Sworn

Switching from Canopy?

Accountability that
skips the VPN.

Canopy runs an always-on VPN and a monitoring suite. As its own reviews report, that can slow your connection, conflict with a work VPN, and get blocked at school. Sworn changes one setting on your phone instead. No VPN, no slowdown, and it works when you're the one making the promise, not just when a parent is watching a kid.

Get Sworn Compare them

Free malware and ad/tracker blocking, always. Other categories and partner alerts: 7-day free trial, then $7/month.

The real difference

A monitoring suite, or accountability.

  1. 01

    Canopy monitors.

    It's a full parental suite: an AI VPN that scans images, plus photo scanning for sexting, GPS location tracking, and a parent dashboard. Powerful if you want all that — but reviews report the always-on VPN slowing connections, conflicting with other VPNs, and being blocked on work and school networks.

  2. 02

    Sworn blocks.

    Sworn does one thing. The sites you've sworn off don't load, on every app on your phone, with no VPN. No photo scanning, no location tracking, no dashboard. And it works for yourself with a partner you choose. It isn't only for a parent watching a child.

If you need a full child-monitoring suite with image AI, location and sexting alerts, Canopy does more than Sworn. If you just want the sites blocked, without a VPN slowing everything down or anyone scanning your photos, that’s what Sworn is for.

Side by side

Sworn vs Canopy.

Sworn Canopy
Core approach Blocks the site so it never loads, on any app Filters via an always-on VPN (AI image scanning)
Uses a VPN? No Yes. It can break work/school WiFi
Speed & battery Fast — barely touches the battery Reviews report it slows the phone & breaks other apps
If you turn it off A confirmed partner is emailed if it’s turned off or goes quiet Reviews report it's easy to work around
Surveillance None — a partner just sees a count and the category Scans photos, tracks GPS, parent dashboard
Built for Yourself or your kid, with a partner of your choice A parent monitoring a child
Setup One quick setting, about 3 minutes App + VPN profile per device
Scope Blocks the categories you pick Full parental suite (filter + location + sexting)
Price $7/mo · $84/yr $8.33–$9.99/mo (billed annually)
Platforms iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromebook iOS, Android (Android stronger)

A VPN sounds like a privacy feature. Here it’s only how these apps filter, and it’s why the same complaints keep appearing in VPN-based apps’ reviews: slow loading, dropped connections, and battery drain. Sworn doesn’t use one, so it stays fast and out of your way.

Reflects the iPhone experience. Comparison compiled June 2026 from Canopy’s published pricing and documentation; their plans and features can change, so check their site for the latest. Canopy is a broader parental-monitoring suite and does more than Sworn in that area. We’re not affiliated with Canopy; all names belong to their owners.

In their own words

You’re not imagining it.

  • “Blocks content most of the time, kind of easy to find work arounds if you really try. Slows down phone a bunch.”
    App Store review (2026) of Canopy
  • “VPN can’t be turned off which made all of my critical apps stop working. It was incredibly easy to delete/disable the app’s protections.”
    App Store review (2026) of Canopy

Sworn uses no VPN, so it won’t fight your other apps. And if you turn the filter off, your partner is the first to know. Quoted from recent App Store reviews, trimmed only for length (…); like any app, Canopy has its fans too.

Switching over

Move in about three minutes.

  1. Install Sworn and pick what to block. Malware blocking is on by default; ad/tracker blocking is free too, one toggle away. Add pornography, gambling, social media, shopping, gaming, or VPN/proxy blocking with a 7-day free trial, then $7/month.
  2. Turn on the filter. Sworn walks you through one Settings screen to turn it on. No VPN to install, so your connection stays fast and your work/school networks keep working.
  3. (Optional) Add up to three partners. Setting it up for a kid? List yourself or a co-parent. They only ever see a count of blocked attempts and the category, never a URL and never photos or location.
  4. Cancel Canopy. Once Sworn is running, remove Canopy’s VPN profile and cancel its subscription. The sites stay blocked without the VPN.

Keep comparing

See how Sworn stacks up.

Sworn vs Covenant Eyes Sworn vs Accountable2You All comparisons

Keep the promise
you made to yourself.

Free to start. Three minutes to set up.

Download on the App Store Get it on Google Play

On a computer too? Set up the phone first, then add Windows, Mac, Linux or Chromebook to the same account.