Pomofocus 0.20.0: Research-backed focus plan and themes

Focus Rebuild Plan, now research-backed

• Four phases (Reset, Build, Extend, Sustain), each with guidance grounded in research on habits, goals and attention.
• Levels unlock on evidence: 4 full blocks across 2+ days with a 70% completion rate. If a length keeps beating you, the plan steps back a level to rebuild confidence.
• Your focus, measured: completion rate, longest unbroken stretch, pauses per block, start-time consistency and active days, against the previous week.
• Sources for everything: every rule, break idea, phase and metric cites peer-reviewed studies. A Sources page lists all 22, with findings and a link to find each paper, plus an honest note on what the science doesn't say.

Themes

• Choose from Obsidian, Ivory, Midnight, Forest, Ember, Sakura, Layla (Tiffany baby pink) and Écrin (jewel-box red and gold), Match system, or build a custom theme. Everything restyles instantly.
• New installs get a welcome screen to pick a look and optionally start a focus plan.

Also

• The day timeline can collapse into a slim rail (⌥⌘T).

Install

1. Download Pomofocus.zip below and unzip it.
2. Drag Pomofocus into Applications (replacing an older version keeps all your sessions).
3. This build isn't notarized by Apple, so macOS blocks the first launch. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security and choose Open Anyway, or run:

   xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Pomofocus.app

Requires macOS 14 or later on Apple silicon.

SHA-256 of Pomofocus.zip: 1dc29243d9b68eda7efd82861156f4f0a01db1a0499392d8715a8ddea12ce454

Pomofocus 0.18.0: Dopamine Focus Plan

New: the Dopamine Focus Plan

Rebuild your focus one block at a time.

• Eight quick questions build a plan that starts at your attention span today and climbs five minutes at a time to your target (by default 45 minutes of focus with 15-minute breaks).
• Earn every level: four full blocks across two days unlock the next length. The timer switches automatically and tells you when you've levelled up.
• House rules tailored to what distracts you, a low-stimulation break menu (suggestions appear right on the timer during breaks), and a reward saved for after your last block.
• Find it in the new Plan section of the sidebar.

Install

1. Download Pomofocus.zip below and unzip it.
2. Drag Pomofocus into Applications (replacing the old version keeps all your sessions).
3. This build isn't notarized by Apple, so macOS blocks the first launch. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security and choose Open Anyway, or run:

   xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Pomofocus.app

Requires macOS 14 or later on Apple silicon.

SHA-256 of Pomofocus.zip: 68e2b520b969dc776138be208a8708f5bfb665548ea029299486601708e15e63

Pomofocus 0.17.1

The first public release of Pomofocus, a beautiful, local-first focus timer for macOS.

See it in action →

Highlights

• Menu-bar timer: a focus tank that drains as you work, breathes with you, and blinks red in overtime
• Cinema mode (⇧⌘F): a full-screen, screensaver-like countdown made for ultrawide displays
• End session (⌘.): stop a whole sitting and keep every minute, with confetti and a breakdown of every pomodoro
• Desktop widgets, a day timeline with an optional read-only calendar overlay, and private analytics
• Locally generated ambience: rain, ocean, brown noise and a soft tick
• No accounts, no telemetry, no network calls. Your data stays in one JSON file on your Mac

Install

1. Download Pomofocus.zip below and unzip it.
2. Drag Pomofocus into Applications.
3. This build isn't notarized by Apple, so macOS blocks the first launch. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security and choose Open Anyway, or run:

   xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Pomofocus.app

Requires macOS 14 or later on Apple silicon.

SHA-256 of Pomofocus.zip: 968b5ed96f6cb924bbb9e1466679774f018b8566c9fbb0b891123648835ec465