AFK Assistant vs Move Mouse

Disclosure: AFK Assistant is our product. Details about the other tool come from its official website or store listing, checked on October 24, 2026. Prices and features change, so confirm them with the vendor before you buy.

At a glance

What Move Mouse does

Move Mouse is an open-source Windows app (GPL-3.0) that simulates user activity. It started as a way to stop Windows from locking the session or going to sleep, and its developer says it will always be free, with optional donations.

You build its behavior from actions: move the cursor, click a mouse button, scroll the mouse wheel, position the cursor, activate an application, run a command, run a PowerShell script, or sleep. Actions run on start, on an interval or on stop, and the interval can be fixed or random. Simple schedules start and stop it at set times on chosen days, advanced schedules use cron expressions, and blackouts define windows when it stays inactive. It can launch when you log in to Windows and can stop or pause automatically when it detects mouse or keyboard activity from you.

You can install it from the Microsoft Store on Windows 10 or 11, or download a ZIP from GitHub that contains a single portable executable. The project's own wiki points out that the Store is often unavailable on work machines, which is where the portable version helps. Version 4.21.0 was the latest GitHub release when we checked.

What AFK Assistant does

AFK Assistant takes a different approach. Instead of building actions, you switch on activity types and the app picks random values inside a range for each one:

• Mouse: fast and slow movements, left and right clicks, and scheduled switches between fast and slow movement.
• Keyboard: typing from random characters or from a .txt file, at varying speeds, with slower stretches mixed in.
• Scrolling: vertical and horizontal, with varied distances and pauses (Pro and Ultimate).
• Switching: between open applications and between tabs in the browser you choose (Pro and Ultimate).
• When it runs: idle detection and scheduled runs (Ultimate).

It runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, with Ultimate on Windows and macOS. The documentation explains each setting.

Key differences

Price and licensing

Move Mouse costs nothing and its source code is public. AFK Assistant is a monthly subscription, and each license key is issued for one plan on one operating system.

Platforms

Move Mouse's documentation covers Windows 10 and 11. AFK Assistant has Windows, macOS and Linux versions.

Typing

AFK Assistant simulates typing on every plan. Move Mouse's current action list covers mouse, application, command and script actions, but not keystrokes.

Flexibility versus ready-made patterns

Move Mouse is more flexible for power users: commands and PowerShell scripts can do things AFK Assistant does not attempt. AFK Assistant gives you ready-made activity types with randomized ranges and tuned defaults, so there is less to build yourself.

Choose Move Mouse if...

• You only use Windows 10 or 11.
• You want something free and open source.
• You like configuring tools and want to run commands or PowerShell scripts.
• You want schedules and blackout windows without paying.
• Your main goal is stopping the lock screen and sleep, with a basic level of input.

Choose AFK Assistant if...

• You need simulated typing as well as mouse activity.
• You want scrolling, app switching and browser tab switching with randomized timing, without building actions yourself.
• You use macOS or Linux, or move between systems.
• You want idle-triggered starts and scheduled runs in one package (Ultimate).
• You want email support to help you set it up alongside your own apps.