Best Pomodoro Timer Apps for Mac in 2026

A Pomodoro timer splits your work into short, timed blocks with breaks in between. The technique comes from Francesco Cirillo, and the classic default is 25 minutes of focus followed by a 5-minute break, with a longer break after four rounds. On a Mac, the bigger question is where the timer lives: in its own window, in the menu bar, or in the notch at the top of the screen.

This list covers dedicated timers and notch apps that include one. I make NotchOwl, so it's on this list; I've tried to be fair about where other apps are the better pick. Prices and features were compared from each app's website, App Store listing or GitHub page in November 2026.

Quick picks

• Best for classic Pomodoro with a task list: Be Focused
• Best for stats and Apple Watch: Focus – Deep Work Timer
• Best for blocking distractions: Session
• Best minimal timer for macOS 26: Flow
• Best free menu bar timer: TomatoBar
• Best for a timer in the notch tied to today's tasks: NotchOwl
• Best all-in-one notch app with Pomodoro: NotchNook Pro
• Best for AI task capture plus a focus dial: Notchable

What to look for in a Mac focus timer

• Visibility: a menu bar or notch timer stays in view; a window timer gets buried.
• Breaks: strict Pomodoro apps time short and long breaks for you.
• Task linking: some apps tie each session to a task.
• Blocking: a few apps block distracting apps and websites.
• Pricing: most are free with a Pro tier, sold as a subscription, a one-time purchase or both.

The best Pomodoro and focus timer apps for Mac

Be Focused

Be Focused, by Denys Ievenko, is a classic Pomodoro app with a task list. Be Focused sets durations for work sessions, short breaks and long breaks, the number of intervals before a long break, and a daily goal. You can start, pause or skip an interval from its menu bar icon.

• Price: Free. Pro costs $2.99 a month, $19.99 a year (with a 7-day trial) or $39.99 once, as of November 2026. A separate paid app, Be Focused Pro – Focus Timer, costs $19.99.
• Platforms: Mac (macOS 12 or later), iPhone and iPad. One Pro purchase covers all three.
• Best for: people who want textbook Pomodoro cycles attached to tasks.
• Strengths: tasks with notes, tags and due dates; different timer settings per task; global hotkeys, widgets and Shortcuts; app and website blocking with Pro.
• Drawbacks: two separate apps with different prices are confusing. Sync, blocking and CSV export of reports need Pro, and Pro removes banners and ads.
• Get it: Be Focused on the Mac App Store

Focus – Deep Work Timer

Focus – Deep Work Timer, by Meaningful Things, combines a Pomodoro timer with task, project and time tracking. Focus – Deep Work Timer has flexible session and break lengths, daily and weekly goals, and a menu bar timer alongside its window.

• Price: Free to start. Focus Pro is a subscription with a 7-day trial; the US App Store lists $6.99 a month and $39.99 a year, as of November 2026.
• Platforms: Mac (macOS 14 or later), iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Vision Pro, synced through iCloud.
• Best for: people who want to see how much time went into each project, on every Apple device.
• Strengths: sessions and tasks in one app; widgets, Live Activities, Siri and Shortcuts. Its listing says your data stays on your devices and in your own iCloud.
• Drawbacks: Pro is sold as a subscription. Its listing doesn't mention app or website blocking.
• Get it: Focus – Deep Work Timer on the Mac App Store

Session

Session, by Translucent, is a focus timer built around 25- or 45-minute sessions and distraction blocking. On the Mac, Session can block distracting websites and apps during a session, mute the Slack workspaces you choose, and run AppleScript automations such as turning on Do Not Disturb. After each session it asks what you worked on.

• Price: Free plan with unlimited session and break timers and 2 days of analytics. Pro costs $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year, as of November 2026, with a 7-day trial after you create an account and 30% off for students. No lifetime option is listed.
• Platforms: Mac, iPhone, iPad and Vision Pro.
• Best for: blocking distractions and reviewing what each session produced.
• Strengths: blocking and Slack muting in one app; sessions saved to Apple Calendar with Pro; the session time shows in the menu bar, where you can pause or complete it.
• Drawbacks: subscription only for Pro.
• Get it: stayinsession.com

Flow

Flow, by Yugen, is a minimal Pomodoro timer with work intervals, breaks and multiple duration options. Flow can block apps and websites, offers a Commitment mode for self-control, and syncs sessions to Apple Calendar and Apple Health.

• Price: Free basics (timer, statistics, break reminders). Pro costs $2.99 a month, $17.99 a year or $39.99 once on the US App Store, as of November 2026.
• Platforms: Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Vision Pro. Flow 5.0, released October 26, 2026, requires macOS 26 or iOS 26.
• Best for: a simple timer with a lifetime Pro option, on a current macOS.
• Strengths: custom session titles; app and web blocking; streaks in 5.0; widgets and Live Activities.
• Drawbacks: Flow 5.0 drops support for macOS versions before 26. Flow's site doesn't mention a menu bar timer.
• Get it: flow.app

TomatoBar

TomatoBar is a free, open-source Pomodoro timer that lives only in the menu bar. TomatoBar has configurable work and rest intervals, optional sounds, discreet notifications and a global hotkey, and a tomatobar://startStop link starts or stops it from scripts.

• Price: Free, MIT license.
• Platforms: Mac. Install it from GitHub releases or with brew install --cask tomatobar.
• Best for: a free, no-account timer that stays out of the way.
• Strengths: fully sandboxed; nothing to sign up for; scriptable.
• Drawbacks: no tasks, and no stats screen is listed. TomatoBar logs state changes to a JSON file instead. The latest release, v3.6.1, came out in February 2026.
• Get it: TomatoBar on GitHub

NotchOwl

NotchOwl is a Mac planner in the notch, and its focus timer sits next to today's task list. NotchOwl runs a countdown (25, 45 or 60 minutes, or a custom length) or a stopwatch, on a task or with no task at all. You can pause, resume or add five minutes, and when a countdown ends you choose Keep going, Take a break or Mark done.

The running timer stays visible beside the notch, including the notch NotchOwl draws on an external monitor. NotchOwl pauses timers when the Mac sleeps, and Insights counts only active focus time, alongside completed tasks and your peak hours. Claude can also start, pause or stop the timer through NotchOwl's local MCP server.

NotchOwl is a $9 one-time Mac app whose focus timer runs a countdown or stopwatch on a task, stays visible in the notch, pauses when the Mac sleeps and counts only active focus time in Insights.

• Price: $9 once (shown as an early-bird price, normally $29) for up to 3 Macs, with lifetime updates and a 14-day money-back guarantee. There is no free tier or trial. See NotchOwl pricing.
• Platforms: Apple silicon Macs with macOS 14 Sonoma or later. There is no iPhone app; tasks reach iPhone and Apple Watch through optional Apple Reminders sync, but the timer is Mac only.
• Best for: people who want the timer attached to the day's tasks and always in view.
• Strengths: timer, tasks, notes, reminders and today's calendar in one place; works without a notch; local data.
• Drawbacks: NotchOwl is not a strict Pomodoro app. It doesn't time breaks, count rounds or schedule long breaks, and it doesn't block apps or websites. No Intel version, no iPhone timer, no free version.
• Get it: download NotchOwl

NotchNook Pro

NotchNook, by lo.cafe, turns the notch into a "Nook" for files, AirDrop, calendar and more. NotchNook Pro 2.0, released October 28, 2026, added Pomodoro and to-dos, plus approving Claude Code and Codex commands from the notch. NotchNook's comparison table lists Pomodoro and to-dos as Pro features.

• Price: Pro costs $19 lifetime or $3 a month; Classic costs $15 lifetime or $2 a month, as of November 2026. One license covers 2 Macs. Every feature is free for 48 hours, and refunds are available within 7 days.
• Platforms: Mac only. Pro needs Apple silicon and macOS 14.6 or later. lo.cafe says both editions work with or without a notch, including external displays.
• Best for: a Pomodoro timer inside a notch app that also handles files, clipboard history and coding agents.
• Strengths: a wide feature set; meeting join buttons; a card-free trial.
• Drawbacks: lo.cafe's page doesn't describe the Pomodoro timer's lengths, breaks or stats. Pro is Apple silicon only. See NotchOwl vs NotchNook for a closer look.
• Get it: lo.cafe/notchnook

Notchable

Notchable calls itself the ADHD task manager that lives in your MacBook notch. Notchable's focus timer is a watch-style dial that stays in the notch: you pick a task, start, add five minutes if you need them, and press the space bar to pause. Since version 2.1, live activities widen the notch to show a running session.

• Price: one-time. Standard costs $19.99 and uses cloud AI through Notchable's server; Lite costs $9.99 and runs an on-device model on Apple silicon. There is a 3-day trial.
• Platforms: Mac only, macOS 14 or later. Tasks reach iPhone and Apple Watch through two-way Apple Reminders sync.
• Best for: people who want to speak or type a brain dump into the notch and have AI sort it, with a focus dial on the side.
• Strengths: voice capture; AI sorting into date, priority and effort; desktop Insights with focus time, streaks and peak hours.
• Drawbacks: the page doesn't mention break intervals. Standard sends capture text to Notchable's server. See NotchOwl vs Notchable for how the two differ.
• Get it: notchable.com

Other notch apps with a Pomodoro timer

These notch apps list Pomodoro among many other features, with little detail on how it works.

• Droppy: $9.99 once for 2 Macs, macOS 14 or later. Pomodoro sits beside a file tray, clipboard history, calendar and coding-agent tracking. getdroppy.app
• MacNotch: on Setapp only, from $4.99 a month. Pomodoro plus a task list synced with macOS Reminders. MacNotch on Setapp
• NotchNest: free on the Mac App Store, with $2.99 a month, $14.99 a year or $14.99 lifetime. Pomodoro, AI clipboard, music controls and a file tray. NotchNest on the Mac App Store
• NotchBox: free, with a $4.99 Pro purchase. Pomodoro, file shelf, clipboard and calendar. NotchBox on the Mac App Store

Download notch apps only from the developer's own site or the Mac App Store. In July 2026, a sponsored ad on X impersonated the notch app DynamicLake and installed Mac malware.

Comparison table

Menu bar, notch or window?

A menu bar timer is the familiar choice and works on every Mac. A notch timer uses space the menu bar can't, and it can open into a full task list. A window timer suits people who care more about detailed stats and blocking than an always-visible countdown.

For strict Pomodoro rounds and long breaks, pick Be Focused; Flow Pro adds custom session cycles. For a timer next to your day's tasks, a notch planner fits better. For more options, see the best menu bar to-do apps for Mac and the best ADHD apps for Mac.