Earn with reading

Lock Instagram
until you've read.

Tonic keeps doomscrolling locked until you've done your reading, in Kindle, Apple Books, or any reading app you choose. It detects when you meet your goal and unlocks your rewards on its own. Set a goal to hit each day, or bank minutes to spend as you like.

Kindle
Read 20 min in Kindle
counted while the book is on screen
13 of 20 min
then they open: Instagram TikTok
Apple Books
Or bank it for later
a minute read is a minute of scroll
23 min banked
23 min read today

Where the chapter goes

You never decide not to read.
You decide to check one thing first.

The book is on the nightstand. The phone is in your hand. One reel later it is 10:40 and the chapter has moved to tomorrow, again. Tonic puts the book in front of the feed, so the check comes after the pages.

Tonight, at 9

Twenty minutes in the book. Then the feed.

Here is the whole rule, at the times it happens.

9:12 PM

You reach for TikTok

The lock screen says how much reading is left tonight and offers Kindle instead. One tap opens it.

TikTok, locked

20 min of reading left

Open Kindle instead
Not yet

9:12 to 9:32 PM

You read

Nothing to start, log or photograph. Screen Time counts the minutes Kindle is open, the same way your phone already counts every app, and Tonic watches that number.

Kindle
Read 20 min in Kindle
counted while the book is on screen
17 of 20 min
counting
then they open: Instagram TikTok

9:32 PM

The feed opens on its own

One notification, and TikTok and Instagram are open when you reach for them. You never open Tonic to claim it. Very rarely iOS runs a few minutes late; tapping the notification unlocks them right away.

Reading done. Instagram is unlocked. now

Your rules

Two ways readers set it up.

The pages always come first. You pick the shape of the deal.

The nightly gate

Read first

Until tonight's twenty minutes are in, the scroll apps stay locked. Read, and they open on their own for the rest of the day. Tomorrow the pages come first again.

Kindle 20 min → Apps open all day

The bank

Earn & spend

Minutes read become minutes of scroll, at a rate you choose, from three for one to one for three. Spend them tonight or let them roll over. A long Sunday read can pay for a week of quick checks.

Apple Books 30 min read → 30 min banked

How locked is "locked"? Either way, you pick.

A pauseA short wait before it opens, and about 15 minutes inside if you push through. Then the lock is back.
A pause that growsYou can push through, but it pushes back harder with every visit that day.
Full lockNo way in until the reading is done.

What counts

  • Minutes in the reading app you pick: Kindle, Apple Books, or any other.
  • Reading on your iPad too, when Screen Time's Share Across Devices is on.
  • Two reading apps add up: ten minutes in each is twenty.

What doesn't

  • A Kindle e-reader. It is a separate device, invisible to Tonic.
  • Audiobooks. The screen is off, so there is nothing to count.
  • Pages. Tonic counts minutes on screen, not what was on it. A paperback is a habit you check off yourself.

A companion, not another reading app

Keep the app you read in.

Your phone already counts how long each app is on screen. Tonic reads that number for the reading app you choose and opens your other apps on its own. Nothing to wire up, no check-in, nothing to log.

Works with the reading apps on your phone, including

Kindle Apple Books Blinkist

and any reading app you pick

Screen Time
Tonic Tonic
Reading done. Instagram is unlocked. now

One-time setup: pick the reading app, pick the apps it unlocks. An app cannot be on both lists. Tonic sees how long the reading app was open, never what you were reading.

Readers set up things like this.

"Two weeks in and this actually works. My phone usage has dropped, and I've been swapping that time for reading and meditating instead." App Store review, July 2026

Quick answers

Does it work with the Kindle app?

Yes. Pick the Kindle app as your reading app and the minutes you spend in it count. Apple Books works the same way, and so does any reading app on your phone: you choose which one earns.

Does reading on my iPad count?

Yes, when Screen Time's Share Across Devices is on for your Apple ID. iOS pools app minutes across your devices, so twenty minutes on the iPad unlocks the phone.

What about a Kindle e-reader, audiobooks, or a paperback?

Tonic counts reading it can see on your screen. A Kindle e-reader is a separate device, so it is invisible to Tonic. Audiobooks play with the screen off, so they do not earn. For a paperback, add reading as a habit you check off yourself.

Do I have to open Tonic to unlock my apps?

No. When your minutes are in you get one notification, "Reading done. Instagram is unlocked.", and the apps open whether Tonic was open or not. Very rarely iOS is a few minutes late; opening Tonic or tapping that notification unlocks them right away.

Does it count pages?

No, minutes. Tonic sees how long the reading app was on screen, not what was on it. Menus count, and so does re-reading a paragraph.

What does it cost?

Free to start: lock two apps and earn from one reading app, for as long as you like. Tonic Unlimited covers your whole phone for $29.99 a year or $9.99 a month, with the first 7 days free.

How earning works, step by step → · Apps still locked after you earned?

Checked against the app on September 27, 2026.

Start with two apps and tonight's chapter.

1
Pick the apps that eat the eveningInstagram, TikTok, the one you open without deciding to.
2
Pick the app you read inKindle, Apple Books, whichever holds the book. Twenty minutes a night, or a bank that rolls over.
3
The pages first, then the feedThe pages happen first, and the apps are simply open when you look up.
Get Tonic free Free to start · no account needed · iPhone and iPad, iOS 17.4 or later

Tonic is an independent companion and isn't affiliated with Amazon, Kindle, or Apple Books.

Other ways to earn: finish your Duolingo lesson first · any productive app · all of them