Apps to distract you from the endless cycle of doomscrolling

You open your phone to check the time or a quick message. The next thing you know, an hour has passed and you’ve scrolled through endless celebrity drama, cat videos, awful news stories, influencer rants, and whatever else the algorithm decided to throw at you. Even though you probably don’t want to keep wasting your time and energy on this mind-numbing content, you do it again the next day. Doomscrolling, the habit of spending excessive amounts of time consuming content on social media, has become incredibly widespread. A survey from last year found that 64% of Americans say they doomscroll. Researchers have warned that doomscrolling can negatively affect several aspects of your well-being, including your mental health and attention span. Spending long periods scrolling can lead to brain fatigue, difficulty focusing, and disrupted sleep. And if a lot of the content you’re consuming is negative or stressful, it can leave you feeling disheartened, anxious, and emotionally drained. It’s hard to break the cycle of doomscrolling, but there are plenty of apps that provide content that’s engaging and productive. Of course, you could always read a book or go for a walk (we have a guide on how to stop doomscrolling), but this list is for when you have a few spare minutes and want something to do on your phone that isn’t endless scrolling. Dudel Draw Image Credits:Dudel Draw If you want to take a break from doomscrolling and try something creative, Dudel Draw might be a good app for you. Each day, the app gives you a random shape that you turn into a drawing. These daily shapes vary from basic geometrical forms to more complex and abstract designs. Techcrunch event Meet your next investor or portfolio startup at Disrupt Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to save up to $410. Meet your next investor or portfolio startup at Disrupt Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to save up to $410. San Francisco, CA | October 13-15, 2026 REGISTER NOW You can also get your friends in on the creativity with some fun competition by comparing your different creations, which could serve a nice break from sending each other endless TikToks or Instagram Reels. Dudel Draw is available for free on iOS. Radio Garden Image Credits:Radio Garden If you still want to feel connected to the world without scrolling through social media, you can check out Radio Garden. The app lets you listen to over 25,000 live radio stations from across the globe. Once you open the app, you’ll see green dots marking cities and towns. Tap any dot to listen to radio stations broadcasting from that location. You can add favorites or search for radio stations, countries, and places. Radio Garden is free, but it also offers an ad-free premium plan for $2.99 per month. The app is available on both iOS and Android. Elevate Image Credits:Elevate Elevate is an app designed to help improve focus, memory, reading, math skills, and other cognitive abilities. It includes over 40 games to train different abilities you use in everyday life,…

This excerpt is published under fair use for community discussion. Read the full article at TechCrunch.