Brick Alternatives in 2026: Physical Locks, Software Blocks and a Third Option

• Unpluq is the closest direct alternative: also a physical NFC tag, but it requires a paid subscription to work, where Brick is a one-time purchase with a free app.
• One sec is the best software alternative if a pause is enough: a 2023 published PNAS study found its effect came mainly from the moment of active choice it creates.
• Opal is the most complete software blocker on iPhone, with native Screen Time integration, but it can be disabled in one tap in a way a physical tag cannot.
• Forest is free for daily use and adds a gamified stake to focus sessions, though it assumes some focus ability already exists.
• Dopa Break is free on the web and works on the pull itself rather than physically blocking your hand from reaching for the phone.

Disclosure: we build Dopa Break.

Where Brick has the edge

Brick still wins at the one thing it was built for: making a block impossible to talk yourself out of. Because unlocking means physically finding and tapping a separate object, it removes the one-tap "just this once" loophole every software blocker on this list still has. It is also the only physical option here with no subscription, which matters over a year of use. If a hard, subscription-free physical stop is the requirement, nothing below matches it exactly.

Where Dopa Break fits in

Dopa Break is on this list because it does not compete with the lock at all. It works on why the lock is needed: progressive focus reps and guided meditation retrain the underlying attention span, and a 90-second reset handles the moment after a scroll spiral. Free on the web, nothing to buy, nothing to carry.

Brick is an honest answer to a specific failure: you set a software block, and then you tapped "unlock" anyway. A physical tag you have to find and tap is a harder stop than any toggle. People go looking for alternatives for two opposite reasons: they want that hard stop without carrying an object, or they have realised the object was never the problem. The five options below cover both.

Why look for an alternative to Brick?

Brick's limits are the flip side of its strength. It requires buying and carrying a physical object; it only runs on iOS 17+ and Android 12+; and it does nothing about the pull itself, so if the tag is at home and the phone is in your hand, you are back where you started. Each alternative below trades one of those limits for a different one.

What is the closest physical alternative to Brick?

Unpluq. It is the same idea: a keychain-sized NFC tag that has to be physically present to unlock your blocked apps, on iPhones from iOS 16 and on Android. The important difference is the price model. Brick is a one-time hardware purchase with a companion app that is free forever. Unpluq ships the tag with a subscription that is required for it to work at all, sold in three, six or twelve month terms. Over a year, that is a materially different cost, and it is the single biggest reason to pick one over the other. Both products quote results from their own users rather than independent research, so treat those numbers the same way you would treat any brand's own survey.

What if you want the friction without the hardware?

One sec is the best-evidenced software answer. Instead of a wall, it inserts a breathing pause and a moment of active choice when you try to open a distracting app, and a 2023 study published in PNAS, run with the Max Planck Institute and Heidelberg University, found the effect came mainly from that moment of choice rather than the pause itself. It is free for one app, with a subscription or one-time lifetime purchase for more. The honest caveat is the one that sends people to Brick in the first place: a software pause can be dismissed, and about a third of the time in the study, it was.

Opal is the most complete software blocker, particularly on iPhone, where it uses native Screen Time integration and adds a wellbeing score. Its full feature set is paid, with a free tier and a lifetime option. Like every software-only tool, it can be disabled in one tap, which is exactly the loophole a physical tag closes.

Is there a free alternative to Brick?

Forest, for the timer-and-stake approach: its free tier covers a real gamified focus timer and basic app blocking, with a subscription only for extras. It is a good fit if you can already focus for a session and want a reason to keep the phone down. It is a poor fit if the problem is that you cannot start the session at all, because a timer assumes some focus already exists.

What if blocking is not the point at all?

Every option above, Brick included, manages access to the phone. None of them changes what the phone does to your attention in the first place. Dopa Break sits on the other side of that line: progressive focus reps and an 8-day guided meditation program to rebuild the attention span itself, a 90-second reset for the moment right after a scroll spiral, and a phone setup protocol whose grayscale and notification-batching steps come from published trials. It is free on the web, with nothing to buy and nothing to carry. It is also not a block, so if you need a hard stop tonight, it is not the tool for tonight.

Which alternative should you actually pick?

Pick Unpluq if you want a physical tag with more scheduling features and do not mind a subscription. Pick one sec if a research-backed pause is enough and you would rather not carry anything. Pick Opal if you want the most complete software blocker on iPhone. Pick Forest if you want a free, gamified timer. Pick Dopa Break if you want to need the lock less often, and consider pairing it with Brick itself rather than replacing it: the two solve different halves of the same problem.

Frequently asked questions

What is the closest alternative to Brick?

Unpluq. It is also a physical NFC tag you must have present to unlock blocked apps, on iOS 16+ and Android. The main difference is cost: Brick is a one-time purchase with a free app, while Unpluq requires a paid subscription on top of the hardware.

Is there a software alternative to Brick that actually works?

One sec is the best-evidenced one. A 2023 PNAS study found its pause-and-choose mechanic reduced app opens, mainly through the moment of active choice. The trade-off is the one that sends people to Brick: a software pause can be dismissed, and in the study it sometimes was.

Should I replace Brick with Dopa Break?

No, and they are not competing. Brick physically blocks access. Dopa Break trains the attention span so the block is needed less often, and it is free on the web. Using both is a reasonable pairing rather than a redundancy.

Sources

1. Gruning, J., Riedel, F. & Lorenz-Spreen, P. (2023), "Directing Smartphone Use Through the Self-Nudge App One Sec", Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Found the effect came mainly from giving users a moment to actively choose to dismiss opening a target app (about a third of attempts), with the app's brief pause itself a smaller contributing factor; users also attempted to open target apps less often overall.