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Technology · head to head

RescueTime vs Sigma Computing

RescueTime logo

RescueTime

Technology

Take back control of your time

From
$12/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Sigma Computing logo

Sigma Computing

Spreadsheets

Spreadsheet-style analytics that queries a cloud data warehouse directly with no extract layer

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: RescueTime no free tier since 2023, making it costly for individual experimentation; Sigma Computing every user interaction is a live warehouse query, so compute costs rise with adoption and land on the warehouse invoice rather than the BI line item, which routinely surprises the team that approved the purchase.
  • They diverge on capability: RescueTime covers Automatic time tracking, Sigma Computing covers Spreadsheet interface over SQL.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which RescueTime and Sigma Computing actually diverge.

Attributes where RescueTime and Sigma Computing differ
AttributeRescueTimeSigma Computing
Starting price$12/monthOn request
Pricing modelUnknownquote
PlatformsWindows, macOS, Android, WebWeb
CategoryTechnologySpreadsheets
Founded2006Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in RescueTime

  • Automatic time tracking
  • Productivity scoring
  • Detailed categorization
  • FocusTime blocking
  • Goal setting
  • Alerts & notifications
  • Offline time entry
  • API access

Only in Sigma Computing

  • Spreadsheet interface over SQL
  • No extract layer
  • Input tables and write-back
  • Workbooks
  • Embedded analytics
  • Version control and dbt awareness

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

RescueTime

  • Personal productivity trackingnot Sigma Computing
  • Time auditnot Sigma Computing
  • Focus improvementnot Sigma Computing
  • Work-life balancenot Sigma Computing
  • Team productivity analysisnot Sigma Computing

Sigma Computing

  • A finance or operations team that lives in spreadsheets and needs warehouse-scale data without exporting CSVsnot RescueTime
  • An organisation that has consolidated on Snowflake or Databricks and wants one governed access layer rather than several desktop toolsnot RescueTime
  • Planning and scenario work where users need to type assumptions back into governed tables rather than into a local filenot RescueTime
  • Embedding customer-facing analytics into a product where each tenant must only see their own rowsnot RescueTime

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

RescueTime

  • No free tier since 2023, making it costly for individual experimentation
  • Limited iOS support compared to competitors that offer full mobile app access
  • Requires integration via categories and rules rather than direct app detection on some platforms

Sigma Computing

  • Every user interaction is a live warehouse query, so compute costs rise with adoption and land on the warehouse invoice rather than the BI line item, which routinely surprises the team that approved the purchase.
  • It cannot work without a supported cloud data warehouse, so an organisation running analytics on an on-premises database or a plain application database has nothing to connect to.
  • Pricing is not published and seats are differentiated by capability, so budgeting requires a sales cycle and a headcount forecast before you can compare it with a tool you could simply buy.
  • Performance is only as good as the warehouse behind it, which means slow or badly modelled tables surface as a slow interface and the fix is a data engineering project, not a Sigma setting.
  • Statistical and scientific visualisation is limited compared with dedicated tools, so anything beyond standard business charting has to be done elsewhere and brought back in.

Pricing, plan by plan

RescueTime

$12/month
  • Standard$12/month
    • Automatic time tracking
    • Focus Time
    • Idle time monitoring
  • Team$6/month
    • All Standard features
    • Team analytics
    • Cross-device tracking

Sigma Computing

On request
  • Sigma Computing$undefined/year
    • Quoted per organisation
    • Seat types are differentiated by whether a user views, explores or authors
    • Warehouse compute is billed separately by your cloud data warehouse vendor

Which should you pick?

Choose RescueTime if

  • You need automatic time tracking.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, Android, Web.
  • You also want productivity scoring.
RescueTime review

Choose Sigma Computing if

  • You need spreadsheet interface over sql.
  • You also want no extract layer.
Sigma Computing review

Questions people ask

Is RescueTime or Sigma Computing better?
Neither clearly leads. RescueTime starts at $12/month and Sigma Computing at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, RescueTime or Sigma Computing?
RescueTime starts at $12/month and Sigma Computing at On request.
Does RescueTime or Sigma Computing run on more platforms?
RescueTime runs on Windows, macOS, Android, Web. Sigma Computing runs on Web.
What is RescueTime best used for?
RescueTime is most often used for personal productivity tracking, time audit, focus improvement, work-life balance. Of those, personal productivity tracking and time audit are not what Sigma Computing is typically brought in for.
What can RescueTime do that Sigma Computing cannot?
RescueTime covers Automatic time tracking, Productivity scoring, Detailed categorization, FocusTime blocking. Sigma Computing covers Spreadsheet interface over SQL, No extract layer, Input tables and write-back, Workbooks.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

RescueTime: Does RescueTime still have a free tier?

No. RescueTime discontinued its free tier in 2023. The service now requires a paid subscription starting at $12 per month or $78 per year.

Source
Sigma Computing: Does Sigma store a copy of my data?

No. Queries are executed on your warehouse and results are returned for display, which is why there is no extract refresh to manage.

RescueTime: What platforms does RescueTime support?

RescueTime supports Windows, macOS, Android, and web. iOS support is limited to passive features like calendar sync and mobile summary emails.

Source
Sigma Computing: What does it actually cost?

The vendor does not publish prices. Expect an annual contract priced by seat type, plus a warehouse compute increase you should model separately.

RescueTime: What are the key productivity features in RescueTime?

RescueTime offers automatic time tracking, Focus Time for blocking distractions, idle time monitoring, goal-setting with reminders, and in 2026 adds AI-Based Focus Sessions with real-time alerts to detect poor focus patterns.

Source
Sigma Computing: Can business users break the warehouse?

They can run expensive queries. Warehouse sizing, query limits and materialised tables are the controls, and they need configuring before a wide rollout.

RescueTime: Is there a team plan for RescueTime?

Yes. The team plan costs $6 per user per month when billed annually, with a minimum of 3 users required.

Source
Sigma Computing: Is it a replacement for a modelling layer like dbt?

No. Sigma works best on top of modelled tables and is usually deployed alongside dbt rather than instead of it.

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