StillTabs vs SHIFT
SHIFT locks whole apps from a computer; StillTabs removes just Reels, Shorts and endless feeds, and keeps your messages. StillTabs is free and installs like any app. SHIFT costs $149 once for one device (up to $399 for five), needs a Mac or PC and a USB cable, and puts your iPhone into supervised mode, the kind of management companies use for work phones.
Side by side
| StillTabs | SHIFT | |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Removes Reels, Shorts, Explore and "For you" inside the platform | Blocks whole apps during a "shift"; "We block ALL distractions - no selections required" |
| Instagram DMs while focused | Yes, always | No: Instagram is blocked |
| Price | Free | Solo $149 once, Duo $249, Family $399 |
| Setup | Install from the App Store | A Mac or Windows computer and a USB cable; Find My off during setup |
| Your iPhone | Untouched | Supervised (MDM); one management profile per phone, so it conflicts with work or school MDM |
| Refunds | Nothing to refund | 7 days; "After 7 days, all sales are final" |
| Ratings | New | 3.9 from 35 on the App Store (SHIFT Web); Trustpilot 3.0 from 8 |
Two different ideas
SHIFT is built to be impossible to get around; StillTabs is built so there's nothing you need to get around. SHIFT's own blog says "Feature-level blocking inside the YouTube app is limited" and that "Keeping Instagram for DMs often keeps the whole trigger loop alive", so it takes the whole app away. StillTabs takes the loop out of the app (the Reels tab, Explore, suggested posts, autoplay) and leaves the messages, so you don't have to choose between your friends and your focus.
What to check before you buy
- Device management. Setup "requires USB" and a computer: "SHIFT cannot be set up from a phone alone". Apple's notice on supervised phones says the managing organisation can monitor internet traffic and locate the device.
- What its policy collects. Through device management it lists your installed apps and reads device details including the serial number; location is "streamed to the server" (optional for consumers), and site sessions are kept "indefinitely".
- Its pricing page says "We do not collect personal data", while its terms and policy describe collecting your email, a device ID and your app list.
- A "lifetime" licence can be terminated "at any time, with or without cause", per its terms, which also send disputes to binding arbitration.
When SHIFT may suit you better
If you want a phone where social apps simply can't be opened during set hours, and you have a computer to manage it from, SHIFT is built for that. If you want to keep using Instagram and YouTube without Reels and Shorts, StillTabs does it for free, in two minutes, with nothing to plug in.
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
- Apple: about device supervision: https://support.apple.com/guide/deployment/about-device-supervision-dep1d89f0bff/web
- SHIFT homepage: https://shiftyourphone.com/
- SHIFT pricing: https://shiftyourphone.com/pricing/
- SHIFT support and setup: https://shiftyourphone.com/support/
- SHIFT terms and conditions: https://shiftyourphone.com/terms-and-conditions/
- SHIFT privacy policy: https://shiftyourphone.com/privacy-policy/
- SHIFT: how to block YouTube Shorts: https://shiftyourphone.com/blog/block-youtube-shorts/
- SHIFT: how to block Instagram: https://shiftyourphone.com/blog/block-instagram-iphone-android/