Covenant Eyes is an accountability app: it takes screenshots, flags explicit content, and emails a report to someone you trust. Sigma Vision is a desktop blocker for Windows and Mac: it blocks known adult sites, detects what appears on screen, and can lock the keyboard, mouse, and screen if warnings are ignored. The difference is the lockout on the computer. Family and Pro can still email a partner or parent. That is a notification, not a screenshot report.
Covenant Eyes vs Sigma Vision
| Covenant Eyes | Sigma Vision | |
|---|---|---|
| Job | Accountability screenshot reports | Stop the session on the device |
| Windows and Mac | Yes | Yes (this is the whole product) |
| iPhone and Android | Yes | No: desktop only. Say this up front. |
| Partner email | Yes, screenshot reports are the deterrent | Optional on Family and Pro. Not a screenshot report. |
| What happens at the moment of use | Usually after-the-fact report | Blocklist, on-screen AI, then optional full lockout |
| Privacy | Screenshots reviewed / reported | On-device detection and enforcement |
What Covenant Eyes actually does
Covenant Eyes is built around visibility. Periodic screenshots are scored. A chosen partner sees a report. For many people, knowing someone will find out is enough. That model is legitimate. It is also not blocking: access can still happen, and the consequence arrives later.
Where that falls short for compulsive use on a PC
If the pattern is already compulsive, a report after the session does not interrupt the loop. You can close the report, wait for the next one, or pick a time when the partner is not looking. Browser extensions and DNS filters have the same hole: a determined user routes around them. Covenant Eyes is not trying to be a lock. Treating it as one is why people search for a Covenant Eyes alternative on Windows and Mac.
What Sigma Vision does instead
Sigma Vision stops the session on the computer. Family and Pro can email a partner or parent. That is a notification, not a screenshot report. Three layers run on the computer:
- Blocklist: known adult sites never load.
- On-device AI: if something still appears on screen, image recognition can warn you. It looks at pixels, not only the URL.
- Lockout: after a limit you set, screen, keyboard, mouse, and voice input can lock so you cannot “just try another tab.”
Read the full mechanism in how Sigma Vision works.
Who should stay on Covenant Eyes
Keep Covenant Eyes if you want phones covered, you have a partner you trust, and screenshot reporting, not a hard stop, is the point. Sigma Vision does not replace that. We do not ship iOS or Android.
Who this alternative is for
Use Sigma Vision if the computer is the problem (homework laptop, office PC, shared family desktop), you do not want a partner reading screenshots, and you need something that still works when willpower is gone. Couples sometimes run both: Covenant Eyes on phones, Sigma Vision on the PCs. That is a valid split, not a failure of either tool.
Price and getting started
Sigma Vision plans start at 3,99 €/month (Starter, 1 device). Family is 6,99 € (up to 5 devices); Pro is 9,99 € (up to 10). Compare plans on pricing and check out on app.sigmaio.sk. Covenant Eyes is typically a monthly subscription per user; compare live prices on their site before you switch.
Frequently asked questions
Does Sigma Vision email a partner?
Family and Pro can. Detection and lockout stay on the device. We do not send screenshot reports of what was on screen.
Is Sigma Vision a drop-in for Covenant Eyes on iPhone?
No. It is Windows and Mac only.
Can I use both?
Yes. Different surfaces: phones vs desktop lockout.
See the 2026 Windows and Mac blocker comparison or the HardStop alternative if uninstall-resistance is the main requirement.
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