0:20
Stare-down
Look at the front camera with your eyes open. Blinking is fine, but closing your eyes starts the timer over.
10s20s30s45s
Camera · processed on-device
iPhone A free alarm clock app for iOS 26
The alarm you can't sleep through.
Awake-athon rings like a normal alarm. The difference is that to turn it off for good, you have to prove you're awake: spell a word, keep your eyes open, or take a few steps. If you go back to sleep, it rings again.
No account
No ads or tracking
Everything stays on your phone
Stare-downEyes open for 20s
Spelling bee“argument”
Steps30 steps to freedom
The problem
Your alarm goes off. You hit stop without opening your eyes. You wake up forty minutes later, late again. The problem isn't the alarm. It's that turning it off doesn't need you to be awake.
Alarm stop
Alarm snooze
Alarm snooze
“Oh no.”
How it works
Three steps to
Three steps to
actually getting up.
1
Set your alarm.
Pick a time and the days it repeats. It works like the Clock app you already know. One alarm, big and clear, with a countdown to when it rings.
- Repeat on weekdays, weekends, or any days you pick
- Choose how soon it rings again if you don't finish
- Built-in tones or your own sound
2
Choose your wake challenges.
Turn on one challenge or several, and set how hard each one is. Tap Try challenge to practice before tomorrow morning.
- Six challenges: spelling, typing, staring, walking, balancing and reading aloud
- Challenges run in the order you choose
- Leave them all off and Stop works instantly
3
Prove you're awake.
When the alarm rings, tap Stop and the noise ends right away. Then finish your challenges. If you don't, the alarm rings again a few minutes later, and it keeps ringing until you do.
- A progress bar shows how much you have left
- Get a word wrong and you get a new one
- Finish and you're done for the day
The loop
Stop turns off the sound.
Stop turns off the sound.
Not the alarm.
Here's what happens if you try to sleep through it.
7:30 · It rings
A full system alarm from Apple's AlarmKit. It rings on silent and in Focus modes.
Lock screen + Live ActivityYou tap Stop
The ringing stops right away. Awake-athon then opens your wake challenge.
Silence ≠ doneWent back to sleep?
A backup alarm is already scheduled, so it rings again after your snooze time.
Repeats until you finishChallenge done
No more alarms, and your wake-up streak goes up by one.
🔥 Streak +1
Wake challenges
Six ways to wake up.
Each one takes less than a minute and needs you actually awake. Pick the ones that work for you.
“argument”
Spelling bee
Your phone reads a word out loud and you type it back. You get 10 seconds per word, and a wrong answer gets you a new word.
1 word235
No permissions needed
Typing
A long word appears on screen and you type it back exactly. It's hard to do half asleep.
1 word235
No permissions needed
0 / 30
Steps
Walk around with the app open. Your phone can be in your hand or your pocket. Shaking it doesn't count.
20304050
Motion & Fitness
Bullseye
Hold your phone flat and keep the bubble inside the ring. If your hand wobbles, you lose the time you've built up.
5s7s10s
Uses the motion sensor
“Today is going to be great.”
Recite
A short phrase appears on screen and you read it out loud. If you mumble, you get a new phrase to read.
OnceTwice3×
Microphone · speech recognized on-device
Light & dark
LightDark
Easy on the eyes at 6 AM.
Awake-athon matches your iPhone's appearance, or you can set it to Light or Dark. Drag the slider to compare.
LightDark
You can also switch this whole page with the toggle at the top.
Extras
Small touches that help.
Wake Up · 7:30Spelling bee waiting · 1 wordStop
Lock screen & Live Activity
When the alarm rings, it shows up on your Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island. Tapping Stop takes you straight to your challenge.
0 🔥
Wake-up streaks
Every morning you finish your challenge adds a day to your streak. It's based on when your alarm actually rang, so it can't be faked.
Next alarm
7:30
Tomorrow · Weekdays
Home Screen widget
See your next alarm at a glance, with a cat peeking in.
NEXT ALARM
7:30
Tomorrow
Apple Watch
Your next alarm, right on your wrist.
Default
ChimeMarimbaRiseYour ownVibrate only
Sounds that wake you
Preview sounds at your real alarm volume. The silent switch never mutes the alarm.
Safe & private
Your mornings are your business.
Awake-athon has no account and no ads, and it doesn't collect any data. Everything happens on your iPhone.
No sign-up, no accountOpen the app and set an alarm. There's no email or login.
Nothing leaves your phoneAwake-athon doesn't connect to any server. It has no analytics, no trackers and no ads.
Camera and voice stay on-deviceStare-down uses Apple's face tracking and Recite uses on-device speech recognition. No video or audio is saved.
Only asks for what it needsThe app asks for camera, motion or microphone access only when you turn on a challenge that uses it.
Uses Apple's own alarm systemAlarms are scheduled with AlarmKit, the same system the Clock app uses, so they still ring if the app is closed.
Questions
Good questions.
Will it ring if my phone is on silent or in a Focus mode?
Yes. Awake-athon uses Apple's AlarmKit, which is the same alarm system the Clock app uses. It rings with the silent switch on and through Focus modes, even if the app isn't open.
What happens if I just tap Stop and go back to sleep?
Stop only turns off the sound. If you haven't finished your wake challenge, a backup alarm rings again after your snooze time (1 minute by default, and you can change it). It keeps ringing until you finish.
Can I use it as a normal alarm?
Yes. Turn off all the challenges and Stop works like a regular alarm. You can turn challenges back on whenever you need them.
Does Stare-down record me?
No. It uses Apple's face tracking to check whether your eyes are open. That happens on your iPhone, and nothing is saved or sent anywhere. Recite works the same way with on-device speech recognition.
What do I need to run it?
An iPhone running iOS 26 or later. Stare-down needs a Face ID iPhone. The Apple Watch app is optional.
Does it cost anything?
Awake-athon is free. It has no ads, no subscriptions and no in-app purchases.
Tomorrow, get up
on the first alarm.
Free for iPhone. It takes about 30 seconds to set up.
Download it only from the App Store. The official app comes from the App Store link on this page, and Apple reviews every version. Awake-athon never asks for a password, payment, or a profile to install.