Burnout Buddy is a highly configurable iPhone and iPad blocker with schedules and location rules. Fella uses one enforcement pattern: Selected apps stay blocked during each manual or routine-scheduled session.
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Burnout Buddy—listed as BB on the App Store—is a highly configurable iPhone and iPad blocker. It supports indefinite, scheduled, usage-based, location-based, Focus-based, and Siri-driven blocking, with multiple conditions and configurations for different groups of apps and sites.
Fella uses one enforcement pattern. Selected iPhone apps stay blocked during each manual or routine-scheduled session. Each blocking session includes one 5-minute emergency unlock, after which Fella restores the block automatically.
Both products target easy overrides, but they define strictness differently. Burnout Buddy lets you engineer a strict schema around a situation. Fella keeps the access rule consistent across manual and routine-scheduled sessions.
| At a glance | Fella | Burnout Buddy |
|---|---|---|
| Core approach | manual or routine-scheduled sessions with one fixed access rule | Multiple configurable blocking schemas |
| Strict protection | One 5-minute emergency unlock per session | Strict Mode, custom strictness, and uninstall protection |
| Triggers | Manual or routine schedule | Time, usage, location, Focus, Siri, and custom conditions |
| Websites | No | Apps and websites |
| Privacy positioning | Uses Apple's blocking framework | Local storage, no account, no VPN, and no data collected |
| Published price | $9.99 monthly or $34.99 yearly | Free for many uses; $9.99 Burnout Buddy Pro purchase |
A schema connects content with the conditions that should block it. One group might block social media during work hours. Another can block entertainment after a usage limit. Multiple conditions can apply to one group, and multiple groups can follow different rules.
Siri and Shortcuts expand those conditions. Burnout Buddy's official feature list describes location-based and Focus-based blocking through Siri integration, plus custom blocking logic built through Shortcuts.
This is powerful when the unwanted behavior has a clear context. You can preserve access where it is useful while making the same app unavailable during work, at a location, after a threshold, or inside a specific Focus mode.
Burnout Buddy's Strict Mode is designed to make active schemas harder to change. Its official site describes restrictions on modifying schemas, customization of Strict Mode difficulty, and uninstall protection while a strict schema is running.
This gives advanced users more control over the enforcement mechanism. A rule can be strict without applying all day, and the protection can be adapted when the default is not strong enough.
The tradeoff is that strictness still begins with configuration. You must choose triggers, groups, conditions, and protections correctly. Fella gives up that precision in exchange for a rule that has fewer parts to weaken.
Burnout Buddy makes unusually clear privacy claims. Its official site says data is stored locally, installed content is represented through anonymous identifiers, and no account or VPN is required. The App Store privacy label currently says data is not collected. If price is part of the decision, continue with our free and paid app blocker options.
It is also inexpensive relative to many subscription blockers. The listing says most use cases are free and shows a $9.99 Burnout Buddy Pro in-app purchase, alongside optional tips.
Fella costs $9.99 monthly or $34.99 yearly, no free trial on either plan. Buyers choosing purely by customization or price will likely favor Burnout Buddy; Fella's case depends on preferring its fixed daily-access rule.
Choose Burnout Buddy if you want to build precise strict rules. It is the stronger fit for websites, schedules, usage thresholds, location and Focus triggers, Shortcuts, several app groups, customizable block screens, and uninstall protection.
Choose Fella if rule design itself keeps failing. It fits the person who does not want to decide which condition applies or whether a strict schema should start today. The selected apps are simply closed.
For many power users, Burnout Buddy offers more value. Fella is intentionally not competing on feature count. It is for the narrower group that wants one predictable emergency window and no other blocking modes.
Burnout Buddy supports multiple strict blocking schemas triggered by time, usage, location, Focus mode, Siri, or custom conditions. Fella uses one fixed rule in every manual or routine-scheduled session with one five-minute unlock per session.
Yes. Burnout Buddy is currently listed on the App Store as BB - Screen Time & App Blocker.
Its official feature list includes Block Uninstall while a schema with Strict Mode is active.
Its official site says information stays locally on the device, and its current App Store privacy label states that data is not collected.
The app says it is free for most use cases, while the current US App Store listing shows Burnout Buddy Pro at $9.99. Verify the current offer before purchase.
It can. Each trigger, condition, and group is a separate piece that has to be set up correctly, which is a real tradeoff for the precision it offers. Fella has one state to keep working, with no trigger or condition to misconfigure.
Both rely on the same underlying iOS mechanics, but Block Uninstall is opt-in and tied to an active strict schema. Fella doesn't have an equivalent uninstall-prevention feature at all, deleting the app removes it like any other iOS app.
