A little help from Marlo

Support

Setup help for iPhone · Usually answered within two working days

Blocked apps don't open PageBreak

iOS will not let a block screen launch another app, so PageBreak relies on a one-time automation in Apple's Shortcuts app. Without it, your apps are shielded but nothing hands you a reading session.

In PageBreak, go to Settings → Shortcuts automation and follow the walkthrough. It shows one step at a time, and the first successful interception confirms the handoff. The step people miss is choosing Run Immediately (on iOS 16, turning Ask Before Running off) — without that, the automation waits for a tap that never comes.

PageBreak still opens after I turn Focus off

An automation built without the If step keeps running whatever PageBreak's Focus switch says — iOS fixes whether an action opens an app when the app is built, so nothing inside PageBreak can call it off after the fact. The automation has to ask first.

Open the automation in Shortcuts and make it read:

1. Is PageBreak focus on
2. If — condition is true
3. inside the If: Open a PageBreak reading pause

With that in place, turning Focus off in PageBreak leaves your blocked apps opening normally. The walkthrough in Settings → Shortcuts automation builds exactly this.

Nothing is being intercepted at all

Open Settings in PageBreak. The top of the screen tells you how many setup steps are outstanding. All three need a green tick: Screen Time access, blocked apps, and the Shortcuts automation.

I want to change which apps are intercepted

Settings → Blocked apps. Your selection is stored on your device. Apple gives PageBreak protected tokens rather than readable app names, so we do not see which apps you picked.

My imported book won't open

PageBreak reads EPUB, PDF and Word (.docx) files. Files protected with DRM may not open in a third-party app, including this one. PDFs that are scans of pages are images rather than text, so a text-based file will usually work better.

Managing or cancelling a subscription

Subscriptions are handled by Apple, not by us. On your iPhone open Settings → [your name] → Subscriptions. Refunds are also requested from Apple, via reportaproblem.apple.com.

Deleting the app and your data

PageBreak does not require an account. Your reading data stays on your device; deleting the app removes its on-device data. See the privacy policy for details.

Still stuck

Email support@pagebreakapp.app. Telling us your iOS version, the setup step you reached and what you expected to happen gets you a useful answer faster. Please leave out your books and other private content.