BePresent Reviews

Cannot continue past the “select ‘all apps & categories” page. Why? Because it insists you select everything prior to continuing. Can you edit the categories on that screen? Yep, sure can. But can’t progress unless you select everything. Why? Probably so they can gobble up some extra data you might not want them to have from the onset. Oh but don’t worry, you can edit the categories later.

Cool, then let me edit them now and be content with whatever I care to share with you. It’s not rocket science, it’s computer science, and it’s really not that difficult. Hire better engineers if that’s your problem (best case scenario) or fire your product manager if this is intentionally malicious.

Despicable.

My screen time often doesn’t update at all, even after refreshing. As this is the reason for this apps existence, it’s hard to recommend it. Beyond that, the “rewards” all seem to be just promotions that the companies are already offering to get you to sign up. Whoop already offers a free month and a free hand to new users, Headspace offers a free month to new users, and so forth. I really want to like BePresent, as the idea behind it is great, but it - itself - is not great. Update: beyond all the above issues, it turns out that even the timer doesn’t work correctly. Yesterday I definitely went over my limit for screen time, but this morning BePresent congratulated me for staying under my goal. As to why it has so many good reviews — I got an email from them saying I’d be entered in a contest in exchange for a five star review. Avoid this garbage app.

And the response from the developer didn’t address any of the other issues with BePresent. Namely that they’re bribing people for 5 star reviews and all the “awards” you can get are actually promotions that are already offered by the companies. The idea for BePresent is good, but the execution is a lie and should be called out as such.

I've noticed that Present very significantly underreports the amount of time I’m using my phone.

For example, it doesn't count the time I'm using incognito mode on safari, which is a bit of a problem because that means Present underreports my screen time, allowing me to inadvertently "cheat," which I really don't like. Also, if you download an app, use it, and then delete it, the time you were using it doesn’t get reported. Those are just two of the “bugs” I’ve found, but there certainly are more.

I was really excited about BePresent, but if it doesn’t correctly track my time, it just can’t work as intended. I mean, just today I’ve used my phone for more than twice the amount of time than it thinks I’ve used. I know this because A) the built in screen time app says I’ve been using my phone for 2.5 hours and B) when you’re actively reading on your phone for two straight hours, you know it’s been two straight hours because of clocks, but present says I’ve used my phone for a little over an hour.

If they fixed these issues, I’d happily use it. All it needs to do is accurately track what the screen time iOS app says, but it can’t do that, apparently.

I’ll probably continue looking for an app that works better. 1) Having to unblock whole categories of apps is not helpful. For instance, I need to listen to things while working. Sometimes music, sometimes podcasts that are only available on certain streaming platforms. But I don’t want to unblock all entertainment because then I’ll have access to things like Instagram and Reddit, which I really do want to block. I don’t want my streaming to count against my screentime because I’m not even looking at my phone. Allegedly this is an Apple issue, but BePresent still made it seem like if I paid for it, I would have control over what I block. 2) There aren’t actual rewards. There are advertisements. The only “reward,” besides enhanced productivity and reduced reliance on my phone, is the accrual of points, which is skewed due to item 1 above. 3) The schedules don’t work well. Sometimes they block apps, sometimes they don’t. I do all of my blocking manually. 4) There aren’t extra points for going over your blocking session. This actually ENCOURAGES me to interact with my phone more because if I want to maximize points, I have to start a new blocking session as soon as one finishes. Why not check a few apps while things are unblocked, right?!
BePresent has promise, but definite room for improvement here.

BePresent requests permission to access screen time when getting started. Regardless of which option I choose “Continue” or “Don’t Allow”, the prompt fades out briefly and immediately reappears creating an endless cycle. I tried turning on access through settings, but the option is not available there. Hopefully they can resolve this bug.

Edit: immediately after coming here to leave a review, the prompt appeared again, this time outside of BePresent . Clicking “Continue” worked and opened up Face ID in order to confirm the choice. I’m guessing the aforementioned bug has something to do with access to FaceID while in app. Will update review after using it for a while.

Hi! I really enjoy BePresent because it utilizes terms like “do you want to give up” and that makes me more likely to stay within my goals. However, BePresent ’s notifications glitch often. It says that I am approaching 5 hours of screen time, then a minute later, it says that I approached 6 h ours of screen time. I check my actual screen time and it says less than 3 hours. The notifications are really buggy. If it was less buggy, I probably would buy the full version.

I've been addicted to instagram, so getting BePresent I was hoping for something that could curve my screen time. this app's goal system combined with BePresent intentions really suited me because it didn't block BePresent , just added an extra step. You're never forced to quit cold turkey, which works super well for me.
Unfortunately, it's been glitching a lot to the point where I have to delete BePresent and redownload it because it fully locks down insta. It's annoying to deal with, but otherwise a great app.

I really like BePresent and it’s been very helpful. One thing that’s been annoying from the game point of view is that maps has been included in screen time. I am definitely not using screen time when I’m navigating. Even though I have Maps as an exception in my screen time limits, it’s been BePresent that has caused me to to go over my screen time every day. Is there a way to make Navigation aids be exempt from Screen Time?

Works really well for the most part.
Sometimes when the schedules start or end, it doesn’t actually start or end so I have to manually begin the blocking session.
Aside from that I think this is pretty great at minimizing my screen time especially when I’m in bed.

I would say the most recent update that changed screen time to XP was a pretty bad call since it used to be a useful metric I could use turning into an arbitrary number.

I’ve reduced my screen time from 6 hours to about half and I plan to be down to an hour a day soon. BePresent encourages me to live in the real world by providing helpful tips every day, running contests, and helping me block apps for 30 minutes at a time. It hasn’t been very easy but it has been worth it and over time becomes more natural to spend less time on my phone. What could be more important than gaining time in my life? I no longer mindlessly scroll without knowing if it has been 5 minutes or an hour. I’m happier as a result.

The day before downloading BePresent my screen time was 10 hours and 46 minutes. The day after downloading this app 5 hours and 27 minutes. Today less than 3 hours.
I tried BePresent for the length of the free trial and deleted BePresent after it was up. The day after I remember doomscrolling. I’ve since then gained my life back through this app.
My favorite feature is having an accountability partner that BePresent will text if I go over my screen time goal. this app offers more features than competitors. While other apps are charging over $100 for an annual plan. this app charges a quarter of their cost.
Please try BePresent!

At first, I wasn’t sure if BePresent would work out. My average screen time for a week before downloading was 13 hours, 9 hours, and 8 hours. After downloading, my screen time has been less than 6 hours! BePresent has worked wonders and really helped me stop mindless scrolling for hours on end. Thank you developers for this! However, there’s only one thing that kinda bothers me. Sometimes the wait to see how my screen time is can take a really long time. It’s not a big problem because I’m patient, but that’s it.

People who struggle to stop scrolling through endless videos on tik tok and instagram need to download BePresent if they want to see their screen time drop dramatically. I went from 6 hours a day on screen time to just 2.5 hours a days BePresent is so helpful and i highly recommend people download this. BePresent has also helped my mental health in many ways, most importantly the self respect. Please help make BePresent more available and share it with everyone you know!!!

I downloaded BePresent off in hopes of better productivity. I really struggle with screen time, even when I’m super aware of it!
Originally I really liked the betting against myself (basically if I lost, I had to pay) and although it’s been sunsetted, I’ve now learned more about the competitions against others as well as my friends!

I used to average 4-5 hours a day, now with Present I’m below 3 on a daily basis, sometimes even below two. I LOVE that it notifies me of time increments spent, and gives me warning when I’m getting close to hours spent on my phone.

I also was blown away when the founder of the company sent out an email asking for a phone call to give feed back. Thinking I’d speak to a staff member (or even a machine) I was PLEASANTLY surprised to hear from Jack himself! I love the fact that an app developer is still staying on top of feedback from his “customers”!

All around, BePresent is super useful of making me more mindful about my screen time.
Even as I write this review 😂 I’m still working on inviting my friends to compete with me (which I find super cool) and getting my family on board as well!

I use BePresent daily and I’ve got to say, it’s a beautiful concept. I’ve noticed that my screen time has dropped dramatically thanks to the hourly reminders! One of my favorite parts of BePresent is the calculator that shows you how much time you’re getting back across your lifetime by saving X hours per day. It really puts how much time we waste into perspective and reminds me of why I wanted to make it a point to be more present to my surroundings instead of my phone. I liked BePresent so much that I reached out to the founders to understand their mission, and they care so much about the user experience and getting people less dependent on their phones. We need more apps like this one in the world! Thank you Jack and Charles for bringing such a wonderful idea to life! Cheers

Unlike other screentime apps Present allows you to exclude certain apps from the screen time count. I use my GPS often so it takes up a lot of my “screentime”. With Present I can choose to exclude the GPS allowing my screentime count to only focus on non productive app usage.

I also love that it gives you a 10 minute warning before you hit another full hour of screentime!!! Helps keep me on track👍

Be present is an amazing app for limiting your screen time and is better than normal screen time apps for many reasons. Number one you can challenge your friends to a leaderboard and see who got more points and who won. The last reason is because every day you get points and with the points you can buy things like audio books, workouts, app memberships and many more.

I’ve been wanting to reduce my TikTok screentime for MONTHS NOW I’ve even set screentimes but I just can’t resist and I keep clicking 15 more minutes. BePresent gives me a self given goal to reduce your screentime to it’s amazing!! I just got BePresent yesterday and my screentime has reduced by more than 2 hours already!! It’s so funny because I actually found this off tiktok but anyways thank you so much I love you guys yall are awesome😆😆😆

I am so pleased with BePresent, it didn’t seem like a gimmick when I got it but it has blown away my expectations. It’s super user friendly, you set your goals and it reminds you to achieve them! Everything is in your power really but if you do what BePresent says, you’re off those apps more!!! I use the free version and I’m totally happy with it. Totally totally worth it

I almost never write reviews….BUT I’ve tried multiple other methods to reduce screen time and none worked. The punish yourself method of screen limits didn’t help. BePresent encourages you to reduce time by making you aware and encouraging you through streaks and competitions. I’ve been able to dedicate so much more time to productive habits and free time thanks to this great app. Download it and encourage your friends and family to compete with you!