ColorPause

ColorPause for Mac

Bring back your focus.

ColorPause turns the websites and apps you choose black and white once you reach the limits you set.

Download free trial Buy ColorPause

Works in Chrome and Safari, and with Mac apps. No browser extension needed.

How it works

It’s a nudge, not a lock: everything still works, it just gets less tempting.

  1. List what pulls you in

    Add the websites and Mac apps that pull you in. Open a site or switch to an app, then add it from the ColorPause menu.

  2. Set your limits

    Minutes or opens per hour or per day, active hours, the days it applies, and days off.

  3. Use your Mac as usual

    When you reach a limit, that site or app turns black and white. The Last 7 days page shows how it’s going.

What’s different

  • No browser extension needed

    Nothing to install in Chrome or Safari. ColorPause asks the browser which site each window shows.

  • Only the window that matters

    Only the window showing a listed site or app goes gray. The rest of your screen stays in color.

  • Any display arrangement

    Works on any number of displays, in any arrangement, wherever your windows are.

  • Private

    What you browse and use never leaves your Mac. No account, no analytics.

  • Apps too

    Mac apps such as Slack, Discord, WhatsApp, and games can turn gray too, and sites you’ve installed as web apps from Safari or Chrome follow the site’s rule.

Why color?

Color pulls your attention. Take it away, and the pull fades.

In published studies, people who turned their phones gray used them 20 to 50 minutes less a day. ColorPause brings that idea to your Mac.

Read the research

Features

  • Minutes or opens

    Turn gray after a number of minutes or opens, per hour or per day, or as soon as you open it.

  • Active hours

    Apply a rule only between certain hours, like your working day.

  • Chosen days

    Every day, weekdays, weekends, or the days you pick.

  • Days off

    Add holidays and days off, once or every year. On a day off, limits don’t apply, so sites and apps stay in color unless you’ve chosen Keep gray.

  • Keep gray

    Keep a site or app gray whatever its limits say, or gray the front window, all tabs, from the menu bar.

  • Show in color

    Need the color back? Show everything in color for a few minutes, then graying picks up again.

  • How long it stays gray

    Until you leave, for a set number of minutes, or until you quit your browsers.

  • Last 7 days

    A simple page with the time and visits for each site and app on your list, compared with the 7 days before.

  • Lives in the menu bar

    See a site’s or app’s status at a glance, and have ColorPause open at login if you like.

System requirements

macOS
macOS 14 Sonoma or later
Mac
Apple silicon or Intel
Browsers
Google Chrome and SafariExperimental: Microsoft Edge, Brave, Vivaldi, Chromium, Chrome Beta, Dev, and Canary, and Safari Technology Preview
Apps
Mac apps, and sites installed as web apps from Safari or Chrome
Displays
Any number, in any arrangement
Permissions
Automation for each browserAccessibility is recommended, so changes show right away. Apps need no permission.
Internet
Only to check for updates and to activate your license

Pricing

Pay once. Not a subscription.

  • Personal

    $29 one time

    • For you, on up to 3 Macs
    • 12 months of updates included
    • Keeps working after that; renew updates if you want them

  • Household

    $49 one time

    • For your household, on up to 5 Macs
    • 12 months of updates included
    • Keeps working after that; renew updates if you want them
Buy ColorPause Download free trial
  • Free 14-day trial with every feature: no card, no account. If it ends before you buy, ColorPause pauses (nothing turns gray) until you do; your rules, settings, and stats are kept.
  • Launch price: $19 instead of $29 for people on the waitlist, for a limited time at launch. Join the waitlist
  • Students and teachers: 50% off on request. Ask for the discount
  • Refunds: a full refund within 30 days, no questions asked. License terms

Questions

What permissions does ColorPause ask for, and why?

Two, and macOS asks you about each one:

  • Automation (required), once for each browser. It lets ColorPause ask the browser for the address of the visible tab in each window, and where that window is, so it can match the address against your list and gray the right window.
  • Accessibility (recommended). ColorPause uses it only to notice right away when you switch tabs or windows. Without it, changes show within 5 seconds.

Apps on your list need no permission: macOS’s list of windows already says which app owns each one. You can turn either permission off at any time in System Settings › Privacy & Security. How to allow them

Why isn’t ColorPause in the Mac App Store?

Apps in the Mac App Store must run in a sandbox that doesn’t allow what ColorPause needs to do: ask your browsers which address each window shows, and gray another app’s window. So ColorPause is sold directly, from this site.

Does ColorPause read the pages I visit?

No. It reads only the address of the visible tab, on your Mac, to match it against your list. It never reads what’s on the page or inside your apps, and it counts time and visits only for what’s on your list. Privacy policy

Is ColorPause a subscription?

No. You pay once. Your license includes 12 months of updates; after that, ColorPause keeps working, and you can renew updates if you want newer versions.

What happens after the trial?

If the 14-day trial ends before you buy, ColorPause pauses: nothing turns gray until you buy a license. Your rules, settings, and stats are kept, so buying picks up where you left off.

Can I get a refund?

Yes: a full refund within 30 days of buying, no questions asked. Email support@getcolorpause.com.

Which browsers and apps does it work with?

Google Chrome and Safari. Microsoft Edge, Brave, Vivaldi, Chromium, and Chrome Beta, Dev, and Canary are experimental, as is Safari Technology Preview: ColorPause reads them the same way as Chrome or Safari, but they’ve had less testing. Other browsers, such as Firefox, aren’t supported. You don’t need to install a browser extension.

It also works with Mac apps, such as Slack, Discord, WhatsApp, and games. A site you’ve installed as a web app from Safari or Chrome follows that site’s rule.

Does it work with more than one display?

Yes. ColorPause works on any number of displays, in any arrangement. Only the window showing a listed site or app goes gray, wherever it is.

Is there a version for iPhone or iPad?

Not yet. We may make a Safari extension for iPhone and iPad later, but we haven’t set a date.