How to cancel Opal Screen Time, dispute the $99 renewal, and free alternatives

Cancel Opal at least 24 hours before your 7-day trial ends, or Apple will bill you $99.99 for the full annual Pro tier. Opal is the most expensive screen time blocker in the app store, and deleting the app icon from your home screen does not pause or cancel the recurring charge. This guide covers how to cancel in your Apple settings, how to submit an immediate refund claim to Apple, and free tools that block apps without a $100 yearly fee.

We accept zero affiliate payments or referral fees. Sourced directly from Apple App Store billing rules, Opal's published pricing disclosures, and real consumer reports. Read our testing methodology.

The $99.99 price shock

Opal markets heavily on Instagram, TikTok, and Reddit as a clinical "digital detox" and deep work companion for ADHD. New downloads are prompted through an interactive onboarding quiz that gates full functionality behind a "7-Day Free Trial."

Because the default plan is set to annual billing at $99.99/year (roughly $8.33/month), missing the cancellation window results in an immediate triple-digit bank charge.

Under Apple App Store terms, subscriptions auto-renew roughly 24 hours before the trial's official 7th day concludes. If your trial began on a Tuesday afternoon, Apple's billing engine will initiate the $99.99 charge on the following Monday afternoon.

The $100 Screen Time TaxVerified User

“I thought Opal was just a neat free screen time blocker. Woke up to an email receipt from Apple showing a $99.99 annual charge on my checking account. $100 a year to block apps that Apple Screen Time blocks for free is absurd.”

Cancelling on iPhone (Apple App Store)

All iOS purchases of Opal route through Apple ID subscriptions. You cannot cancel Opal inside the app itself or by emailing Opal support; it must be done through iOS settings:

1. Open Settings on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Tap your Apple ID banner (Name and photo) at the very top.
3. Tap Subscriptions.
4. Tap Opal: Screen Time for Focus.
5. Tap Cancel Subscription (or Cancel Free Trial).
6. Confirm the cancellation prompt.

Once completed, you will see "Expires [Date]". Opal Pro access remains active until the expiration date, after which your account reverts to the basic tier without billing you.

How to get a refund for the $99.99 Opal charge

If you were already billed $99.99, do not waste time emailing Opal's developer support. Apple manages App Store transactions and prevents developers from issuing direct credit card refunds.

Submit a direct refund request to Apple:

1. Open Safari and navigate to reportaproblem.apple.com.
2. Sign in with the Apple ID used to download Opal.
3. In the first dropdown box, select Request a refund.
4. In the second dropdown box, choose I did not intend to renew this subscription or My purchase didn't work as expected.
5. Locate the $99.99 charge for Opal in your purchase history.
6. Click Submit.

Apple typically sends an automated approval or denial email within 48 hours. If you submit within 14 days of the charge, refunds for accidental trial renewals are routinely approved.

Is Opal legit? Reddit consensus & scam complaints

Search r/ADHD or r/productivity for "Opal app review reddit" or "is Opal legit", and you will find sharp polarization:

• What users like: Opal's "Deep Focus" session mode genuinely blocks access to designated apps without easy bypasses. It calculates a "Focus Score" that gamifies time spent away from screens.
• Why users scream scam: Opal's onboarding funnels users into a 7-day trial that requires credit card approval for an annual $99.99 auto-renewal. Users report:
  1. No pre-billing push notifications or emails reminding them their trial is ending.
  2. Billed on day 6 rather than day 7 due to Apple's 24-hour advance billing window.
  3. Deleting the app on day 4 assuming it cancels the service, only to receive a $99.99 bank statement notification 72 hours later.
• The Verdict: Opal is a technically legitimate app, but its monetization relies on subscription amnesia and aggressive renewal gating.

---

Opal vs Brick: Software Screen Blocker vs $49 Hardware Lock

The fastest-growing physical alternative to Opal is Brick ($49 one-time purchase). Many ADHD users switch to Brick after cancelling Opal:

Feature	Opal Pro ($99.99/year)	Brick ($49 One-Time)
Mechanism	Software block via iOS Screen Time API	Physical NFC hardware lockout
How to Unlock	Wait out timer or enter emergency break	Physically tap phone against the Brick device
Bypass Vulnerability	Can delete app or restart device in a pinch	Cannot unlock unless physically present at device
3-Year Cost	$299.97 (recurring)	$49.00 (hardware purchase)
Subscription Bleed	High ($100/year indefinitely)	Zero ongoing subscriptions

If your impulsivity causes you to override software timers on Opal, Brick creates physical friction: you can leave the Brick magnet on your refrigerator or car, ensuring you cannot unlock Instagram from your desk during deep work hours.

---

Opal Lifetime Price ($299–$399): Is It Ever Worth Buying?

Opal intermittently displays an in-app "Lifetime Access" offer priced between $299.99 and $399.99.

• The Math: At $99.99/year, you would need to use Opal actively for 3 to 4 consecutive years just to break even on a lifetime license.
• The Risk: Operating system manufacturers (Apple and Google) continuously upgrade native screen time tools. Apple's native iOS App Limits and Focus Filters already provide 70% of Opal's core blocking capability for $0.
• Recommendation: Never pay $300+ for a lifetime screen time wrapper. If you want a permanent focus solution, buy a physical Brick ($49) or use free native iOS Screen Time with a trusted friend holding the PIN.

---

Free and fair-priced alternatives to Opal

Paying $100 every year to lock yourself out of social media apps is rarely necessary. iOS includes built-in Screen Time architecture that third-party apps build on:

• Apple Built-in Screen Time (Free): Go to Settings > Screen Time > App Limits. You can set daily 15-minute limits on social media apps. To prevent overriding your own limits on impulse, have a trusted partner, friend, or roommate set a 4-digit Screen Time passcode that you do not know.
• One Sec (Free tier / fair purchase): Uses iOS Shortcuts to force you to take a deliberate, deep breath before an addictive app opens. It disrupts unconscious doomscrolling loops without costing $100/year.
• ScreenZen (Free): A generous, independent screen-time app that introduces pause delays, open limits, and strict lockouts with zero subscription traps.
• TilTaken (Free to start / $19.99 lifetime): If your core issue is ignoring alarms and missing daily tasks or medications, our companion app uses iOS AlarmKit to ring unignorable alarms through Focus modes until confirmed.

Sources

• Opal App Store Pricing and In-App Purchases (apps.apple.com/us/app/opal-screen-time-for-focus/id1497465200, verified 2026).
• Apple Support: View, change, or cancel subscriptions (support.apple.com/HT202039).
• Apple Support: Request a refund for apps or content bought from Apple (support.apple.com/HT204084).