Which iPhone alarm apps can you actually use without paying? The most useful thing to know before installing one is what happens after you answer the onboarding questions. Some apps hand you a working alarm. Others hand you a price list. The App Store label says “Free” either way.
What each app gives you without paying
| App | Can you set a working alarm free? | Free trial | Ads on the free tier | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Clock | Yes, everything is free | Not applicable | None | 21 Jul 2026 |
| Mornio | Three completed wake-ups, then Pro | 3 wake-ups, no card | None | 16 Sep 2026 |
| Nuj | Yes, the app is free | Not applicable | No advertising declared | 21 Jul 2026 |
| Alarmy | Yes, listing states free features include the alarm clock | 7-day trial stated | “Contains Advertising” | 16 Sep 2026 |
| SuperAlarm | Free with ads; free-tier limits not itemised | Not stated | Sells ad removal $2.99/mo | 21 Jul 2026 |
| Alarm Scan | Free with ads | Not stated | Sells ad removal $1.49/mo | 21 Jul 2026 |
| Erly | Listing states a subscription is required for full access; whether a basic alarm works free is not stated | Not stated | No advertising declared | 16 Sep 2026 |
| Wayk | No. Listing states a subscription is required | Not stated | No advertising declared | 16 Sep 2026 |
| Sleep Cycle | Free with in-app purchases; limits not itemised | Not stated | No advertising declared | 21 Jul 2026 |
| Kiwake | Free with premium at $1.99/mo | Not stated | No advertising declared | 21 Jul 2026 |
Most listings do not itemise exactly what a free tier includes, so “not itemised” means the App Store page does not say. We are reporting what is published, not testing every free tier ourselves.
Which iPhone alarm apps need no subscription?
On the listings above, three let you set a working alarm without ever paying a subscription:
- Apple Clock — entirely free. No tier, no trial, no ads, no in-app purchases. If you have not tried it with a one-minute snooze and the phone across the room, try that before paying anyone.
- Nuj — the app itself is free with no in-app purchases listed. The money is the penalty you set for yourself, so it requires payment details even though there is no subscription.
- Alarmy — its listing states the free features include the alarm clock. There is no subscription needed for a basic alarm, but the listing carries Apple’s “Contains Advertising” note, so the free tier is funded by ads.
And three that do require one, stated plainly:
- Wayk — its listing says a subscription is required to set alarms at all, so there is no free alarm.
- Erly — its listing states a subscription is required for full access; whether a basic alarm works free is not stated.
- Mornio — ours. Three completed wake-ups with everything switched on and no card, then Pro is required to set further alarms. That is a trial, not a free tier, and we would rather say so here than have you find out on morning four.
SuperAlarm, Alarm Scan, Sleep Cycle and Kiwake are all free to download with paid upgrades, but their listings do not itemise what you get without paying, so we cannot tell you from published information whether a usable alarm survives once the upgrade prompts start.
What Mornio gives you without paying
Three completed wake-ups, with the scan, the stay-awake check and the backup alarm all included, and one alarm active at a time. No card, no account. After the third, Pro is required to set further alarms. Better you read that here than find out on morning four.
See Mornio on the App StoreRequires iOS 26.1 or later · then $7.99/month or $29.99/year
The one that says it outright
Credit to Wayk for being explicit where most apps are vague. Its App Store description carries a heading reading “SUBSCRIPTION REQUIRED” and states: “After you complete the short setup questions, an active Wayk Pro subscription is required to set alarms and use missions.”
That is not a criticism. It is a legitimate model, its ratings are strong, and telling you before you download is better behaviour than discovering it at the end of an onboarding flow. Just know what you are choosing: listed pricing was $9.99 monthly, with yearly tiers from $19.99 to $59.99.
The pattern to watch for
The uncomfortable one is the long onboarding questionnaire ending at a price list. It works commercially because you have invested effort by the time you reach it. A recurring theme in Erly's public reviews is frustration at exactly this.
We should be straight that Mornio does something in the same family: new users get three free wake-ups with the full Pro experience, and after that the stay-awake check needs Pro. The differences we would point to are that there is no questionnaire before your first alarm, no card is required for the trial, and the three wake-ups run the full app rather than a limited version. Judge that for yourself.
Free tiers worth taking seriously
Apple Clock
Entirely free, no tier, no trial, no ads, no privacy label. Rings through Silent mode and Focus, survives restarts, and since iOS 26 supports a custom snooze duration from 1 to 15 minutes per alarm. Set it to one minute and put the phone across the room and you have a genuinely decent setup for nothing. It has no mission and no follow-up check, which is the only reason to go further.
Nuj Alarm Clock
The app is free and its listing showed no in-app purchases. The money is the penalty you set for yourself, so your cost depends entirely on how often you fail. It requires payment details, and its label lists financial info linked to you. For someone who reliably gets up, it can cost nothing at all.
Alarmy
Its description states “Free features: alarm clock, sleep tracker, sleep sounds etc.” and that a 7-day free trial is provided. That is a more generous free offering than most of this list, and it runs on iOS 16. The trade is that the listing carries Apple's “Contains Advertising” note, so the free tier is paid for with ads and with Location, Device ID and Advertising Data used for third-party advertising.
How to test any app without paying
- Install and try to set one alarm immediately. If you cannot get to a working alarm without a card, you have your answer in two minutes.
- Test the mission on a morning that does not matter, ideally a weekend, before you rely on it.
- Check Settings for the subscription if you start a trial, and set a calendar reminder two days before it renews.
- Judge the free tier, not the trial. The trial always feels good. What matters is what you keep on day eight.
The parts that cost nothing at all
Before comparing free tiers, it is worth knowing how much of the problem needs no app. Most “my alarm does not work” is a settings problem, and most of the rest is solved by moving the phone.
- The iPhone alarm reliability check covers the fourteen common causes. No sign-up, no email.
- A printed wake-up QR code gives you a scan target for the price of a sheet of paper, and any app that can register a code will take it.
- The shift wake-up calculator works out the alarm time and the bedtime if you are on a rota.
These are ours and they are free, in the ordinary sense of the word: no account, no card, and nothing gated behind an email address.