StillTabs vs Opal: removing Reels vs blocking the whole app
Opal blocks whole apps; StillTabs removes only the addictive parts. With Opal, Instagram is either locked or fully open, Reels included. With StillTabs you keep Instagram for messages and friends, minus Reels and Explore, for free. Opal's plans run from $4.99 a week to $99.99 a year, and its App Store label lists Identifiers as data used to track you.
The real difference
Blocking works when you want to stay out of an app completely. But most people don't want to quit Instagram; they want to answer a message without being pulled into Reels. A blocker can't do that, because Reels live inside the same app as your DMs. StillTabs takes the Reels out and leaves the messages.
Side by side
| StillTabs | Opal | |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Removes Reels, Shorts, Explore, "For you" inside the platform | Blocks whole apps and websites on a schedule |
| Instagram DMs while focused | Yes, always | Only by unblocking Instagram, Reels included |
| Price | Free, no in-app purchases | Free download; plans from $4.99 a week to $99.99 a year |
| App Store privacy label | Data Not Linked to You | Data Used to Track You: Identifiers; Data Linked to You: 5 categories |
What to check before you subscribe
- Weekly billing. The App Store lists a "Weekly Plan" at $4.99 and $9.99, a student weekly plan at $9.99, $19.99 a month and $99.99 a year.
- No refunds through the App Store. Its terms: for App Store and Google Play purchases "we are unable to provide refunds".
- "Can't bypass", with caveats. The App Store description says "Deep Focus won't let you cancel or bypass at all". Opal's own help page says that before iOS 26.4, "Face ID or your device passcode can be inputted to bypass it."
- Label vs policy. Opal's policy summary lists Usage Data as "not linked to you"; the App Store label lists it as linked, and adds "Data Used to Track You: Identifiers". The policy also covers the case "to the extent Opal sells your Personal Data" under California law.
- Recent reviews. Of Opal's 500 most recent US reviews (13 July to 2 November 2026), 281 were 1 or 2 stars, against a lifetime average of 4.7.
What its website does when you visit
On 8 November 2026, opal.so loaded the Meta Pixel, Google Ads audience tags and DoubleClick, plus Google Analytics, Google Optimize and Amplitude, for a visitor from the Netherlands, with no cookie banner. stilltabs.com loads no third-party requests at all. What 17 Reels blocker websites load.
Can you use both?
Yes. Some people keep a blocker for whole apps they want to avoid and use StillTabs for the platforms they still need. StillTabs doesn't use Screen Time, so the two don't interfere.
StillTabs is free on the App Store, for iPhone. No subscription, no in-app purchases, no account. iOS 16 or later.
Sources
- StillTabs on the App Store (price, privacy label): https://apps.apple.com/us/app/stilltabs-block-reels-shorts/id6761367777
- Opal on the App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id1497465230
- Opal terms, privacy and refund page: https://opalapp.com/terms
- Opal help: locking Screen Time access: https://www.opal.so/help/how-to-lock-opals-screen-time-access