Brick vs Clank

Our editorial pick

We rank Clank number one for the setup we want: a free iPhone app and an ordinary NFC tag bought from any seller. This is the Clank team's editorial preference. We wrote this comparison from our own development work and Brick's published documentation, without running a comparative product test.

Clank is available free for iPhone and iPad on the App Store. Brick has a public iPhone app and a device on sale. With Clank on iPhone, you choose your own compatible NFC tag.

The same physical step, different hardware

Brick asks you to select apps, then tap your phone against a Brick to block them. Another tap restores access. Its product page also describes starting a block remotely. For a normal session, you return to a Brick to unblock, with limited Emergency Unbricks as a fallback. Scheduled sessions can also have an automatic end time. See Brick's workflow.

Clank pairs with a compatible NFC sticker, card or keychain. You save your app choices as a mode, tap to clank, and return to that tag to unclank. The phone enforces the app block; the tag supplies the physical step. You can leave it in the hallway instead of keeping the way to unblock within reach. Our Clank walkthrough shows that sequence.

What you are choosing

Compare the hardware cost, too

Price check, September 9, 2026: Brick's official product page lists one device at US$59. Its developer-written App Store description says the purchase includes app access without monthly fees. Clank's saving is mainly the branded hardware purchase, rather than a subscription that Brick does not charge.

An ordinary tag can be inexpensive. For example, GYRFID lists an NTAG213 sticker at US$0.30 on the same date. That is an item price, not a delivered setup price. Shipping, tax, quantity and seller terms matter.

Clank is free to download and use. Download Clank free on the App Store. For NFC blocking on iPhone, you supply a compatible tag; its price and delivery costs are separate.

Brick has more to offer than its enclosure

Brick documents scheduled sessions, activity history, Strict Mode and five Emergency Unbricks. Its magnetic, battery-free device can serve multiple phones. Those are useful features for someone who wants a ready-made setup, particularly in a household with different phone platforms. Brick's feature list describes them.

Clank includes modes, schedules, timed sessions, widgets and five emergency unclanks. Strict mode prevents installing or deleting apps while clanked. We have not established that Clank is harder to bypass, more reliable or more effective than Brick. A feature list cannot answer those questions.

One detail matters for a routine across home and work. Brick supports using multiple Bricks with one phone. Clank currently checks each scan against one paired tag, so extra tags are not interchangeable spare keys. Brick's schedule guide also says that unbricking early ends the scheduled session. Bricking again starts a normal session without the previous scheduled end time. Check that ending rule before relying on a schedule while away from the device.

Why we built Clank

We prefer choosing the small piece of hardware ourselves. A sticker can go under a desk; a card can live in a drawer. There is no reason the object has to look like the app's logo. You also avoid replacing a particular branded device if your preferences change.

The app is free, so you can choose the tag that fits your routine without paying for the software. You do not need a branded Clank device.

Which should you choose?

Choose Brick if you want a dedicated device and its companion app, or need the Android support listed in its compatibility information. Paying for a complete product can be worth more than saving on the tag.

Choose Clank if your priorities are a free iPhone app and ordinary NFC hardware. Download Clank free on the App Store.

If you are still deciding between physical devices, our Tap Out vs Clank comparison covers another version of this approach. For blocking across a computer and phone, see Freedom vs Clank.