Body doubling apps and sites: Focusmate, FLOWN and Inflow compared

What is body doubling?

Body doubling means working while someone else is present, in person or online, each on your own task. Nobody helps you. They are just there.

FLOWN's help centre describes it as working in someone else's presence to make it easier to start tasks and follow through. The idea has spread through ADHD communities online, and several companies now sell it as a service. You can also do it for free with a friend, a library table or a café. The apps below are for when there is no one around, or when a friend on a call turns into a chat.

We have not used these services for this guide. Everything here comes from each company's own pages, checked on 11 September 2026.

What to look for in a body doubling app

Six things separate these services. Decide which matter to you before you compare prices.

• Format. One-to-one with a stranger (Focusmate), a hosted group (FLOWN), or rooms inside a wider app (Inflow). One partner feels more accountable to some people and more exposing to others.
• Session length. Focusmate lets you choose 25, 50 or 75 minutes and adds a buffer of 5, 10 or 15 minutes afterwards. Short sessions are easier to say yes to.
• Booking or drop-in. Focusmate works from a calendar, so you commit ahead. FLOWN offers drop-in sessions as well as scheduled ones. Booking helps if you need a fixed start time. Drop-in helps if you only find the nerve at 3.40pm.
• Camera expectations. These are video services. If being watched is the hard part, try a group session first, where you are one face among several.
• Free allowance. Focusmate gives three sessions a week free. Focus101 gives five. FLOWN has a free tier. Inflow has a free trial.
• Currency. Focusmate charges in US dollars; FLOWN and Inflow (through the App Store) charge in pounds, and Focus101 shows pound prices.

Focusmate or FLOWN?

Pick Focusmate if one partner and a booked slot keep you honest; pick FLOWN if you would rather have a host and a group.

Focusmate is simple. You choose a length, pick a time on the calendar and get matched with one person. At the start you both say what you are going to do. At the end you say how it went. That small promise to a real person is the whole mechanism. The free allowance of three sessions a week is enough to find out whether it suits you before you pay anything.

FLOWN is built more like a studio. FLOWN says it runs facilitated focus sessions, round-the-clock drop-ins, daily and weekly planning sessions, and guided breaks. It costs more, about £20 a month, and you pay in pounds with no exchange-rate surprises. If a bare two-person video call feels too intense, the group format may sit better.

Inflow is a different kind of product. The body doubling rooms come with daily lessons of about five minutes, an AI companion that breaks tasks into steps, and a community space. At from £19.99 a month it only makes sense if you want the lessons too. The App Store rates it 13+.

Body doubling for free

You do not need to pay for body doubling to try it. These options cost nothing:

• Focusmate's free tier. Three sessions a week, no card.
• A friend on a video call. Both on mute, cameras on, agree a finish time. It works best with someone who will not start a conversation.
• A public place. A library, a café or a co-working day pass puts other working people around you.
• Focus101's free plan. Five focus sessions a week, one-to-one or in groups, plus unlimited group focus rooms, with no card needed. Premium is £4 a month. ADHD UK lists it on its marketplace.
• Recorded "work with me" videos. Some people use long videos of someone else working. FLOWN offers these on demand; many more are free online. Nobody is expecting you, so there is less pull to turn up.

Things to know

• You will be on camera with people you do not know. Read each service's community rules and how to report someone before your first session.
• Dollar prices move. Focusmate's US$12 a month will cost a slightly different amount in pounds each month, and some cards add a fee for foreign payments.
• Check the plan before paying for Inflow. The UK App Store lists monthly plans from £19.99 to £49.99, yearly plans from £85.99 to £199.99, and plans with coaching at £42.99 a month.
• At work, ask before you buy. If starting tasks at work is the problem, Access to Work may pay for practical support. GOV.UK says it covers conditions including ADHD, is for people 16 or over in paid work in England, Scotland or Wales, and does not need a diagnosis. Our Access to Work guide covers how to apply.
• Some days it will not work. A stranger on a screen can make starting easier on one day and do nothing the next. Stay on the free tiers until you know.