Short answer: if what you want from Brain.fm is a calm, lyric-free soundtrack for timed focus sessions, Nova Focus does that for free, with no account. It is a Pomodoro-style timer by Nova Sounds, a Stockholm focus-music label, with rain, café and noise built in and the label’s playlists one click away. It is not a copy of Brain.fm, and this page says plainly where Brain.fm is the better pick.
Prices and features checked on the official pages on 2026-09-30.
Why people look for a Brain.fm alternative
Three reasons come up again and again:
- Price. Brain.fm costs $14.99 a month or $99.99 a year, and there is no free tier after the trial. Its web pricing button reads “Then $99.99 billed annually”, so the yearly plan is the default.
- They mostly need structure and background sound. If you use focus music the way you use any playlist (press play, work, stop), a timer plus steady sound covers that.
- They want a tool that does not rest on neuroscience claims. Some people simply prefer music described in musical terms.
Nova Focus vs Brain.fm at a glance
| Nova Focus | Brain.fm | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, no ads | $14.99/month or $99.99/year (Brain.fm pricing); 20% student discount on request (Brain.fm FAQ) |
| Free option | Everything is free | Trial: 14 days (App Store), 30 days on a web landing page |
| Account | Not needed | Needed before audio plays |
| What you hear | Rain, café and brown noise under every timer (pink and white on the Music page); Nova Sounds playlists on Spotify | Brain.fm’s own music with adjustable “neural effect” levels |
| Timer | Pomodoro 25/5, 50/10, 52/17, Flowtime, Animedoro, countdowns from 1 minute to 3 hours, any length up to 24 hours | Count-up, countdown and interval timers |
| Classroom and fullscreen timer display | Yes, on single timers | Not a listed feature; team accounts “for companies, classrooms, and more” on request |
| Sleep, relax, meditate | No | Yes |
| Apps | Web only | Web, iOS, Android, desktop |
| Offline | No | Downloads in the app |
| Research | Nova makes no neuroscience claims | Publishes peer-reviewed research on its modulation (Woods et al. 2024) |
What Brain.fm does well
Brain.fm is a mature product. It has apps for phone and desktop, offline downloads, modes for focus, relaxation, sleep and meditation, and a stream you never have to curate. Its timers already include count-up, countdown and interval modes.
It also publishes research. The 2024 Communications Biology paper tested music with added amplitude modulation across four experiments, compared it with the same music without modulation, and grouped participants by self-reported attention difficulties. The paper discloses that authors work or worked for Brain.fm and that the music came from Brain.fm. If that research matters to you, stay with Brain.fm.
What Nova Focus does differently
- The timer comes first. Open the page and a 25/5 Pomodoro is ready. Pick 50/10 for longer work, a 90-minute block for deep work, or Flowtime if fixed intervals annoy you. Every method page explains its origin and what the evidence does and does not say.
- Music described as music. Nova Sounds releases ambient, classical, lo-fi, jazz, electronic and noise playlists on Spotify. We say which playlists do not suit focus (Covers has vocals, Lullabies are made for sleep). Logged in to Spotify you hear full tracks; logged out, the player plays 30-second previews.
- Sound that never runs out. Rain, café and brown noise are generated in your browser, each with its own volume, for as long as the timer runs.
- Free with no conditions. No account, no card, no trial clock, no ads.
- Built for rooms, too. Classroom mode and fullscreen put big digits on a projector.
What Nova Focus does not have: native apps, offline listening, sleep or meditation modes, personalised audio or a stream that picks for you. A paid Nova Focus Plus, with the Nova Sounds catalogue playing inside the timer, is planned but not available, and no price has been announced.
Other free or cheaper options
| Option | Price (checked 2026-09-30) | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| myNoise | Free and ad-free with a curated set of generators; a donation unlocks all of them | Fine-grained noise and nature sound |
| focus.music | $4.99/month or $39.99/year, 7 days free | A paid focus music service that says its music is made by working musicians, at $4.99 vs Brain.fm’s $14.99 a month (both pricing pages) |
| Endel | A Free Edition in the app (App Store); Premium through the app stores | Adaptive soundscapes on phone, watch and speaker |
| A focus playlist you already like | Free on your streaming service | Zero setup; pair it with any timer |
For every price side by side, see focus app prices compared.
Who should pick which
Stay with Brain.fm if you use its sleep, relax or meditation modes, want a stream you never have to choose, listen offline on your phone, or value its published research and find the price worth it.
Pick Nova Focus if you mainly want structured focus sessions with calm sound in a browser tab, without an account or a subscription.
Look at myNoise or focus.music if you want more sound control than Nova Focus gives (myNoise) or a paid human-made music service at a lower price than Brain.fm (focus.music).
Try it in two minutes
- Open the 50/10 timer: 50 minutes of work, a 10-minute break, a longer break after four rounds.
- Pick a sound: brown noise or rain for hard problems, or open the Nova Ambient playlist for writing or planning.
- Press Start (or Space) and close the other tabs.
For a feature-by-feature look, read Nova Focus vs Brain.fm. Choosing between the two paid apps? Read Brain.fm vs Endel.