Semo vs Opal
Opal is an established iPhone app that blocks apps and sites. Semo is a newer, smaller idea: a conversation instead of a block. They solve related problems in different ways.
Should I choose Semo or Opal?
It depends on how firm you need to be. Opal blocks apps and sites on a schedule and has a mode it describes as impossible to cancel, so it suits you if you want enforcement. Semo suits you if you want a short prompt to think about why you are opening an app and are fine with being able to dismiss it. Opal is established; Semo is not on sale yet.
At a glance (as of 19 October 2026)
| Semo | Opal | |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | An AI chat when you open a guarded app; ends in a timed pass or a nudge. | Blocks chosen apps and websites on a schedule and enforces daily limits, using Apple's Screen Time API on the device. Also timers, a Focus Score and reports. |
| How firm it is | A nudge you can dismiss. No hard lock today. | Has a Deep Focus mode that, per its listing, you cannot cancel or bypass. |
| AI conversation | Yes: a short chat with an AI model, after you agree to send text. | The listing does not describe a chat. It mentions Autofocus, which it says gives intelligent recommendations and interventions, without saying how. |
| Price (as listed) | Planned $59.99 per year (7-day trial) or $9.99 per month. | Free download with in-app purchases: yearly $99.99, monthly $19.99, weekly $4.99 or $9.99 on the US listing (plus one item, Opal Pro Subscription at $49.99, that we cannot explain). |
| Platform | iPhone, adults 18+. | iPhone, iOS 18 or later, per the listing. |
| Evidence and reviews | None yet. Semo is not on the App Store yet (launching soon). | 4.7 out of 5 from about 90,000 ratings on its US App Store listing (Opal's figure, not ours). |
Where Opal is stronger
- It can actually stop you: schedules, daily limits and a mode you cannot cancel.
- It is live, widely reviewed and has years of polish. We are not on sale yet.
- Extras we do not have: focus score, reports, leaderboard and widgets.
Where Semo is different
- The product is the conversation: it asks why, in your words, then decides on a pass.
- Built for the moment of opening an app, not for scheduled blocking.
- A single plan structure at $59.99 a year or $9.99 a month, planned.
Pick the one that fits
Choose Opal if
- You want blocking you cannot talk your way past.
- You want scheduled focus sessions and reports.
- You want something that is available and reviewed today.
Choose Semo if
- You mostly open apps out of habit and a prompt would help.
- You find hard blocks make you resentful and you just turn them off.
- You are happy to wait for launch and to send chat text to an AI service.
Sources and what we could not verify
Facts about Opal come from the public pages below, read on 19 October 2026. Products change, so check the source before you decide. If something here is out of date, tell us on the support page and we will fix it. We have no commercial relationship with Opal.
- Opal on the US App Store (checked 19 October 2026)
- Opal on the US App Store, release notes and description (checked 19 October 2026)