Compare Recall and Web Activity Tracker: Which Extension is the Best?

With Recall, you can capture, summarize, and organize articles, PDFs, and videos with AI, spaced repetition, browser extensions, and strong privacy controls.
Web Activity Time Tracker is an open-source extension that tracks time on websites, providing insights and customizable alerts to help manage online activities.
Key Features
  • AI Summarization: Instantly summarizes articles, PDFs, YouTube videos, and more.
  • Personal Knowledge Base: Saves and organizes your summaries for easy retrieval.
  • Spaced Repetition & Active Recall: Helps you actually remember what you save, not just store it.
  • Augmented Browsing: Highlights related content as you browse, surfacing connections in your knowledge.
  • Browser Extensions: One-click saving and summarizing directly from Chrome or Firefox.
  • Editable Notebook: Add notes, highlights, and customize your saved content.
  • Tagging & Organization: Automatic and manual tagging, with support for nested tags.
  • Cross-Platform Sync: Works on desktop and mobile, keeping your knowledge base up to date.
  • Activity Monitoring: Tracks time spent on different websites.
  • Detailed Reports: Provides insights into daily, weekly, and monthly activity.
  • Limit and Block Distracting Websites: Set daily time limits for specific websites
  • Custom Alerts: Set alerts for excessive time on specific sites.
  • Pomodoro Mode: Use the Pomodoro technique for focus work
  • Export: Export your Data to CSV.
Our Rating
8.9
9.2
Total users
73,229
37,399
Total ratings
95
814
Average rating
4.1 ⭐
4.7 ⭐
Entry Level PriceFreeFree
Chrome
Chrome Web Store logo
4.2
4.14
78 ratings
70.0K+Users
Chrome Web Store logo
4.8
4.66
789 ratings
30.0K+Users
Edge
-
Microsoft Edge Store logo
4.6
4.41
25 ratings
7.4K+Users
Firefox
Mozilla Firefox Add-ons Store logo
3.9
3.94
17 ratings
3.2K+Users
-
Safari
-
-
Features
9.2

Recall's range of functions is impressive for a relatively new tool. The AI summary works on a wide range of content, from articles to YouTube videos with a running time of several hours. We particularly liked the personal knowledge base and the way Recall automatically links related content. Spaced Repetition and Active Recall are outstanding features for students. However, some features are still in beta or will be available soon. The functions in the free version are severely limited in the number of users per day, and there is an upper limit for free use.

8.7

The tool offers the option of independently tracking your time on different websites. Compared to its competitors, it stands out because it has thought about which functions are important for effective tracking.

featured

This can be seen, for example, in the function that automatically stops tracking if there is no activity on the website within a certain period. This avoids the problem faced by competitors: if several tabs are open, they all continue to be tracked simultaneously.

settings

The reports are also very clearly presented, but there is still some room for improvement in the evaluation, for example by classifying the websites directly into categories such as social media or similar, so that they can be evaluated later.

Performance
9.0

Retrieval is fast and reliable in most cases. The summary is fast, even with very extreme examples such as a 9-hour news show that we had summarized in our test. Occasionally, we encountered errors or slowdowns, especially when asking further questions about the summarized content via the wizard. The team is actively working on performance improvements and there are regular updates. Overall, the tool feels stable and is suitable for everyday use.

9.7

The tool works reliably, there were no crashes or errors during testing. It tracks and reports data efficiently without you noticing any performance issues during use. A few users wrote in reviews that there were inaccuracies in the tracked time, which we could not reproduce in the test.

Design
9.0

The user interface has a clear and modern design. The focus is on user-friendliness. We found the browser extension intuitive and easy to navigate. The tagging and organization system can be used flexibly, and some users mentioned minor bugs in the user interface, but these were only minimally noticeable in the test.

9.0

The Design is clear and intuitive. Some design changes such as the dark mode can also be adjusted in the settings. In our opinion, the dashboard is the only area where there is still room for improvement in terms of presenting the evaluations.

Dashboard
Value for Money
8.1

The free tariff is suitable for infrequent users who do not need all the functions, as you will quickly reach the map limit. However, if you want to use the extension on a day-to-day basis, you cannot avoid the
extension. The paid plan is competitively priced, especially with the student discount. We appreciate that some features will remain free forever, and the team is open to feedback on pricing. Compared to alternatives, Recall offers good value for money for those who need advanced knowledge management features, but casual users may find the limitations too restrictive and stop using the extension.

9.3

As a free tool, it offers good value for money for users looking for basic tracking features at no cost. In comparison with competitors, many functions are already offered, but other competitors still have useful functions, particularly in the evaluation of data, and there is still room for improvement here.

Ease of Use
8.0

An account is required to use Recall. However, due to the integration with a Google and Apple login, this should be easy for everyone.
Saving and summarizing content is a one-click process that is well explained at the beginning. However, mastering all functions (e.g., nested tags, links, and spatial repetitions) requires some time and some searching, which can lead to many users not being able to exploit the full potential.

9.0

Setting up the Web Activity Time Tracker is simple and does not require a great deal of technical skill. The tool is designed to be very user-friendly, including the setup with short instructions. The only thing that is a little confusing is that not all evaluations can be displayed in the dashboard via the icon. Only the evaluation for the current day is displayed here.

Security & Privacy
9.9

Recall is characterized by its privacy-friendly approach. User data is not used by the extension for advertising, profiling, or AI training. All content is stored securely, and users retain full control over their data. Data can be exported for inspection or deleted at any time. The data protection guidelines are transparent, and support is always available to answer questions about data protection. We were unable to identify any uncertainties during our review.

9.7

Web Activity Time Tracker performs almost perfectly here, as it does not collect or transmit any data. This data is only stored on the local computer. The entire code can be read open source on GitHub.
However, it is also pointed out in the very short privacy policy that this can change; a somewhat more detailed policy would be desirable in this case, in which it is also specified which data is stored locally and where.

Conclusion

Recall impressed us with its useful intelligent use of AI and its focus on helping users in their everyday lives, especially when learning. The browser extension makes it easy to capture content, and the revision features with auto-generated questions are a real bonus for learners.

For occasional users, the free version may be enough, but if you want to use the extension, you can't avoid the paid version. The extension is not yet perfect and has small bugs, but the team reacts quickly to these and feedback, and many new functions are currently being introduced.

Overall, Recall is a good choice for anyone looking to do more than just bookmark cards and build a personal knowledge base. If you're tired of forgetting what you've read online and want to save time, it's a must!

Web Activity Time Tracker is a perfect choice for anyone who wants to know how much time is spent on which websites. The user-friendly design and comprehensive reports make it an easy tool to increase productivity. The customizability of various features also stood out. Overall, it offers good added value, especially when you consider that it's free.

Our Recommendation

In our comparison between Recall and Web Activity Tracker, Web Activity Tracker came out on top, scoring 9.2.

Recall is the most widely used, with over 73k users and 95+ reviews, but Web Activity Tracker outperformed it in our review. User reviews reflect our findings.

Notably, Web Activity Tracker has the highest user rating in the Chrome Web Store at 4.71, which supports its strong performance in our review.

In the end, the differences between these extensions are minimal, so your choice may come down to personal preference or specific features.


  • Looking for the richest feature set? Recall stands out with a rating of 9.2. On the other hand, Web Activity Tracker lags behind in this area with a rating of 8.7.
  • Need top performance? Web Activity Tracker stands out with a rating of 9.7. On the other hand, Recall lags behind in this area with a rating of 9.
  • Both look and feel great: Recall and Web Activity Tracker. In the Design category, Recall has scored an excellent 9. The design is both attractive and highly functional, making it stand out.
  • Want to get the most for your money? Web Activity Tracker stands out with a rating of 9.3. On the other hand, Recall lags behind in this area with a rating of 8.1.
  • If you hate complicated tools, Web Activity Tracker stands out with a rating of 9. On the other hand, Recall lags behind in this area with a rating of 8.
  • With privacy and security becoming ever more important, Recall stands out with a rating of 9.9. On the other hand, Web Activity Tracker lags behind in this area with a rating of 9.7.

If you want a quick recommendation, Web Activity Tracker is our top pick. But as always, the best choice depends on what matters most to you.