A timer. A list. A notepad. That's the whole app.
Website · Try it in your browser · Download · Discord · Support ♥
Focusbox is a deliberately small focus app. A countdown to work against, a task list you check off, and a notes page that's always open beside them. It runs on your own computer, saves everything locally, and never tracks or scores you. I built it after Rize started doing too much.
- A timer that winds down — set 30m / 1h / 1.5h / 2h (or add +5 to +30 when it's up). The ring empties as time runs out, then pulses quietly. No sound, no log, no score.
- A list you check off — type a task, press enter, tick it when it's done. The header counts what's left.
- Notes beside it — one clean document with headings, bold/italic/strike,
lists, and checklists. Toolbar or Markdown shortcuts (
#,-,1.,[ ]).
Plus the quiet extras: light & dark themes, a handful of accent colors, a macOS menubar countdown, an optional Spotify mini-player (macOS), and instant local autosave.
| Platform | File | First launch |
|---|---|---|
| macOS (Apple Silicon) | Focusbox_*_aarch64.dmg |
Right-click the app → Open (it isn't notarized yet), or xattr -cr /Applications/Focusbox.app once |
| Windows 11 | Focusbox_*_x64-setup.exe |
SmartScreen may warn — More info → Run anyway (unsigned, not unsafe) |
Or skip installing and use it in your browser.
- Local-first — no account, nothing leaves your machine. Your tasks and notes live in a single file on your own disk.
- Nothing watching — no analytics, no telemetry, no productivity grades.
- Optional sync — $2/mo (or $20/yr) keeps your devices in step, end-to-end encrypted: your tasks, notes and settings are encrypted on your device, and the server never sees your password or keys. Alongside the encrypted blobs it necessarily stores the routing metadata any server needs — your email address, and when each blob was last written. Turn it on in the app under Settings → Account. The app is fully usable without it, forever.
Tauri 2 (Rust) · React + TypeScript + Vite · TipTap for the editor. One codebase builds the macOS app, the Windows app, and the web app.
Requires Node.js, the Rust toolchain, and platform build tools (Xcode Command Line Tools on macOS; MSVC + WebView2 on Windows).
npm install
npm run tauri dev # run with hot reload
npm run tauri build # build the installable app for your OSBoth installers are produced in CI on every v* tag — see
.github/workflows/build-apps.yml.
Focusbox is free to use and its code is public. If it helps you focus, you can support its development — entirely optional, always appreciated. ♥
Focusbox is source-available under the Focusbox Community License:
- Use it free — personal use and internal company use cost nothing, forever.
- Build it yourself — read the code, modify it, compile your own copy, share it for free.
- Selling it needs a license — commercially distributing Focusbox or any rebranded/white-label version of it requires a commercial agreement. Contact info@focusbox.net.
Releases up to and including v0.2.11 were published under MIT and remain MIT-licensed.