Brick vs Bloom vs Unpluq: Physical Blockers Compared (2026)

App blockers have the same weakness: the app that blocks Instagram lives on the same phone as Instagram, so turning it off takes three taps and no thought. Physical blockers add an object to the loop. To unlock your apps you need the object, and if you’ve left it in another room, unlocking stops being automatic.

That’s the whole idea, and it works only as well as you’re willing to put the thing somewhere annoying. Here’s how the main options compare. We checked prices on 4 November 2026, and where we couldn’t confirm a UK price we’ve said so.

At a glance

Brick

Brick is a small, battery-free puck with an NFC chip inside. You choose which apps to block, tap your phone on the Brick to lock them, and tap again to unlock. On iPhone it uses Apple’s Screen Time permission, so it blocks apps the same way Apple’s own limits do. The difference is that turning them off needs the puck. It needs iOS 18 or Android 12 or later.

Price: £44.75 for one, or £80.56 for two, on Brick’s UK checkout. There’s no subscription. Orders ship to the UK with duties included at checkout.

Getting out: you get five Emergency Unbricks for when you really need an app and the Brick is at home. Once you’ve used all five, you can ask Brick to reset you, which takes about a working day. Out of the box, deleting the Brick app unblocks everything. Turn on Strict Mode to stop that, and to stop yourself changing its settings.

The catch: it only works if the Brick stays somewhere you aren’t. Leave it on your desk and it’s a slower way to unlock your phone. It also does nothing for your laptop.

Best for: most people in the UK who want a physical blocker. It’s the simplest to set up, it ships here without surprise fees, and nothing is billed after you buy it.

Bloom

Bloom does the same job with a stainless-steel card instead of a puck, and an optional magnetic “Pod” for the card to sit in. Fortune reported in February that the company says it has sold more than 60,000 units. The app is free, with no subscription, and works on iPhone (iOS 17.6 or later) and Android.

Price: $39 for the card, or $69 with the Pod. Bloom’s store prices everything in dollars and only offered US delivery when we checked. Its shipping policy mentions import duties for buyers outside the US, so check before ordering from the UK.

Getting out: you get three emergency exits, plus one more each month. As with Brick, deleting the app unblocks everything unless you’ve turned on Strict Mode, which stops you deleting it during a focus session.

The catch: a card slips easily into a wallet, and your wallet is usually next to your phone. If you go for Bloom, the Pod makes it much easier to leave the card somewhere else.

Unpluq

Unpluq takes a different approach. Its NFC Tag is one of several “barriers” you can put in front of a blocked app. The others include shaking your phone, tapping a pattern or scanning a QR code. It works on iPhone (iOS 16 or later) and Android.

Price: the Tag is £17.95 on its own, but you need Unpluq Premium to use it: £4.99 a month or £49.99 a year in the App Store. Unpluq’s shop also sells bundles: £22 for three months plus a Tag, £34 for six months, or £60 for a year.

Getting out: there’s an optional emergency mode that gives you five minutes once a day, and you can switch it off. If you lose the Tag, you can use lost-Tag mode up to five times per account. To uninstall on iPhone you revoke its Screen Time permission and then delete the app. On Android you need a code sent by email first.

The catch: the Tag is designed to live on your keyring, so it adds friction rather than distance: your keys are rarely far away. You also pay every month or year, so over time it costs more than Brick. And its App Store privacy label lists identifiers as data used to track you, which is worth a look if privacy matters to you.

Best for: people who want more ways to unlock than a single tag, and don’t mind a subscription.

Foqos (the free option)

Foqos is a free, open-source iPhone app that does the Brick trick with any NFC sticker. You buy a pack of cheap NFC stickers (NTAG213 is the type it uses) or print a QR code, stick it somewhere inconvenient, and scan it to start or stop a block. It uses Apple’s Screen Time framework and needs no account. On the UK App Store it’s rated 4.9 from more than 800 ratings, and the only payments are optional tips. Its Hard Mode hides the stop button, so you need the sticker to end a session.

The catch: it’s iPhone only, you set it up yourself, and as an open-source project its support is a GitHub issue page rather than a help desk.

Best for: iPhone users who want to try a physical blocker for the price of a few stickers before spending £45 on one.

kSafe (lock the whole phone away)

If you want the phone itself out of reach, a timed lockbox like the kSafe is the blunt option. Put the phone in, set the timer for anywhere from a minute to ten days, and the lid stays locked until it runs out. There’s no override: the only way in early is to break the box.

Price: around $59 in the US. We couldn’t confirm a current UK price, though kSafe does ship internationally.

The catch: it locks away everything, including calls and the two-factor codes you need to sign in to other things. Check the size too: the Mini only fits phones up to 5.8 inches.

Best for: set periods, like an evening or an exam revision session, where you genuinely don’t need your phone at all.

Going further: replace the phone

If you’ve tried all of the above and keep ending up back on your phone, a dumbphone removes the apps altogether. The Light Phone III is the best-known, at around $900 unlocked, with VAT and duty to pay on delivery outside the US. That’s a much bigger step, so it’s worth trying a £45 blocker first.

The catch with all of them

Every device here relies on the same thing: you leaving it somewhere inconvenient, on purpose, every time. The emergency unlocks are there because sometimes you really do need an app, and they’re also the easiest way back in on a bad day. Nobody sees you use them.

For some people the distance is enough. Others find what works is someone else knowing. That’s the idea behind Snitch, the app we make: you share a pot of screen time with friends, every unlock needs a reason your group can see, and they’re told when you go over. It’s free with up to two blocked apps.

To be straight about its downsides: it works best when your friends are on it too, though you can use it alone or join a public group. Blocking more than two apps needs Premium. And there’s no object involved, so if distance is what you need, one of the devices above will suit you better.

Which should you get?

• Most people in the UK: Brick. One-off price, UK delivery, works on iPhone and Android.
• On iPhone and want to try it free first: Foqos and a pack of NFC stickers.
• In the US, or happy to import: Bloom, with the Pod so the card doesn’t live in your wallet.
• Want options besides a tag: Unpluq, if you’re happy to subscribe.
• Need it to be impossible: a kSafe, for times when you won’t need calls or sign-in codes.
• Know you’ll cheat on your own: add other people. That’s what we built Snitch for.