How to choose a to-do list app: lists, planning and sync

Choose a to-do app by three questions: how much planning you need, which devices you use, and whether you accept a vendor's cloud holding your tasks. Plain lists cover most daily work, and a planning system matters only if you review your tasks often. The best to-do list apps ranking puts clear daily lists and reminders first, then platform reach, then planning depth and price.

Start with how tasks are organized

Every to-do app captures a task quickly. The structure around the task is where apps differ. Todoist and TickTick group tasks into projects or lists. TickTick also shows them in calendar views, and Todoist offers a calendar layout on its paid plans. Microsoft To Do uses My Day, a daily view of the tasks you plan to finish today. Things sorts tasks into Today, Anytime, Upcoming and Someday lists. OmniFocus groups actions into perspectives and adds a built-in weekly review, which suits people who want a planning routine rather than one long list.

Team boards are a separate group. Vikunja offers Kanban boards, Gantt charts and a table view, and Super Productivity adds time tracking and timeboxing for focused work. If your work is a set of cards that move between columns, check those views first. Project management software covers team boards in more depth.

Check recurring tasks and reminders

Recurring tasks repeat on a schedule, such as a weekly report or a monthly bill. Things lists repeating to-dos, and Google Tasks supports recurring tasks along with subtasks. Microsoft To Do offers recurring due dates and reminders, and TickTick lists repeat reminders among its features.

Recurring tasks differ in one detail that matters. Some apps repeat on a fixed date, and others repeat after you complete the task. The ranking does not say which pattern each app uses. Check the app's documentation for the exact behavior you need before you move a routine into it.

Compare platforms and sync

Platforms narrow the field faster than features do. Things and OmniFocus run only on macOS, iPhone and iPad, and Things syncs across those devices through Things Cloud. Todoist, TickTick and Super Productivity cover Windows, Android and the web. Microsoft To Do runs on Windows, iOS, iPadOS and Android, and Google Tasks runs on the web, Android and iOS. Google Tasks requires a Google Account.

Sync is the second question. Most apps in the ranking sync through the vendor's cloud. Super Productivity keeps its data on the device and works offline without an account, according to its site. Vikunja runs on a server you control. Its self-hosted version is free and open source, but it needs your own server, and its hosted Vikunja Cloud plans are paid.

Price, free limits and open source

Free plans cover personal use in several apps. Todoist has a free Beginner plan for personal lists, and its advanced features need the per-user Pro subscription. TickTick has a free plan, and its Premium upgrade adds features. Microsoft To Do is free to use, with file attachments up to 25 MB. Google Tasks is free with a Google Account.

Things is paid and sold separately for each Apple platform. OmniFocus is a one-time purchase or a subscription, and its site lists a free 14-day trial rather than a free plan. Open source is a separate choice. Super Productivity is free and MIT-licensed, and Vikunja is licensed under AGPLv3.

Check export and backups before you commit

Before you move years of tasks into an app, find out how to get them out. Todoist lets you import or export a project as a CSV file, according to its help center. Its paid plans also create automatic backups of your active projects, which you can restore. Things' support pages describe backing up through Things Cloud, iCloud or Time Machine. Super Productivity says on its site that you can export your data at any time.

Test an export with one small project first. Compare the exported file with the original before you rely on it or delete anything from the old app.

Compare the apps at a glance

App	Platforms	Free to use	Apple only	Open source	Notes
Todoist	Linux, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android, web	Free Beginner plan	No	No	Projects; calendar on paid plans
TickTick	iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Linux, web	Free plan	No	No	Lists, calendar, habits, Pomodoro
Things	macOS, iOS, iPadOS	No, paid per platform	Yes	No	Today, Anytime, Someday; Things Cloud
OmniFocus	macOS, iOS, iPadOS	No, 14-day trial	Yes	No	Perspectives and weekly reviews
Super Productivity	Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, web	Yes; no account needed	No	Yes, MIT	Time tracking; works offline
Microsoft To Do	Windows, iOS, iPadOS, Android	Yes; attachments up to 25 MB	No	No	My Day; shared lists
Vikunja	Web, self-hosted server	Free to self-host	No	Yes, AGPLv3	Kanban, Gantt and table views
Google Tasks	Web, Android, iOS	Yes, with a Google Account	No	No	Gmail and Google Calendar

Top picks from the ranking

The best to-do list apps ranking ranks the apps covered here in this order, with the editorial score in brackets:

• Todoist (93.0): the broadest platform coverage in the ranking, with a free Beginner plan.
• TickTick (90.0): lists, a calendar, a habit tracker and a Pomodoro timer in one app.
• Things (89.0): a focused daily planner for Apple devices, sold for each platform.
• OmniFocus (88.0): detailed planning with perspectives and weekly reviews, on Apple devices only.
• Super Productivity (86.5): a free, open-source task manager with time tracking and developer integrations.
• Microsoft To Do (84.5): free lists with My Day and shared lists, but fewer planning tools.

Vikunja (82.0) and Google Tasks (79.0) follow in the ranking.

What to do next

Decide how much planning you need, then shortlist two apps that run on every device you use. Platform coverage removes most options quickly. Check recurring tasks, sharing and export in each vendor's own documentation before you commit. For tasks that belong to a team, read the project management guide. For notes that are not tasks, read how to choose a note-taking app. If you keep exported files as a safety copy, how to choose a backup strategy covers where to store them.