuration
    Customization often requires directly editing code or configuration files rather than offering a user-friendly settings interface, which can be a barrier for less technical users.
  • Limited Feature Set
    Compared to more established startpage projects (like Homer, Heimdall, or Flame), Essentials may lack advanced features such as service health monitoring, integrations, or weather widgets that power users might expect.

Analysis

An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.

FocusMe
Essentials

Overall verdict

  • FocusMe is generally considered a good tool for those who need assistance with self-discipline and concentration. Its comprehensive feature set and flexible options make it a strong contender in the productivity software market.

Why this product is good

  • FocusMe is designed to enhance productivity by blocking distracting websites and apps, helping users maintain focus on their tasks. It offers features like scheduling, time tracking, and breaks management, which can be particularly beneficial for individuals struggling with maintaining concentration in the digital age.

Recommended for

  • Students looking to minimize online distractions while studying.
  • Remote workers needing to enhance their focus during work hours.
  • Individuals seeking to manage their screen time effectively.
  • Professionals aiming to increase productivity by structuring their work time.

Overall verdict

  • Essentials is a well-regarded, popular Minecraft server plugin (and its modern fork EssentialsX) that provides a comprehensive suite of core commands and features for server administration, making it a solid foundation for most Bukkit/Spigot/Paper servers.

Why this product is good

  • Offers hundreds of essential commands and features out of the box, covering teleportation, homes, warps, kits, and economy
  • Actively maintained through the EssentialsX fork with regular updates and compatibility for modern Minecraft versions
  • Open source and free, with a large community providing support, documentation, and tutorials
  • Highly configurable with granular permissions integration for fine-tuned server control
  • Widely adopted, so it integrates well with many other popular plugins

Recommended for

  • Minecraft server administrators setting up a new survival or multiplayer server
  • Server owners who need a reliable all-in-one plugin for basic management commands
  • Communities wanting economy, homes, and warp systems without installing many separate plugins
  • Beginners looking for well-documented, beginner-friendly server tooling
  • Developers building on Bukkit, Spigot, or Paper who want a stable core plugin foundation

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

FocusMe 2 videos + Add
Essentials 0 videos + Add

Focusme Review

More videos

  • - Hands On Review of the Distraction-Blocking Software FocusMe

No Essentials videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Category popularity

How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.

Score bands 0–20 21–40 41–50 51–60 61–100
FocusMe
Essentials
100% 100%
Productivity
0% 0%
0% 0%
Utilities
100% 100%
100% 100%
Time Management
0% 0%
0% 0%
System Utility
100% 100%

User comments

Share your experience with using FocusMe and Essentials. For example, how are they different and which one is better?

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Reviews and articles

External articles and on-site reviews we used to compare the two products.

FocusMe 5.0 · 4 reviews
Essentials no reviews yet
  • Started using FocusMe six years ago. I rely on it heavily.
    SaaSHub review
    · Apr 2023

    I have been using FocusMe software on all my PCs and phones for over six years. I have a paid license. I would really like to commend the developers of FocusMe. As someone who spends more than 8 hours a day at a...

  • The Best Application for Managing Digital Distractions
    SaaSHub review
    · Mar 2023

    Wow! Where should I start? I've been constantly searching in these two years for finding a complete solution that could really help me manage my digital distractions and focus on my daily life routines, most...

  • FocusMe review
    SaaSHub review
    · Jan 2023

    It just all works properly unlike other softwares. I am very happy because if I have minor troubles, customer support is there the same day to help me fix it. A lot of good locking systems that so far I haven't...

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We have no reviews of Essentials yet. Be the first one to post

Social recommendations and mentions

Recommendations tracked on public social media and blogs since March 2021.

FocusMe 11 mentions
Essentials 0 mentions
  • WFH Developers how do you fight major procrastination?
    I would probably be homeless if it wasn't for FocusMe. I use it to block all sites except sites I need for work. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Build/compile/package restore times KILL my productivity
    It's called FocusMe (https://focusme.com/). I came across some years ago when it was still a simple little app. You had to manually set it to block a site and enter in a time period. I had my daily working schedule that I use now set... Source: over 3 years ago
  • Software for permanent blocking websites
    How about Forest - https://www.forestapp.cc/ or FocusMe - https://focusme.com/. Source: about 4 years ago

View more

Tracking Essentials since Apr 2026.

Alternatives to FocusMe and Essentials

When comparing FocusMe and Essentials, you can also consider the following products.

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