pourquoi.app on Android: the complete setup guide

If you landed here, one of two things is probably true: you just installed pourquoi.app on Android and the “why now?” question has not shown up yet, or it worked for a while and then quietly stopped. Both are almost always a permissions issue, not a bug, and both are fixable in about two minutes.

Android is stricter than iOS about what apps are allowed to do in the background, on purpose, for battery and privacy reasons. pourquoi.app needs a small number of explicit permissions to work reliably. This guide walks through each one, what it actually does, and what breaks if you skip it.

Before you start

Everything below is done from pourquoi.app → Settings → Permissions. Each row (Overlay, Usage access, Battery) shows its current status and a button that jumps straight to the right Android settings screen, so you never have to hunt through your phone’s menus manually.

Phones from different manufacturers (Samsung, Xiaomi, Oppo, Google, and others) label these screens slightly differently. The steps below describe what each setting does, not just where to tap, so you can still find it if your phone’s wording differs.

Step 1: Allow display over other apps (overlay)

This is the one permission that makes any question appear at all. Without it, Android will not let pourquoi.app draw anything on top of another app, no matter what else is enabled.

1. Open pourquoi.app → Settings → Permissions → Overlay.
2. Tap “Open overlay settings”.
3. Find pourquoi.app in the list and enable “Allow display over other apps”.
4. Come back to pourquoi.app; the row should now say granted.

This single step is enough to get the question working on unlock. The remaining steps improve reliability and add optional triggers.

Step 2: Set battery use to Unrestricted

This is the step people skip, and the one most likely to cause “it worked for a few days, then stopped”. Android’s battery optimization can silently put background apps to sleep to save power, including pourquoi.app.

1. pourquoi.app → Settings → Permissions → Battery.
2. Tap “Open battery settings”.
3. Choose Unrestricted (not Optimized, not Restricted).

On Samsung, Xiaomi, Oppo, and a few other manufacturers, there is often a second, separate setting outside the standard Android battery menu, usually called “autostart”, “protected apps”, or “sleeping apps”. If the question stops appearing after a day or two even with battery set to Unrestricted, this second toggle is almost always why. It lives in your phone’s own Settings app, under Apps or Battery, and the exact name varies by manufacturer and Android version.

Step 3: Grant Usage access (optional, for app-open questions)

Unlock alone already gets you most of the value. This step adds a second trigger: a question specifically when you open an app you have chosen, not just on unlock.

1. pourquoi.app → Settings → Permissions → Usage access.
2. Tap “Open usage settings”.
3. Find pourquoi.app and enable it.

Usage access lets pourquoi.app detect which app you just opened, without reading anything inside it. It does nothing on its own until you also complete step 4.

Step 4: Pick which apps to intercept

Usage access without a monitored app list does nothing visible. This is the step that actually turns the trigger on for specific apps.

1. pourquoi.app → Settings → Apps to intercept.
2. Check the apps where you want the question to appear when opening them.

You can add or remove apps here any time; nothing else needs to be redone.

Verify it works

Lock your phone, then unlock it. You should see the question. Then open one of the apps you selected in step 4; you should see it again there too. If either one is missing, the troubleshooting section below covers the most common causes.

Troubleshooting

Nothing appears at all, on unlock or app open. Check Overlay first (step 1). This is the permission that gates everything else; if it is not granted, nothing else matters yet.

It works on unlock, but not when opening a specific app. Two things are needed together: Usage access granted (step 3), and that app checked under Apps to intercept (step 4). Missing either one means silence for that app specifically, while unlock keeps working normally.

It worked, then stopped after a day or two. Almost always battery optimization or a manufacturer-specific autostart toggle putting the app to sleep. Recheck step 2, including the second manufacturer setting if you have a Samsung, Xiaomi, or Oppo phone.

A “pourquoi.app is active” notification stays in the notification shade. That is expected and not a bug: Android requires a visible notification for any app that keeps a background service running, as a transparency measure. It confirms the service is alive, which is what keeps the question working.

Frequently asked questions

I installed the app but the “why now?” question never appears. What’s wrong?

Almost always a missing overlay permission. Open pourquoi.app → Settings → Permissions → Overlay, and check it says granted, not pending. Without it, Android blocks the app from showing anything on top of another app.

It works when I unlock my phone, but not when I open a specific app. Why?

Unlock and app-open are two separate triggers. Unlock only needs overlay. Opening a specific app also needs Usage access granted, and that app added to your monitored list in pourquoi.app → Settings → Apps to intercept.

It worked fine for a few days, then quietly stopped. What happened?

Almost always battery optimization putting pourquoi.app to sleep in the background. Check pourquoi.app → Settings → Permissions → Battery says Unrestricted. On Samsung, Xiaomi, Oppo, and a few others, also look for a separate “autostart” or “protected apps” toggle outside the standard Android battery menu.

I can’t find the “display over other apps” toggle for pourquoi.app anywhere. Where is it?

Some manufacturers hide or rename it. Try the search bar inside your phone’s Settings app and type “pourquoi.app” or “display over other apps” directly. Easiest path: tap “Open overlay settings” from inside pourquoi.app, which jumps straight to the right screen.

Why is there a permanent “pourquoi.app is active” notification?

That’s Android’s own requirement for any app that needs to keep running in the background, not something pourquoi.app added by choice. It confirms the service is alive; without it, the system is free to kill the app at any time.

Still stuck?

If you have gone through all four steps and it still is not working, contact us with your phone’s brand and Android version; setup quirks vary enough by manufacturer that a specific model often points straight to the fix. For the reasoning behind why pourquoi.app works this way rather than blocking apps outright, see how to reduce screen time on Android without a blocker.