It monitors your keyboard and mouse usage and using this information, it frequently alerts you to take microbreaks, rest breaks and restricts you to your daily computer usage.
Reviewed by Marcus Holmberg
Workrave
workrave.org 1 rating so far*
Rate Workrave: No account needed
Threat level
Covered
A covered pick. Anyone can use it as a private drop-in, with no setup or know-how. Enough for most people. Threat levels
Our take
Older and Windows-and-Linux-only, with an interface that looks its age, so set expectations before installing. What Workrave does that lighter reminder apps don’t is actually enforce breaks and track daily usage limits, which suits people who need RSI prevention rather than a gentle nudge. Skip it if you’re on a Mac or want something modern-looking; pick it if you have a genuine repetitive-strain problem and want a tool that will lock you out until you rest.
GitHub at a glance
rcaelers/workrave
Stars
1,780
+ 13 this week
Last commit
17d ago
healthy
License
GPL-3.0
Latest release
v1_10_54
9mo ago
Stars, last 31d
Website at a glance
workrave.org
D score 30
Weak website security headers
Graded by Mozilla HTTP Observatory, tested 14d ago
Inspect this site yourself
Measures the security configuration of the tool's own website, not the privacy of the product itself. A strong tool can still score low here.
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Workrave license, in plain English
GPL-3.0 Strong copyleft
Free to use and modify, but anything you distribute that is built on it must also be open under the same license.
Permits
- Commercial use
- Modification
- Distribution
- Patent use
- Private use
Requires
- Disclose source
- Same license
- State changes
- License and copyright notice
Does not provide
- Liability cover
- Warranty
Why it matters: Strong copyleft keeps every distributed version open. A vendor cannot fold this into a closed product and ship it without releasing their changes.
Plain-language summary of the project's license, not legal advice. Read the full text for the exact terms.
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