Pausa vs LookAway vs Time Out: 20-20-20 on Mac

The 20-20-20 rule is easy to state: every 20 minutes, look at something at least 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. The American Academy of Ophthalmology lists it among its tips for office workers with eye strain. The hard part is remembering it without being interrupted mid-call.

Quits publishes Pausa. This review compares documented capabilities from our catalog, Apple and the developers, checked 19 October 2026, not hands-on benchmarks. We make no claim about what a reminder does for your eyes; if discomfort persists, ask an eye doctor.

Which approach fits?

Choice	Main reason	Check before choosing
Clock timer	A free countdown you restart yourself	It doesn’t cover the screen or wait for a call
Pausa	Breaks that hold during calls, full screen and typing	macOS 14 or later; no posture or blink reminders
LookAway	Posture and blink reminders, breaks synced to iPhone	macOS 13 or later; update terms of each license
Time Out	A free core, Micro breaks and scripted actions	Its current release requires macOS 26 or later

What macOS offers on its own

We found no built-in 20-20-20 reminder in Apple’s documentation. The closest tool is Clock: Apple’s guide explains how to click Timers, set the time and click Start; when the timer ends, its notification offers Repeat. A 20-minute timer repeated by hand is a free way to try the habit.

Downtime, in System Settings > Screen Time, limits the Mac to allowed apps during a scheduled period. It suits an evening cut-off, not a 20-second pause every 20 minutes.

Pausa reviewed: breaks that wait for a good moment

Pausa covers your screens for 20 seconds every 20 minutes and asks you to look at something 20 feet (6 meters) away. The pace is adjustable: a short break every 10 to 60 minutes, lasting 10 to 60 seconds, with longer breaks if you want them.

What separates it from a timer is timing. Pausa waits while the microphone or camera is in use or an app is in full screen, and gives you up to 1 minute to stop typing. Esc skips a break; you can also snooze for 5 minutes or pause reminders for 1 hour. After time away or a sleep, the countdown starts over.

Pausa asks for no permissions: it reads system activity without capturing your screen, recording audio or using your camera. It requires macOS 14 or later, and its catalog lists no posture or blink reminders, iPhone sync or scripted actions. If you need those, look at the 2 apps below.

LookAway: posture, blinking and your iPhone

LookAway, from Mystical Bits, documents posture and blink reminders beyond screen breaks, plus automatic pauses during screen recording, calls, video playback and full-screen gaming. It syncs a Mac break to your iPhone or iPad and can run AppleScripts or Shortcuts when a break starts or ends. If posture nudges or a break that reaches your phone matter, those are documented reasons to choose it. It also lists macOS 13 or later, a release Pausa doesn’t support.

Its license page describes a license bought once, for 1, 2 or 5 devices: the smaller editions include 1 year of updates with an optional renewal, the largest lifetime updates.

Time Out: a free core with deep customization

Time Out by Dejal documents Normal and Micro breaks with their own length and frequency, and counts time away from your Mac as a natural break. Rules can postpone or skip breaks in Focus or a full-screen app, and Break Actions can run AppleScript, shell, Python or Automator scripts.

Dejal states that the core features are always free, with optional supporter purchases that don’t renew automatically; the Mac App Store edition also offers optional subscriptions. Version 3.1 requires macOS 26 or later, while the older 2.9.7 runs on macOS 10.15 or later. For a free option or scripted actions around each break, Time Out is the one to try.

Choose around your need

If a repeating reminder is enough, start with a Clock timer. For breaks that hold during calls, full screen and typing, with no permissions to grant, try Pausa’s Demo. For posture and blink reminders or breaks on your iPhone, evaluate LookAway; for a free core and scripts, Time Out.

Pausa uses a one-time purchase; its current price and the House Rules are shown below. LookAway and Time Out belong to their respective developers; Quits is not affiliated with them.