How to stop checking your phone while studying (an iPhone guide)

By Martin Eriksson · 29 October 2026

I'm Martin, the solo developer behind Puperino. Where I mention my own app, I'll say so.

You sit down to study, read half a paragraph, and your hand is already reaching for your phone. Ten minutes later you're watching videos about something you've never cared about. Sound familiar?

This isn't a willpower problem. Phones are designed to be picked up. The fix is to make picking yours up a little harder and studying a little easier to start. Here are seven ways to do that on an iPhone, from the simplest to the strictest.

Menu names below are for recent versions of iOS. Apple sometimes renames things, so if a label looks different on your phone, look for the closest match.

1. Put it out of reach

The simplest fix works best. A phone on your desk competes for your attention even when it's silent and face down. Put it in another room, a drawer or your bag across the room. If you need it for a timer, see step 6.

2. Turn off notifications you don't need

Every notification is an invitation to pick up your phone. Go to Settings › Notifications and switch off everything that isn't a person or something time-critical. Social apps, games and shopping apps can almost always go.

3. Set up a Study Focus mode

A Focus mode silences notifications and can hide distracting apps from your home screen while you study.

Open Settings › Focus and tap +.
Choose Custom and name it "Study".
Under People, allow only the few people who might need you urgently.
Under Apps, allow only what you need for studying.
Optionally, choose a home screen page with just your study apps.

Turn it on from Control Centre whenever you start. You can also schedule it for your usual study hours.

4. Use Screen Time on yourself

Screen Time isn't only for parents. On your own iPhone, open Settings › Screen Time:

App Limits: give distracting apps a daily time limit, for example 30 minutes for social media.
Downtime: schedule hours when only the apps you choose are available.

Newer versions of iOS may call these "time allowances" and "schedules". The idea is the same: decide in advance, so you don't have to decide in the moment.

5. Make your screen boring

Colour is part of what makes your phone feel rewarding. Switching to greyscale while you study makes it noticeably less tempting. Set it up under Settings › Accessibility › Display & Text Size › Color Filters › Grayscale (spelled "Colour Filters" and "Greyscale" on UK iPhones). Then add it to Accessibility Shortcut so you can toggle it with a triple-click of the side button.

6. Use a study timer that blocks apps

If you use your phone as a timer, pick one that keeps you out of other apps while it runs. Several focus apps use Apple's Screen Time tools to block the apps you choose during a session.

Puperino live countdown on the iPhone lock screen with Biscuit — The countdown and Biscuit stay on your lock screen, so you don't need to open your phone to check the time.

This is what I built into Puperino, my study timer app. You choose how strict to be:

Free: just the timer, no blocking.
Strict: the apps you choose stay blocked until the session ends. You can also flip it round and allow only a short list of apps.
Stay mode: leave the app for more than 10 seconds and the session ends. Locking your screen is fine.

The countdown stays on your lock screen, so you can check the time without unlocking your phone and getting pulled in. And instead of punishing you, Biscuit brings you a gift when you finish. Forest and Focus Friend also block apps, if you'd prefer one of those; there's a comparison in Study apps with a pet.

7. Give each session one small task

A lot of phone-checking happens when you don't know what to do next. Before each session, write down one specific task: "do questions 1 to 5", not "study maths". When the task is clear and short, there's less of a gap for your phone to fill.

Short sessions help too. A 25-minute Pomodoro, or even 15 minutes when you're struggling, feels manageable in a way that "study all afternoon" doesn't. There's more on this in How to study for finals in one week.

A simple setup that works

If you only do three things, do these:

Turn on your Study Focus mode.
Start a 25-minute timer that blocks your distracting apps.
Put the phone out of reach until it rings.

Then take a real break, away from the screen. You've earned it.

Puperino

Study with a puppy who keeps your distracting apps locked. Puperino is free on iPhone.

Download on the App Store

Questions people ask

Why do I keep checking my phone while studying?

Mostly habit and relief. Picking up your phone is a quick escape when work feels hard or boring, and notifications reward the habit. Making the phone slightly harder to reach, and the study task smaller and clearer, breaks the loop more reliably than willpower alone.

Can I block apps on my iPhone without parental controls?

Yes. Screen Time works on your own iPhone, not just a child's. You can set app limits and schedules for yourself in Settings › Screen Time. Many study timers can also block apps during a session once you give them Screen Time permission.

Does putting your phone in another room really help?

Yes. A phone within reach pulls at your attention even when it's silent and face down. Out of sight and out of reach is the simplest, most effective change you can make.

Is it OK to use my phone as a study timer?

Yes, as long as the timer keeps you out of other apps. Use one that blocks distracting apps or ends the session if you leave, and keep notifications off while it runs.