Comparison
A RescueTime alternative that tracks only what you choose.
RescueTime measures your whole day automatically and syncs it to its cloud service. Build Mode measures only the sessions you start on purpose, and nothing ever leaves your Mac. Neither approach is wrong. This page lays out the difference plainly so you can pick the one that fits how you work.
Press ⌘⌥B
Do the work
Press again
Watch it add up
How RescueTime works
Automatic, cloud synced, subscription based.
RescueTime tracks your day automatically, syncs that data to its cloud service, and summarizes it for you. It is subscription based. For many people that hands-off view is exactly what they want, and RescueTime has offered it for a long time.
How Build Mode works
Deliberate, local, built around sessions.
Build Mode is a one-button tracker for people building something: a side project, a startup, a skill. Press ⌘⌥B when a focused session begins, a small clock shows in the MacBook notch while it runs, and press again to stop and jot a note. It counts active time only, and everything stays on your Mac. It costs $9 once.
What changes
Four things that feel different after the switch.
Sessions you choose
Nothing is recorded until you press ⌘⌥B. A short full-screen ceremony marks the start; press again to end the session with a one-line note. Tracking becomes a decision, not a background process.
Active time only
Build Mode pauses when you step away or the display sleeps. The hours on your dashboard are hours you actually worked, so the totals are worth trusting.
Progress, not a score
Daily, weekly, and all-time totals. Every completed active hour becomes a dot on the hour wall, and long-term goals mark milestones at 100, 500, 1,000, and 10,000 hours. The app shows work adding up. It never rates your day.
Nothing to sync
No account to create and no cloud to configure. Your license key arrives by email and is verified on your Mac. The data lives where the work happens.
The structural difference
Privacy that does not depend on a policy.
Any tool that syncs to a cloud protects your data with a privacy policy. Build Mode takes a different shape: the app contains no networking code at all, which you can verify by searching the app for networking symbols, and it asks for zero macOS permissions. No screen recording, no keystroke logging, no browser history, no website tracking. Your hours cannot be transmitted because nothing in the app can transmit.
That is not an accusation aimed at anyone. It is a structure you can check yourself instead of a promise you take on trust.
How a fully private time tracker worksBe honest with yourself
RescueTime may fit you better if…
You want a hands-off record of the entire day without pressing anything. You like one summary of how the day went. You work across devices and want your data synced between them. If that describes you, an automatic cloud tracker is the right shape.
The other philosophy
Build Mode may fit you better if…
You care about the hours you put into one thing you’re building, not a rating of everything you did. You want your data on your Mac, with no account anywhere. You’d rather pay $9 once than subscribe. And you like your hours becoming a shareable visual recap, Wrapped, opened whenever you want and kept private or shared. The product page shows the whole loop, and the download is free; a license key unlocks it.
Common questions
Switching questions, answered plainly.
Is Build Mode automatic like RescueTime?
Sessions are deliberate: you start and stop them with ⌘⌥B. Inside a session, Auto Mode sorts hours into categories from the name of the frontmost app. It is on by default, browsers stay unassigned by default, and you can turn it off in Settings or pick categories yourself.
Does Build Mode sync between devices?
No. There is no account and no cloud, so your data stays on the Mac where you work. That is the deliberate tradeoff of the zero-network design.
Is there a subscription or a trial?
No subscription and no trial. The download is free, and a $9 license paid once unlocks the app with a key sent by email. Founder pricing rises in batches: $9 for the first 50 buyers, $12 for the next 50, then $19 and up as batches sell out. The private time trackers roundup compares more tools.
What does Build Mode never record?
Your screen, your keystrokes, your browser history, and your websites. It asks for zero macOS permissions and contains no networking code, so nothing can leave the Mac.
What are the requirements?
macOS 14 or later, Apple Silicon or Intel. License details live in the terms.
Two philosophies, one choice