Two apps called Doorpost: which one is which?

Why there are two

Both names come from Deuteronomy 6:9, "Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." Both apps launched in August 2026, a little over two weeks apart, and both use Apple's Screen Time to hold your apps shut in the morning. If you searched for one and found the other, that is why.

This page is written by the maker of The Doorpost, so read it with that in mind. The aim is to describe both fairly so you pick the one that fits how you want to meet Scripture in the morning.

What unlocks your apps

The Doorpost asks you to write. You name a verse, open your own physical Bible, and type the words across. The app checks what you typed against the verse text and tells you what is missing, never what to write. Your ESV, NIV, NKJV, CSB or NASB wording passes; stopping half way does not. A verse rests for 30 days after you use it, so there are always 31,102 to choose from and no easy favourite can carry every day.

Doorpost: Bible Unlocks Apps asks you to read. Its listing describes the day's opening verses shown on screen, read aloud with on-device speech recognition that highlights each word as you speak, or held through with a tap-through option if you prefer quiet. It also offers reading plans that decide which passage comes next.

The difference is not small. One puts a printed Bible and effort at the centre; the other puts the phone screen and a reading plan at the centre. Neither is wrong. They suit different people.

Price

The Doorpost is free to download and free to use: writing a verse to unlock your day always will be. The full version, which adds unlimited blocked apps, categories, websites and a custom daily reset time, is $2.99 a month (7-day free trial), $19.99 a year, or $19.99 once for lifetime access.

Doorpost: Bible Unlocks Apps states in its App Store listing that a membership subscription is required for every feature: $39.99 a year after a 7-day free trial, or $4.99 a week, billed by Apple. As of September 2026 there is no one-time purchase listed.

Accounts, data and noise

The Doorpost has no account, no analytics, no advertising and no tracking, and it makes no network requests at all beyond the App Store. The Bible text is bundled, so everything you type stays on your device. There are no streaks, badges, notifications or leaderboards; your days are counted quietly and your verses kept as a record.

For the other app, check its own App Store privacy label and description, which are the authoritative source for what it collects and how it reminds you. It is not fair for us to characterise them here.

Side by side

Prices and features as listed on the App Store in September 2026. Check each listing for the current version.

Which one should you choose?

Choose The Doorpost if you want the morning to start with a real Bible open on the table, you would rather write than read off a screen, and you do not want a subscription to be the price of a habit.

Choose Doorpost: Bible Unlocks Apps if you prefer to read or speak the passage on your phone, want a reading plan to pick the passage for you, and are happy with a membership.

Both are honest attempts at the same problem: the phone wins too many mornings. Whichever you pick, put the Bible where you drink your coffee.