Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting

Common questions and how to fix them.

Browser shows as just "Chrome" with no website URL

Browser URL tracking isn't enabled, or macOS hasn't granted Focus Meter permission to read from that browser.

  1. Open Settings > Privacy and make sure Browser URL Tracking is turned on.
  2. If it's already on, check that you allowed the Automation permission when macOS prompted you. If you're not sure, look in System Settings > Privacy & Security > Automation and find Focus Meter in the list — your browser should have a checkmark next to it.

If you denied the permission in the past, macOS won't ask again on its own. You'll need to enable it manually in System Settings.

I denied the browser permission and now it won't ask again

This is a macOS behavior — once you deny an Automation permission, the system doesn't re-prompt. To fix it:

  1. Open System Settings > Privacy & Security > Automation
  2. Find Focus Meter in the list
  3. Turn on the toggle for the browser you want to track (Chrome, Safari, etc.)

If Focus Meter isn't in the list at all, toggle Browser URL Tracking off and back on in Focus Meter's settings — this should trigger a new permission request.

Focus Meter counted time while I was away from my Mac

Focus Meter uses keyboard and mouse activity to detect when you're idle. If you stepped away but came back before the idle threshold was reached, that time counts as active.

You can lower the idle threshold in Settings > General > Idle Threshold. The default is 5 minutes — if you take frequent short breaks, try 2 minutes instead.

Note: watching videos or reading without touching the keyboard does trigger idle detection. However, Focus Meter suppresses idle when the frontmost app is playing audio (e.g. watching a video in Chrome), so video calls and media playback shouldn't be affected.

My Focus Score seems too low

The Focus Score considers three factors:

  1. Productive time ratio — how much of your tracked time was in apps/sites categorized as Productive
  2. Focus session length — longer uninterrupted stretches score higher
  3. Switch frequency — fewer app switches per hour scores higher

The most common reason for a low score is uncategorized apps. Apps without a category count as Neutral, which doesn't help your score. Click the category badge on each app to set it as Productive, Distraction, or Neutral.

You can also click the Focus Score badge in the popover to see a detailed breakdown.

Some apps show up that I don't recognize

macOS occasionally brings system utilities or background processes to the foreground briefly (for example, during updates or notifications). These show up as short entries in your tracking data.

You can categorize them as Neutral so they don't affect your Focus Score. They'll still appear in your app list but won't count for or against you.

The popover looks washed out or gray

This can happen if the popover isn't the active window. Click anywhere inside the popover to make it active — the colors should return to normal.

Focus Meter isn't in my menu bar

A few things to check:

  • Is it running? Look for Focus Meter in Activity Monitor, or relaunch it from Applications.
  • Is the icon hidden? On MacBooks with a notch, macOS may hide menu bar icons when there are too many. Try closing other menu bar apps, or click and drag to the left of the notch to find hidden icons.
  • Launch at Login — if you want Focus Meter to always be there, turn on Launch at Login in Settings > General.

I want to start fresh

Open Settings > Danger Zone > Delete All Data. This erases all tracked history, categories, and streaks permanently. There's no undo, so consider exporting your data first if you might want it later.

Something else not working?

Visit the support page to report an issue or request a feature.