Our bias, stated up front

EyeNap is made by the team that runs this blog. We've tried to be fair; where another app is the better choice, we say so.

Every Time Out detail below comes from Dejal's website, release notes, help pages or the Mac App Store listing, linked in the sources. Prices and versions are as of November 2026. If you're still deciding between more than two apps, our roundup of the best break reminder apps for Mac covers seven options.

The short version

Time Out and EyeNap solve the same problem from different directions.

  • Time Out is a toolkit. It gives you break timers, a powerful rules engine, themes and scripting, and lets you decide what a break should be. It has been around for years (MacTech covered version 2.4 in 2018), and version 4.0 shipped on October 29, 2026.
  • EyeNap is a routine. It decides more for you: what to do with your eyes during a break, which stretch to do, and when to drink water, then tracks how your day went.

Neither approach is better in general. It depends on whether you'd rather build your own break routine or follow one.

Feature comparison

EyeNap Time Out
Price 7-day full trial; free basic tier after; $19 / $29 / $79 one-time (1 / 3 / 10 Macs) Core features free; Supporter $4.99 (3 mo), $9.99 (6 mo), $19.99 (12 mo), Lifetime $59.99
Subscription None Supporter isn't a subscription; optional Premium subscriptions on the Mac App Store ($1.99/mo, $19.99/yr); also in Setapp
macOS required macOS 14 Sonoma or later Version 4.0: macOS 26 Tahoe or later (2.9.7 still offered for 10.15+)
Platforms Mac only Mac only
Break types 20-20-20 eye breaks, stretch breaks, water reminders Normal and Micro breaks, plus custom breaks
Guided eye exercises 12 animated routines Not built in; customizable break themes
Stretches 7 illustrated routines with timers Not built in; you can create a stretch break
Water reminders Yes, with one-click log and daily goal No
Reminder styles Banner, notification or full-screen Full break screen with themes; notices, speech, sounds, screen flash
Skip and snooze Yes, plus optional Strict Mode Postpone, skip and end early, with optional limits; option to keep the break until you click End Break
Meeting and call handling Pauses while the microphone is in use Meeting scripts for FaceTime, Teams and Zoom; rules for calendar events
Other auto-pause Full-screen apps and presentations; idle or locked screen Rules for specific apps, Focus and full-screen apps; time away counts as a natural break
Scheduling Interval-based, active screen time only Fixed times, intervals, random, around calendar events, chosen hours and days
Automation No scripting AppleScript, shell, Python, Automator; Shortcuts in 4.0
Stats Daily wellness score, Today/Week/Month/History, weekly review, CSV export Activity tracking and a Statistics view
Data Wellness data stays on your Mac; no account; opt-out anonymous analytics See Dejal's privacy policy; App Store label lists contact info and diagnostics
Open source No No

Pricing compared

Time Out is free for its core features; Dejal says they are "always free." If you want the premium features, Supporter purchases run for 3, 6 or 12 months ($4.99, $9.99, $19.99) or forever ($59.99). Dejal says they "permanently unlock all premium features available at the time of purchase" and don't auto-renew. On the Mac App Store you can instead pick an optional Premium subscription ($1.99 a month or $19.99 a year). If you already pay for Setapp, Time Out is included with all Supporter rewards.

EyeNap gives you everything for 7 days. After the trial, basic 20-20-20 reminders and smart pause keep working for free. A lifetime license is a single payment: $19 for one Mac, $29 for three or $79 for ten (see pricing). There is no subscription.

Put simply: if you only need reminders, both are free. If you want everything each app offers, EyeNap's single-Mac license ($19) costs less than Time Out's Lifetime Supporter ($59.99), while Time Out's free tier gives you more configurability than EyeNap's.

Where Time Out is better

Being honest about this matters more than winning the comparison.

  • Customization and rules. Time Out lets you schedule breaks at fixed times, at intervals, randomly or around calendar events, and limit them to chosen hours and days. Rules can postpone or skip breaks for specific apps, calendar events, Focus modes or full-screen apps. EyeNap has nothing close to this depth.
  • Named call detection. Dejal's meeting scripts detect active calls in FaceTime, Teams and Zoom, and rules can postpone or skip breaks during calendar events.
  • Themes and scripting. Break screens can be images, text, YouTube videos, websites or your own HTML, per display. Break Actions can run AppleScript, shell, Python or Automator scripts before, during or after a break. If you're the kind of person who automates your Mac, Time Out fits right in.
  • A much longer track record. Time Out has been maintained for years (version 2.4 was already out in 2018). EyeNap launched in 2026.
  • More generous free tier. The free version keeps the core break features. EyeNap's free tier after the trial is limited to basic 20-20-20 reminders and smart pause.
  • Setapp. If you subscribe to Setapp, Time Out costs you nothing extra.

Where EyeNap is better

  • What happens during the break. EyeNap includes 12 guided, animated eye routines (such as Focus Shift, Figure Eight, Palming and Blink Reset) and 7 illustrated desk-stretch routines with timers. Time Out gives you the canvas; EyeNap gives you the content. (The evidence for eye exercises is limited; our eye exercises guide explains what they can and can't do.)
  • Water reminders and logging. A one-click water log in ml or oz with a daily goal, and reminders that stop once you reach it. Time Out has no hydration feature.
  • Older macOS versions. EyeNap runs on macOS 14 Sonoma and later. Time Out's current 4.0 release requires macOS 26 Tahoe; on Sonoma or Sequoia you'd use the older 2.9.7.
  • Any-app call detection. EyeNap pauses whenever your microphone is in use, so it covers Zoom, Teams, FaceTime, Slack huddles, Discord or a browser-based call without a specific script for each.
  • Less setup. Reasonable defaults, merged eye and stretch breaks when both are due, and a daily wellness score with weekly review mean you can install it and go.
  • Local-only wellness data. No account; your wellness data stays on your Mac, and the anonymous analytics can be switched off.

Where neither is ideal

  • Mac only. If you also work on Windows or Linux, look at Stretchly, which is free, open source and cross-platform.
  • No team dashboards. Neither is built for an employer to manage breaks across a company.
  • Not medical devices. A break app can help you remember healthy habits. It can't diagnose or treat eye strain; see our guide to digital eye strain for when to see an eye doctor.

Who should pick which

Pick Time Out if you:

  • Want a free app and are happy to spend time configuring it.
  • Need breaks tied to your calendar, Focus modes or specific apps.
  • Like scripting, custom HTML themes or Shortcuts automation.
  • Are on macOS 26 Tahoe, or are fine using the older 2.9.7 release.
  • Already pay for Setapp.

Pick EyeNap if you:

  • Want guided eye routines and illustrated stretches instead of an empty countdown.
  • Want water reminders and a simple daily wellness score in the same app.
  • Are on macOS 14 Sonoma or 15 Sequoia and want an app's latest version, not an older release.
  • Make calls in many different apps and want one rule (microphone in use) to cover all of them.
  • Prefer a one-time license and no subscription.

Not sure? Both are low-risk to try. Time Out's core features are free, and EyeNap has a 7-day trial with everything unlocked. Run one for a week at its default settings, then the other, and keep whichever one you didn't turn off. Whichever you choose, the basics still apply: follow the 20-20-20 rule and take a longer break every couple of hours.