Session Pomodoro App Alternatives: Free and One-Time Options

If you want a Session Pomodoro alternative without a subscription, two apps come closest. Flow is a small Pomodoro timer for Apple devices with a free basic version. Be Focused is free with ads, has a one-time Pro purchase, and lists app and website blocking.

If you'd rather have one app that also holds your notes and to-dos, Gubb has a countdown timer and full-screen break reminders, sold as a $59 one-time license on gubb.net and also listed on the Mac App Store and Microsoft Store. It doesn't run automatic Pomodoro cycles. Prices below are as of November 2026.

Why people look for a Session Pomodoro alternative

Session's free plan covers unlimited sessions and breaks. These features need Session Pro:

• Custom session and break lengths
• Website and app blocking (Mac only)
• Real-time sync between devices
• Global keyboard shortcuts (Mac)
• Automatic Apple Calendar events after each session
• Muting Slack during a session

Pro costs $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year, and there is no one-time purchase. The free plan only shows analytics for the past 2 days. Session runs on Mac and iOS, so Windows users need something else.

The quick list

• Flow: best for a plain Pomodoro timer on a recent Mac, iPhone or Apple Watch.
• Be Focused: best for app and website blocking and global hotkeys, with a one-time Pro option.
• Gubb: best if you want a timer, break reminders, notes and to-dos in one window for a one-time price.
• Stretchly: best free option if what you really need is break reminders.
• Windows Clock (Focus Sessions): best free option on Windows.

We make Gubb, so weigh our view accordingly. We've tried to be fair to every app here, including where Gubb falls short of Session.

Summary table

Flow

Flow, made by Yugen GmbH, is the closest to Session in spirit: a small timer that splits your work into focus sessions with set breaks. Don't confuse it with "Flow: Pomodoro Timer & Focus," which is a different app from another developer.

Good at:

• Free basic Pomodoro features. Reviews say there are no ads and no sign-up.
• Timer sync across devices, added in Flow 4.0.
• Session history, including the total time spent on interruptions.
• One review (Rize) describes an app and website blocker. Check the current listing if blocking is the reason you paid for Session Pro.

Lacks:

• The Mac version requires macOS 26 or later, so it won't install on older Macs.
• Apple platforms only. There is no Windows version.
• It's a timer only, with no notes or lists.
• Flow Pro is an auto-renewing App Store subscription. Reviews put it below Session Pro's price, but you're still subscribing.

Price: The basic version is free. Zapier and Timing both list Flow Pro from $1.49 a month, billed annually, and Timing notes that prices vary by region.

Pick Flow if you're on macOS 26 Tahoe and want a simple Pomodoro timer for less than Session Pro, or if the free version already covers what you use.

Be Focused

Be Focused, by Denys Ievenko, comes in two Mac App Store listings: the free Be Focused and the paid Be Focused Pro.

Good at:

• Blocks distracting apps and websites during work sessions, with a whitelist.
• Global hotkeys to start or stop the timer from any app. A menu bar icon lets you start, pause or skip with a right-click.
• Desktop and Notification Center widgets, plus Shortcuts app support.
• Sync across iPhone, iPad and Mac.
• A ticking sound, a choice of alarm sounds and interactive notifications.

Lacks:

• The free version shows banners and ads. Removing them is a paid in-app purchase, and version 2.4 added subscription options to the free app.
• Apple platforms only.
• Task management lives in a separate app from the same developer (Focus Matrix), not in Be Focused itself.
• Before paying, check the listing for the version you plan to buy to confirm it includes the features you want.

Price: The free version has in-app purchases for CSV export, running Shortcuts on timer events, and removing ads. Be Focused Pro is a one-time purchase. US App Store snapshots disagree on its price ($11.99 in one, $19.99 in another), so check the listing. Pro for Mac needs macOS 12 or later.

Pick Be Focused if blocking and global hotkeys are the Session Pro features you'd miss, and you want to pay once.

Gubb: a timer and break reminders inside a notes app

Gubb is not a dedicated Pomodoro app. It's a small notes window that also has a timer, break reminders, clipboard history, to-do lists and voice-to-text into your notes. It's on this list because some people run Session next to a separate notes app, and Gubb puts both jobs in one window. Apart from the free options, it's also the only app here that runs on Windows (via the Microsoft Store).

Run a focus session with the Timer

The Timer has three modes: Countdown, Stopwatch and Pomodoro. Pomodoro starts at 25:00, and you can set min (0–999) and sec (0–59) while the timer is stopped.

1. Hover over the right edge of the Gubb window and click Timer.
2. Choose Pomodoro.
3. Click Start.
4. Optional: click Minimize (the − in the header) to shrink it to a floating pill at the bottom centre.
5. When it finishes, open the dialog again (Maximize timer on the pill), set min to 5 and click Start for your break.
6. After the break, set it back to 25 minutes for the next round.

The timer keeps running while the dialog is closed or minimized.

Turn on break reminders

Break reminders are separate from the Timer and are off by default. Click Settings in the right-edge buttons, open Break Time, switch on Enable Break Timer, then click Save Break Settings.

When a break starts, a notification fires, then the Gubb window goes full screen and stays on top. It shows a countdown, an eye-health tip such as the 20-20-20 rule, and two buttons: +1 Minute and Skip Break.

What Gubb lacks compared with Session

• No automatic cycles. Gubb's Pomodoro mode is a plain countdown. It doesn't switch between work and breaks on its own, and it doesn't count sessions.
• No completion sound. Keep the minimized pill where you can see it.
• No extras. There is no app or website blocking, no stats or history, no sync, and no calendar or Slack integration.
• No global hotkeys. You start the timer from the Gubb window.
• One timer at a time. It is lost when you quit, and it counts in 1-second steps that can drift slightly over long runs.
• Breaks are easy to dodge. Only the Gubb window goes full screen, so other displays stay uncovered. Skip Break is always available, and reminders only run while Gubb is open.
• Known quirks in the current version:
  • A changed work interval may not apply until you restart Gubb or switch the break timer off and on.
  • The separate micro and long break switches aren't saved.
  • A break turns off Pin window on top if you had it on.

Price: $59 one-time for a lifetime license from gubb.net, which activates on up to 3 devices. The Mac direct download includes a 7-day free trial with no account. Gubb is also on the Mac App Store and the Microsoft Store; check those listings for their prices.

Pick Gubb if you want a timer and eye-rest breaks next to your notes and checklists, prefer paying once, or use Windows. If automatic work/break cycles are the point of Pomodoro for you, Flow or Be Focused fits better. The Timer section of the Gubb help center covers the details, and you can download the Mac trial to try it for 7 days.

Free options that may be enough

Built-in timers

The Clock app on macOS Ventura and later has a timer. It's fine for a single 25-minute block, but it won't run cycles for you. See how to set a timer on Mac.

On Windows, the Clock app includes Focus Sessions. You choose a session length and whether you want breaks, and it links with Do Not Disturb. It's free from the Microsoft Store. If you uninstalled Clock, you'll need to reinstall it to use Focus.

If you used Session Pro to mute Slack, a macOS Focus can silence notifications during work instead (it won't change your Slack status). Open System Settings and search for "Focus."

Stretchly

Stretchly is a free, open-source break reminder for Mac, Windows, Linux and FreeBSD. It sits in the tray and shows short and longer breaks, each with an idea for what to do.

It has no focus timer. Some options, including preference sync, are reserved for contributors (people who support the project with code, translations or money). It's built on Electron, and some release downloads are around 128 MB.

Time Out

Time Out is a Mac break reminder that has been around since 2003. It's free to use, with optional supporter purchases (Lifetime is $59.99). Version 4.0 needs macOS 26 or later, and some of its new schedule options are for recent supporters only.

For more break tools, see break reminder apps for Mac and for Windows.

Feature comparison: what you give up by leaving Session

Should you switch at all?

Maybe not. Session's free plan already gives you unlimited sessions and breaks. If the default lengths suit you and you don't care about history beyond 2 days, staying on the free plan costs nothing.

Session Pro also does things none of these alternatives fully match:

• Muting Slack and updating your Slack status
• Logging sessions to Apple Calendar
• Notifying your iPhone or Apple Watch when a Mac timer ends

If you use those every day, $39.99 a year may be the better deal.

Switch when one of these is true:

• You don't want a subscription. Be Focused Pro and Gubb's gubb.net license are one-time purchases.
• You need Windows. Gubb, Stretchly or Windows Clock work there.
• You're on macOS 26 and want a lighter Pomodoro app. Flow fits.
• You keep a notes app open next to your timer anyway. Gubb puts both in one window.

For a wider list, see the best Pomodoro timers for Mac and for Windows. If you're still setting up your routine, what the Pomodoro technique is and how many Pomodoros to do a day cover the method itself.

FAQ

Is Session free?

Yes. Session has a free plan with unlimited sessions and breaks and 2 days of analytics. Custom lengths, blocking, sync, global shortcuts and calendar events need Pro ($4.99/month or $39.99/year as of November 2026).

Is there a Session app for Windows?

Not as of November 2026; Session lists Mac and iOS. On Windows, use the built-in Clock app's Focus Sessions, Stretchly for breaks, or Gubb from the Microsoft Store.

Does Gubb's Pomodoro timer switch to breaks automatically?

No. Gubb's Pomodoro mode is a countdown (25 minutes by default), and you start each break yourself. Its separate break reminders, once you turn them on, run on their own schedule (60 minutes of work by default) while Gubb is open.