Calm Otter

Put the phone down, on purpose.

A real break from your phone. Tap the otter, choose how long, and for that time your apps stop and notifications go quiet. Alone, or together with the people around you.

No account
No internet permission
Open source
Alone or together

Download the test build View the source

In closed testing on Google Play. Test builds for Android 8 or later are on GitHub.

Calm Otter's home screen: tap the otter to start a pause

What it does

How it works

Tap the otter and choose how long. For that time your apps stop and notifications go quiet.

From 10 minutes to 4 hours, with one tap
Other apps stay covered until the pause ends
Do Not Disturb turns on by itself; calls, alarms and your music get through
You choose which apps stay: Maps by day, none in the evening

A pact, not a cage

Only the person who knows the password can end a pause early: you, or someone you trust who sets it for you. If they can't be reached, there's a slow way out: wait ten minutes and the pause ends.

Pauses that start on their own

The best moment for a pause is the one you'd rather skip.

Scheduled: "weekdays at 9pm, for an hour"
Surprise: at a random moment in the two hours after the time you pick
After long use: counts screen-on time only, never which apps, and never at night

Time together

Hold your phones together and start the same pause at the same moment. Without NFC, or with more people, use a QR code, a code or a Bluetooth lobby. The app even suggests something to do: a walk, a game of cards, or just being together.

Small rituals

Gentle touches, never streaks or reproaches.

A 10-minute breathing pause
"How was it?" at the end, with a word and a note if you like
Your week at a glance on Sunday evening

Privacy, for real

No account, no ads, no analytics. Calm Otter doesn't even have permission to use the internet: everything stays on your phone.

Honest about its limits

It's a "soft" block: it relies on the Accessibility service and Do Not Disturb, which can be switched off in Android settings. The Accessibility service is used only to know which app is in the foreground, to cover it during a pause and, if you turn it on, to count screen-on time. It doesn't read the screen or what you type. The details are in the privacy policy.