Unpluq
Unpluq is a Rotterdam-based digital-wellness company that sells a physical NFC tag and mobile app to help individual consumers and families reduce smartphone distraction through deliberate behavioral friction. It monetizes via freemium subscriptions and direct hardware sales globally through app stores and its own storefront.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2020
- HeadquartersRotterdam, Netherlands
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Unpluq does
Unpluq is a Rotterdam-based consumer digital-wellness company founded in 2020 that sells a combined hardware-and-software solution for reducing smartphone distraction. Its core product is the Unpluq Tag, a physical NFC keychain that users must tap to their phone in order to unlock apps previously designated as distracting, creating a deliberate behavioral interruption between intention and impulse. The companion mobile app, available on iOS (via Apple's Screen Time API) and Android (via accessibility services), supports scheduling, screen-time tracking, and seven-plus alternative friction barriers including QR scanning and shake-to-unlock, so the product is usable even without the physical tag.
The company monetizes through a freemium software subscription (free tier limits blocking to two apps and one schedule; Premium unlocks unlimited blocking and barriers at roughly $3.99/month equivalent with annual discounts) and through direct hardware sales via its Shopify storefront: the standalone Unpluq Tag at $26.50 and a bundled Tag + 1-Year Premium offering at $79. A separate Unpluq Family sub-brand extends the same mechanism to parental control across multiple children's devices, with Lite (up to 3 phones) and Full (unlimited phones) annual tiers. Distribution is entirely self-serve and global via Apple's App Store, Google Play, and unpluq.com, with no reseller or enterprise motion.
Unpluq operates as a bootstrapped private company with 1–10 employees and has not disclosed institutional venture funding; the only recorded capital event in the data is a 2021 association with the YES!Delft accelerator. The company has accumulated roughly 250,000 users, holds a 4.49-star app store rating across 2,803 reviews, is certified by the Calm Tech Institute, and has been featured in tier-1 press including Vice, The New Yorker, WSJ, BBC, TechCrunch, Business Insider, Fortune, and Inc.
Unpluq firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Unpluq
- Legal name
- Unpluq
- Website
- https://unpluq.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2020
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Unpluq is a Rotterdam-based digital-wellness company that sells a physical NFC tag and mobile app to help individual consumers and families reduce smartphone distraction through deliberate behavioral friction. It monetizes via freemium subscriptions and direct hardware sales globally through app stores and its own storefront.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Unpluq is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Rotterdam
- HQ country
- Netherlands
- HQ region
- Europe
Markets served
Unpluq business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations
Revenue model
- App Premium Subscription: Freemium subscription model with a free tier (blocks 2 apps, 1 schedule, 2 barrier options) and a Premium tier unlocking unlimited apps, schedules, and 6+ barrier options at approximately $13 per month billed monthly or at a discounted rate for annual billing.
- App Premium Subscription (Annual): Annual subscription option offering the same unlimited features at a discounted rate compared to monthly billing, providing recurring annual revenue from subscribers.
- Physical NFC Tag Products (Hardware): Sale of physical Unpluq Tag NFC devices as standalone products ($26.50) or bundled with 1-year Premium subscription ($79). One-time hardware purchase complements the recurring software subscription revenue stream.
- Bundled Subscription + Hardware: Bundled offering combining the physical Unpluq Tag with a 1-year Premium subscription at $79, creating a combined hardware + software revenue stream that drives both initial adoption and sustained subscription revenue.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Free tier — blocks 2 apps with 1 schedule and 2 barrier options |
| Subscription | Monthly | Premium — unlimited apps, schedules, and 6+ barrier options |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Unpluq Tag — physical NFC tag hardware (standalone) |
| Unit Pricing | Multi-year contract | Unpluq Tag + 1-Year Premium Bundle |
| Subscription | Annual | Premium Annual Subscription |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Unpluq product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Unpluq sells a phone habit-change system built around a proprietary physical NFC tag (the "Unpluq Tag") paired with a freemium iOS/Android app. Users select distracting apps to block and must physically tap the NFC tag — or complete an alternative friction action such as a QR scan or phone shake — to regain access, turning willpower into a deliberate physical ritual. The platform supports custom schedules, screen time analytics, and a dedicated Unpluq Family variant for parental control across multiple children's devices.
Product overview
Unpluq is a phone habit tool that combines a physical NFC tag device with a mobile app subscription to help users reduce doomscrolling and reclaim screen time. The product portfolio consists of four offerings: the Unpluq Tag (standalone physical NFC tag/keychain), Unpluq Premium Subscription (digital-only subscription for app blocking with multiple distraction barriers), Unpluq Tag + Premium Subscription (bundled hardware + subscription), and Unpluq Family (parental control variant with multi-device management). The physical Tag serves as the primary differentiator, requiring users to consciously retrieve and tap it to their phone to unlock blocked apps, creating intentional friction. The app also offers digital-only barriers for users who don't purchase the Tag. Unpluq Family extends the platform for parents to manage children's phone usage with similar mechanics.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Unpluq Family: A parental control solution for managing children's phone usage, allowing parents to block distracting apps and set healthy screen time boundaries for up to 3 phones (Lite) or unlimited phones (Full) with a yearly subscription.
Products and services
- Unpluq Tag
Quantifiable outcome
- Users save 1–3+ hours of daily screen time
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Unpluq
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Unpluq technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature7 records
Unpluq partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Unpluq competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- one sec: one sec adds forced delay/friction before opening distracting apps on iOS, closely mirroring Unpluq's friction-based mechanism. It is a direct philosophical and functional competitor in the deliberate-interruption category.
- Forest: Forest is a focus and screen-time app that grows virtual trees during focus sessions. It uses gamification rather than friction to drive behavior change, competing for the same "reduce phone distraction" persona that Unpluq targets.
- Freedom: Freedom is a long-established cross-platform app and website blocker with sync across devices, scheduled sessions, and locked-mode focus. It overlaps directly with Unpluq's Premium blocking and scheduling features and competes for the same paid subscription user.
- Jomo: Jomo provides screen time tracking, app blocking, and challenge-based streaks for digital wellbeing. It competes directly with Unpluq on the iOS Screen Time tracking and blocking axis.
- Opal: Opal is a direct competitor offering app and website blocking with focus sessions, screen time tracking, and friend accountability. It targets the same D2C digital wellness buyer and competes head-to-head with Unpluq's friction-based blocking model, though it is software-only without a physical component.
- RescueTime: RescueTime is a productivity and screen time tracking platform with focus sessions and goals. It overlaps with Unpluq's screen time tracking and premium subscription model for knowledge workers.
- Flipd: Flipd is a focus and social accountability app that locks users out of phones during study sessions. It targets students and competes for the same attention-recovery user, particularly relevant to Unpluq Family's parental positioning.
- ScreenZen: ScreenZen is an iOS Screen Time-based app blocker with scheduled sessions, breathing prompts, and unlock challenges. It targets the same screen-time reduction use case with similar schedule and barrier mechanics as Unpluq.
Broad incumbents
- Google Digital Wellbeing: Google Digital Wellbeing provides Focus Mode, app timers, and Bedtime Mode on Android. As the native platform incumbent, it represents the most direct free alternative and the largest platform-risk vector for Unpluq's Android user base.
- Apple Screen Time: Apple's built-in Screen Time feature offers app limits, downtime, and content restrictions natively on every iOS device. It is the dominant free incumbent that Unpluq must differentiate against via physical-friction value-add.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Unpluq social profiles
Digital presenceUnpluq financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Unpluq leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Unpluq funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Unpluq M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Unpluq
What does Unpluq do?
Unpluq sells a phone habit-change system built around a proprietary physical NFC tag (the "Unpluq Tag") paired with a freemium iOS/Android app. Users select distracting apps to block and must physically tap the NFC tag — or complete an alternative friction action such as a QR scan or phone shake — to regain access, turning willpower into a deliberate physical ritual. The platform supports custom schedules, screen time analytics, and a dedicated Unpluq Family variant for parental control across multiple children's devices.
Is Unpluq a public or private company?
Unpluq is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Unpluq founded?
Unpluq was founded in 2020. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Unpluq based?
Unpluq is headquartered in Rotterdam, Netherlands, in the Europe region.
How does Unpluq make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. App Premium Subscription is the primary driver. The others are app Premium Subscription (Annual), physical NFC Tag Products (Hardware) and bundled Subscription + Hardware.
Who are Unpluq's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are one sec, Forest, Freedom, Jomo, Opal, RescueTime, Flipd and ScreenZen. Broad incumbents are Google Digital Wellbeing and Apple Screen Time.
Does Unpluq have an API?
No public API is recorded for Unpluq.