Google Clock's alarm failed me so I found 5 better apps to wake me up

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MobileAndroid apps<br>Google Clock's alarm failed me so I found 5 better apps to wake me up<br>I'll never oversleep again... I hope.

By Andy Walker

May 2, 2026 — 6:00 AM ET

Hadlee Simons / Android Authority

Follow us on Google DiscoverAdd us as preferred source<br>There’s a reason why Google Clock isn’t called Google Alarm. While it offers numerous time-keeping and convenience features, from a timer and stopwatch to a world clock and integration with music services, it makes oversleeping a little too easy for my liking. And boy, do I like sleeping!

I shouldn’t blame an app for my shortcomings, but I will argue that an app should help me overcome them. Google Clock sounding its alarm just isn’t enough for me — I need an alarm clock app that’ll grab me by the shoulders and shake me awake. Or, you know, challenge me with an alarm task.

Naturally, I’ve been searching for a viable Google Clock alternative since Android’s default alarm clock app just isn’t doing the job for me. Here are the options I’ve stumbled across.

Do you use Google Clock as your alarm app?<br>585 votes<br>Yes, Google Clock is my go-to alarm clock app.<br>76%

No, I use another alarm clock app (elaborate in the comments).<br>17%

I use an actual alarm clock.<br>4%

I don't use alarms.<br>3%

Chrono

Andy Walker / Android Authority

I always like putting open-source apps first, and Chrono is perhaps the best example of a well-built alarm clock app that leverages Google’s Material design while offering much more than the default app.

Right off the bat, Chrono gave me multiple ways to keep it alive, ensuring that it won’t be put to sleep by my phone. I appreciate this level of control.

Creating new alarms is simple, with a customization option for deeper tweaking. With this option, I can adjust the schedule, sound and vibration options, snooze settings, and even add a tag to my alarms. The latter really helps when editing alarms for public holidays versus general weekdays.

However, the most important is the Tasks section. Chrono lets me choose between four task types that must be completed before the alarm can be dismissed. This includes Match Problems, Retype Text, Sequence, and Memory. All of these can be customized in difficulty and stacked on top of one another if I’m in the mood for a real challenge. I will say that using one is probably more than enough. While testing the Retype Text option, I fumbled the first response, and the app then prompted me to enter a new sequence. I spent about a minute trying to complete this task. It was annoying, but I was awake in the end, and that really is the goal, right?

Chrono lacks a few options I’d like to see in an alarm app, namely the ability to scan an NFC tag or a QR code as tasks. This would force me to get up instead of solving the problem and simply returning to slumber. However, it’s a great alarm clock option that provides far more features than Google Clock while looking a lot like it.

Sleep As Android

Andy Walker / Android Authority

Back when Wear OS was known as Android Wear, and smartwatches didn’t offer built-in sleep monitoring, I used Sleep as Android to track my slumber. It was a reliable app back then, but how has it changed since?

It’s safe to say that Sleep As Android is still unlike any other Android alarm clock app on this list. It’s more of a sleep health center that aims to address bad sleep hygiene as much as possible, while also helping you wake up in the morning. It offers plenty of sleep insights, including an actual score and “community” scores based on the population of others using the app in specific countries. This doesn’t help me wake up in the morning, though. So does Sleep as Android fare here?

Well! It packs an incredible number of features specifically tasked with shoveling me out of bed, including a truly overwhelming number of tasks (called CAPTCHAs in the app) from simple math equations to selfie verification. There are other more aloof options, like Zombie Walk, Laugh Out Loud, and counting Sleeping Sheep on the screen. You can even unlock more CAPTCHAs by downloading a standalone add-on, making it impossible to switch off your phone with various anti-cheating measures. I wouldn’t dare live with this option toggled on, though.

One of Sleep As Android’s core features is a Smart Wake Up option that wakes me up within a 30-minute optimal window around an alarm I’ve set. It’s a feature that the likes of Fitbit have since adopted, and it works a treat — when I don’t need to wake up at an exact time, that is.

While Sleep As Android has one of the most annoying and longest onboarding experiences I’ve ever sat through, a UI that I don’t find nearly as appealing as Chrono’s, and a premium unlock demand to use the breadth of its features indefinitely, it certainly will wake you from your deepest sleeps.

NFC Alarm Clock

Andy Walker...