Best Mac screen time apps

TeenyScreeny is deliberately narrow. It puts today's active screen time in the Mac menu bar, updates every second, and changes color when you cross your thresholds. Click it and you get today's total, yesterday, a 7-day average, streaks, pause/resume, and a small weekly chart. The history window has daily and monthly charts, plus CSV export.

The important part is what it does not track. TeenyScreeny does not keep a list of apps or websites. Its own code counts active use, pauses after idle time, stores daily totals, and exports date, total seconds, formatted time, and whether a daily goal was met. That makes it a better fit for personal awareness than billing or surveillance.

Pick it if you want the number visible while you can still change the day.

Apple Screen Time is already on your Mac. It can show app and website activity, set downtime, set app limits, restrict content, and manage a child's settings through Family Sharing.

The weakness is not the data. It is the placement. You go into System Settings to review it. That works for weekly check-ins and parental controls. It is easier to ignore if your problem is catching yourself at 3:30 PM before the day runs away.

Pick it if you want limits, restrictions, family controls, or no extra app.

Timing is for people who need to explain where time went. Its FAQ says it records the active window once per second, including the window title and document path or URL when available, then lets you group activity into projects. The pricing page lists editions for individuals, heavy users, and teams, with reports, manual entries, integrations, and sync.

That is useful if time becomes an invoice, a project report, or a team review. It is too much if your only goal is, "Please keep me aware that I have been at the screen too long."

Pick it if detailed work records matter more than minimal tracking.

ActivityWatch is the open-source answer. Its homepage says it tracks active application and window title by default, can add browser tracking through extensions, and stores data locally. It runs on macOS, Windows, Linux, and Android.

The tradeoff is polish. ActivityWatch opens its UI in a local browser, has a more technical feel, and rewards people who like tinkering. For privacy-minded users who want detailed tracking without a cloud account, it is the one to try first.

Pick it if you want detail, local data, and free software.

RescueTime is the cloud-service option. Its current pricing page lists Solo Focus at $7/month on the annual plan and Solo+ with Timesheets at $12/month on the annual plan. The product is aimed less at a small Mac utility and more at focus habits, reports, teams, and timesheets.

That can be the right shape if you want dashboards and coaching rather than a local counter. It is not the shape I would choose for private personal awareness.

Pick it if you want focus reporting as a service and are fine with subscription pricing.