What is FocusOS?
The short answer, and the facts in one place.
The short answer
FocusOS, also written Focus OS, is a free productivity app that blocks distractions on your computer and your Android phone during one focus session. There's no sign-up, account or email. Its website is focusoslive.xyz, which is why people also search for it as FocusOS Live or focusoslive.
The facts
- Made by: GGshikhar
- Cost: free, with no paid tier, ads or subscription
- Works on: Windows 10 and 11, and Android 8 or newer
- Not available on: iPhone. There's no current Mac release
- Sign-up: none. No account, sign-in or email
- Where your sessions are kept: in plain files on your own device
- Website: focusoslive.xyz
- Instagram: @focusoslive
How it works
- Say what you're working on and for how long.
- Open what you need. What you can see becomes your list.
- Lock in. Anything else is hidden and has to ask before it comes back.
- To lock your phone as well, press Get a key on your computer and type the key into the FocusOS Android app.
Pengu, its small green companion, stays on your screen while you work. He puts on his glasses when something opens that isn't on your list, and reacts if the webcam check sees a phone in your hand.
Who it's for
FocusOS suits students and anyone doing focused work who keeps losing time to tabs, messages and their phone. It's a speed bump rather than a guarantee: someone determined can still get around it. It also won't suit you if you need it on an iPhone or a Mac today.
What makes it different
- One session locks your computer and your phone together.
- You don't build a blocklist. What you open becomes your list, and everything else has to ask.
- Nothing goes online unless you press a button that says so.
- The webcam check runs on your computer. Pictures are thrown away, never saved or sent, and you can turn it off.
What to know before you install
FocusOS is new and doesn't have a paid code-signing certificate yet, so Windows and your browser may show a warning. The Android app isn't on the Play Store, so Android may warn you too. Only install it from focusoslive.xyz. The safety page explains why these warnings appear.