Getting started

Setup takes a few minutes and ends with something already blocked, so you can see it work before you trust it.

First run

Appcognito is on Google Play. No account, no email, nothing to log into. Setup is short and ends with apps already blocked.

Two intro screensWhy you are here, then what the app does. The ghost is Aurith, who ends up carrying your streak.
Pick a nameWhat Aurith calls you. It never leaves your phone, and Settings can change it later.
Cut some apps' internetPick the ones that pull you in. They are blocked on the spot, and you are asked to go and open one. It opens, and loads nothing.
Now stop them opening at allThe same apps, already selected, plus any you want to add. This time they do not open. You are asked to try again.
Press and hold to finishA note on privacy, your free week of Pro, and the Privacy Policy and Terms to agree to. Then the dashboard.

Those two demos are where the permissions happen. All three that blocking needs are granted there: the VPN for internet blocking, then the overlay and usage access for app blocking. Each arrives one step after you chose the apps it applies to, and is followed immediately by proof it did something. It is also why the rest of the app mostly stops asking. See Permissions.

The VPN step cannot be skipped. Nothing in Appcognito blocks without it, and a skip here used to produce people whose blocks silently never fired. Refusing it lands you on a retry screen.

The tabs

Four tabs, with a + button in the middle.

Home

Your dashboard. Streak at the top, then your pinned Groups, then single apps, sites and words. Anything blocking right now shows here.

Actions

Blocking that runs without you. Your rules on top, 30 ready-made ones below.

Habits

Streaks. Some are kept by an Action, some you tick off yourself.

Settings

Plan, permissions, block mode, locks, language, theme, export. Search finds any setting by name.

The + creates an Action, a Group or a Habit, and imports a Group someone shared.

Two screens are not tabs. Groups opens from Home or the + button. Stats opens by tapping your streak on Home.

Your first block

Setup leaves you with individual apps blocked, which is the manual list on Home. A Group is the next step up: a saved bundle you switch on with one tap and reuse everywhere.

Open HomeThe Groups row sits under the hero.
Pick a built-in GroupSocial Media, Adult Content and nine others are already filled in. See what is predefined.
Tap BlockDone. The tile switches to blocking, and its footer offers Unblock.

That stays on until you turn it off. To make it start and stop by itself, point an Action at the same Group.

Free and Pro

Every way of blocking works on free, with no time limit and no ads. Free runs one Group and one Action at a time.

Included	Free	Pro
Home blocks, Focus, Actions, Groups, Habits	Yes	Yes
All 11 built-in Groups, all 16 triggers	Yes	Yes
Keyword blocking and stats	Yes	Yes
Groups and Actions running at once	One each	Unlimited
Challenges	3 per device, for life	Unlimited
Strict mode	No	Yes
Parental and partner lock	No	Yes
App lock, uninstall protection, auto-block new apps	No	Yes
Export and import your setup	No	Yes

The free week is not something you opt into. There is no card, no Google Play checkout and nothing to accept. It starts during setup and is announced at the end, so the whole app is unlocked while you are learning it. It is one week per device, so reinstalling does not hand out another.

When it ends, nothing switches off wholesale. Appcognito keeps one Group and one Action running, and picks safety first: a content-safety Group like Adult Content wins, and a running challenge keeps its Action.

Prices are on the pricing page.

Where to go next

How to set a block, for all five ways.
Groups, the one concept worth reading first.
Permissions, if you want to know what it is asking for and why.