Best 10 To-Do List Apps

Why Are To-Do Lists Important?

The primary function of a to-do list is to remind us of tasks we need to complete in the near future. They often cover only the day or week ahead, although some people use to-do lists for more extended periods as well (e.g., to remember regular doctor appointments, car check-ups, events, etc.). So, they are important because they help us remember important tasks, meetings, appointments, deadlines, and activities.

However, on a larger scale, to-do lists make more than that. They help us be more productive and efficient because they provide a visual cue for tasks that must be completed on time. They help us avoid procrastination and set better boundaries against distractions. This improves our focus, enhancing creativity and productivity. Checking off tasks, whether on paper or in an app, brings a rush of satisfaction, boosting morale. You’ve just registered a success, even if it’s just making the bed in the morning.

In a work environment, effective to-do lists and task management software help you prioritize tasks, tackle the most important ones first (remember the Eat the Frog principle from the book with the same title), meet deadlines, manage your time more efficiently, and plan projects and tasks more effectively. But what makes a good to-do app in the first place?

What Makes a Good To-Do List App?

The basic feature of a to-do list app is to record your tasks. All to-do list apps do that. However, this is not enough. The app must be easy to use, meaning you should be able to add, sort, remove, and organize tasks fast and with ease. Visual cues are the most effective, so interface colors and design are crucial for effective communication.

Then, you will need tools to browse, search, and filter your tasks. Lists should be intuitive, customizable, and easily navigable. For example, they may feature categories, tags, color codes, filters, priorities, mark-ups, and many other similar tools.

Just as important as knowing what you must do is knowing when you have to do a particular task. A good to-do list app includes a calendar with rigorous time and date tools. It also provides reminders in various ways, including alarms, screen notifications, and emails. To properly do that, the best task management software synchronizes with many other tools so it can find you. For example, if you work on your computer and the phone is far away, notifications should come up on the screen or via email.

Finally, many people require more than basic to-do list app functionalities. They may want to share their lists with a partner or team. They may need a variety of management tools within the same app, including project management, time tracking, multiple calendars, and reporting. Alternatively, they may require effective strategies to manage their busy schedules, such as automating recurring tasks, utilizing AI filters, and more. While these complicated apps may not be for everyone, they are good to-do apps for those who do need them. Always choose the apps and software that match your needs and workflow.

Best To-Do List Apps at a Glance

10 To-Do List Apps and Software

1. Best for Task and Time Management: Todoist

Todoist may be the best overall to-do list app because it does more than just that. Alongside simple lists and features like task scheduling, priority tagging, and reminders, Todoist provides innovative speech recognition tools thanks to its intelligent Natural Language Processing (NLP) capabilities, a vast template library, progress tracking, and project management and analytics tools.

The app also supports collaborative work and allows you to attach large files for later use or sharing with your team. You’ll appreciate the exhaustive integrations with other productivity tools, such as Google Calendar, Slack, and Dropbox.

Todoist is designed to cater to both individual users and teams. The free version appeals to individuals, while teams and small businesses may prefer the paid version that grants access to all the app’s features. Regardless of the version you choose, Todoist remains simple, customizable, and efficient. You can select the form in which you prefer to use it. For instance, Todoist may be a regular web-based app, an app you install on your wearables, or anything in between. If you want to get more familiar with Todoist app, we recommend the following video:

The Todoist app features over 374,000 ★★★★★ reviews on Google Play and the App Store, and is trusted by more than 50 million people.

Pros: Speech recognition, cross-platform availability, task and project management tools

Cons: Mid-level to-do list app that may require a learning curve for beginners

Who It's For: Teams and small businesses

Pricing: Free for up to 5 projects; paid versions from $4/user/month

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Tip:We have featured Todoist within our list of top time management apps.

2. Best for Overall Organization at Home and Work: TickTick

TickTick is an all-in-one productivity app to help you manage tasks, calendars, habits, and more. The to do list app features an intuitive interface, simple tools for a seamless start, and complex tools for managing a busy lifestyle, along with calendars and reminders to keep everything on track. We appreciate that TickTick offers several high-demand use cases, including customizable lists and recurring tasks.

The app aims to help you organize tasks, track your time, improve focus and productivity, and develop and maintain good habits. Therefore, it provides habit tracking options, data reviews, a Pomodoro timer, an Eisenhower Matrix, Kanban graphs, sticky notes, and many more. The idea is to personalize your experience and use the right tool for the right task.

TickTick synchronizes across multiple devices, thus your plans and progress are always accessible. And because you can share tasks and lists, it’s a good to-do list app for couples. You can share household chores with your partner, with each of you having separate work tasks. Overall, the app’s design and versatility make it a favorite among users seeking to improve their daily routines and achieve a better work-life balance.

The tool has been selected as app of the day on the App Store and Editor's Choice on both Apple and Google Play, and it features >470k ratings of 4.9.

Pros: Customizations, integrated Pomodoro timer, Kanban graphs, and Eisenhower Matrix

Cons: Advanced features require paid access

Who It's For: Individuals, couples

Pricing: Free version; Premium version at $3/month

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Tip: TickTick, Todoist, Trello, Asana and Microsoft To Do are featured within our Top Time Management Apps list.

3. Best for Smooth Integration: Things

Things, an award-winning personal task manager software that reached its 3.0 version, is a nice and minimalist app designed exclusively for macOS and iOS users. It is best known for its integration across Apple devices and for providing a smooth user experience.

However, Things is not just a pretty design with no power. The app features competitive tools for project organization, including deadlines, reminders, breaking down large tasks into smaller steps, setting priorities with tags, and planning an entire week using a calendar. Nevertheless, you can use it only for the daily agenda if you prefer. Just choose the “Today” view.

You’ll find Things ideal for personal use, especially if you value aesthetic design and streamlined workflows. For instance, you can use the app to prepare a presentation, remember to book your vacation, organize activities, create checklists, and send your lists to your Inbox.

Just to let you know that Things by Culture Code features an Apple Design Award. Within the App Store it has  26.3K Ratings of 4.8 stars.

Pros: Looks amazing and smoothly integrates with Apple devices

Cons: A bit expensive and not for everyone

Who It's For: Apple users

Pricing: $9.99 for iPhone and Watch, $19.99 for iPad, $49.99 for iOS, $29.99 for visionOS

4. Best for Daily Planning: Microsoft To Do

Microsoft To Do is a versatile, user-friendly tool designed to streamline daily planning for individuals and teams working with Microsoft 365. It features an intuitive interface that enables you to create and manage tasks, as well as set reminders, effortlessly. The "My Day" feature is particularly popular, offering a fresh start each morning by helping users prioritize their tasks for the day ahead. And it’s free.

The app syncs across multiple devices and runs on both desktop and mobile platforms. You can share your lists in seconds, divide tasks into steps, create checklists, and add due dates. Of course, it integrates with Outlook. However, Microsoft To Do remains a basic to-do list app with fewer advanced task management features than other similar products. It’s excellent for your daily tasks, but it’s not the complex software you would like for your business.

If you’re a fan of Microsoft tools, then this task management app is for you. The ±700k 4.7-star reviews over the Apple and Google stores can’t be wrong.

Pros: Free, simple, effective for those already in the Microsoft ecosystem

Cons: Fewer advanced features than other to-do list apps

Who It's For: Individuals

Pricing: Free

5. Best for Collaborative Work: Asana

If you seek a to-do list app for teams and collaborative work, Asana should be considered. Designed with versatility and collaboration in mind, Asana enables you to assign tasks within a team, share files, and track task progress in real-time. It works smoothly regardless of whether you’re managing a small team or a large one.

The app features an intuitive interface that requires a swift learning curve, after which you can consider yourself a master in task delegation and prioritization. You’ll appreciate the visual tools, such as timelines and Kanban boards, which provide clear overviews of workflows and make your job easier.

In addition, Asana features robust integration capabilities (e.g., Slack, Google Drive, and Microsoft Teams amongst others), automation (e.g., custom rules that eliminate repetitive tasks), customizable fields and tools, templates and tutorials, milestones and updates, and reporting features. Overall, the app is a valuable tool for teams pursuing to enhance collaboration and maintain clarity in their workflows.

Asana is a desktop and mobile app that provides customizable roles for team members with specific permissions. Vendors and contractors can access the platform as guests with limited rights.

Pros: Smooth workflow, task tracking, updates, and reporting

Cons: Lacks advanced project planning and management features

Who It's For: Teams (creative, development, marketing, etc.)

Pricing: Free for personal use; paid versions from $10.99/user/month

6. Best for Improving Personal Productivity: Apple Reminders

Apple Reminders is ideal for personal use. You don’t have to look for it very far, as it comes preinstalled on your Apple device (whether a desktop or mobile one). The app is built around the concept of reminders and provides a rich toolkit in this regard: you can create, add, delete, mark as complete, search, and share reminders with a simple tap.

Being an Apple app, Reminders saves everything in the iCloud, meaning you have access to your to-do lists and appointments on all your devices. In addition, thanks to Apple Intelligence, the app can suggest relevant tasks based on your emails and notes, and automatically organize your lists based on relevance. It packs multiple functionalities to boost your productivity and help you organize your life. This is why we believe that it is especially well-suited for those who love the Apple ecosystem, thrive on making lists, need to track their habits and tasks, and require reminders and personalized support.

What’s different compared to the other task manager lists? The Reminders app goes beyond the basics of task management, providing advanced features such as hierarchical to-do lists (you can view subtasks in smart lists), seven languages for your grocery lists (shopping for food in a foreign country will be a breeze), and precise habit tracking with editable sections in Today list (who said a day should only have morning, noon, and evening?).

Clients praise Apple Reminders most for its flexibility in adapting to individual preferences. For instance, you can take a simple checklist or a more elaborate organizing system and customize it to suit your needs. The alarms and reminders are also customizable. Even the Home Screen icon is customizable. And because the app runs on desktop and mobile devices, the reminders will find you.

Since it’s made by Apple, we believe that some of the world’s best designers and engineers worked to make this app possible. Additionally, it has 681,000 ratings with an average of 4.8 stars on the App Store. And we can only expect that with the future updates it can only get better.

Pros: Smooth Apple ecosystem integration, Apple Intelligence automation

Cons: The User interface can lack visual cues, file attachment is not possible, and extended period views are not possible in the app itself

Who It's For: Individuals

Pricing: Free for Apple users

7. Best for Tracking Outcomes and Actions: OmniFocus

OmniFocus does more than help you create a to-do list. We like the slogan the creators of the app use “With tools to help tame the chaos, you can focus on the right tasks at the right time.”

The personal task management system is designed for individuals who require precise tracking of outcomes and actions, offering a robust and detailed framework for managing projects and complex workflows. You will appreciate it if you are a fan of productivity systems like GTD (Getting Things Done), as it allows you to organize tasks based on context, priority, and deadlines. Yes, this is the app for staying in control.

The Omni Group app’s best feature is the ability to create nested tasks and projects. You get a valuable visual hierarchy that keeps even the most intricate projects on track. OmniFocus also features tags, custom perspectives, advanced filtering options, task encryption for added security, forecast modes for anticipating future deadlines, and review tools.

This particular task management software is designed to run exclusively on Apple devices (Mac, iPhone, and iPad) and seamlessly integrates with features such as Siri, notifications, and widgets.

Pros: Precise task organization tools, smooth Apple ecosystem integration, and robust security features

Cons: High learning curve and pricy

Who It’s For: busy professionals

Pricing: $4.99/month for web subscription, $74.99 for standard license

8. Best for Personal Agendas: Google Tasks

For those using the Google ecosystem (who doesn’t?), Google Tasks is a straightforward and minimalist tool designed for managing personal agendas effectively. Like all Google products, its strength is in its simplicity and in the fact that it is free.

Google Tasks is an ideal choice for individuals who prefer a fuss-free approach to organizing their daily tasks. The app is there, amongst your other Google services, and integrates seamlessly with them. For instance, you can link tasks to emails via Gmail or schedule them via Google Calendar.

In addition, Google Tasks provides the basic functionalities of a to-do list app: subtasks within tasks, a clear structure, due dates, and reminders. Nothing more, nothing less than what you need to manage your daily agenda of your personal life.

Pros: Easy to use, excellent integration with the Google ecosystem, and ideal for quick task management

Cons: Fewer advanced features compared to other advanced task management apps

Who It’s For: Individuals

Pricing: Free

9. Best for Boosting Work Productivity: Trello

For team managers seeking a visually engaging and collaborative way to organize their team’s work, Trello may be the one to-do list app. Its organizing system is highly visual. Capturing, organizing, and tackling tasks becomes intuitive, whether personally or within your team. Its visual approach is the key to your productivity.

Trello’s strength lies in its adaptability. Information is gathered from your Inbox, messages on third-party apps such as Slack, Google Drive, and Jira, or direct input, and organized into boards with draggable tabs and cards. You can add checklists, labels, attachments, and due dates to cards and integrate everything.

Additionally, the app offers numerous templates and plugins, along with powerful Butler automation, calendars, views, and dashboards. It runs as a web-based, desktop, and mobile app.

Since 2017, Trello has been part of the Atlassian family, complementing the existing suite of products, particularly Jira.

Pros: Intuitive interface, highly customizable, excellent for team collaboration

Cons: Limited features in the free version, can become overwhelming with large projects

Who It’s For: Managers

Pricing: Free for up to 10 collaborators per workspace; paid versions from $5/user/month

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Tip: Trello was featured among the best project management software.

10. Best for Streamlined Workflows: Notion

Notion is your ultimate AI assistant. Just think about notes, docs, tasks, and projects — all in one place. With Notion, you can write, plan, collaborate, and get organized. And with this tool, teams find every answer, automate the busywork, and get projects done

Additionally, the productivity system offers seamless integration with third-party apps, enabling you to access your projects and tasks in one convenient location. The interface is clean, with a straightforward navigation system and intuitive controls. It seems that Notion has them all, from templates to linked databases, streamlined processes.

Pros: Powerful AI algorithms, complex task management solution

Cons: Steep learning curve, too complicated for personal projects, expensive

Who It's For: Large companies and enterprises

Pricing: Free for personal use; paid versions from $9.5/user/month.

Key Takeaways

• To-do list apps and task management software help you stay on top of your work, be more productive, stay organized and in control, and celebrate more milestones.
• You want an app that matches your workflow and lifestyle, whether it is a basic to-do list or a complex task and project management tool.
• Start by browsing the 10 best to-do list apps and software we provided.
• Choose a free app or an affordable one, as you will be using it in the long term.

FAQ

Which to-do list app is best for me?

The best app for you is the one that offers everything you need, has an intuitive interface, seems easy to use, and helps you improve focus and build good habits. You want an app to use in the long term, so make sure you can afford the subscription cost, like the interface, and have all the functionalities you need (e.g., reminders, multiple device access, synchronization with your current software, etc.). Customizable apps are the best because you can tailor them for your workflow and lifestyle. Remember, a to-do list app must save your time and energy, not spend them.

Should I pay for a to-do list app?

When you find an app that suits you like a glove, meets your expectations, feels natural, and solves most of your problems, consider paying for it. A to-do list app is something you ideally use for a long time (no one wants to learn how to use a new app every week). Keep that in mind when deciding to pay for it. If you can’t sustain the app’s cost in the long term, you are better off with a free or less expensive app.

What are the best to-do list apps for collaboration?

The best to-do list apps for collaboration are Todoist, Asana, and TickTick. They provide tools for sharing lists and files with your team, scheduling and assigning tasks, and gathering information from other collaborative programs. These apps encompass more than checklists and reminders. They feature advanced task tracking, time tracking, and project tracking functionalities that benefit collaborative work.

What is the best app for to-do lists?

The best app for to-do lists is the one that provides just enough functionalities to meet your expectations while remaining easy to use and intuitive. Todoist, for example, runs on any device, supports collaboration, integrates with plenty of other apps, and features all the lists, filters, and dashboards one needs. For its complexity–usability balance, we declare it the best app for to-do lists.

What is the best free task management app?

The best free task management app is the one you already have and didn’t know about it. For example, if you use Google services, the best task management app for you is Google Tasks. If you work with Microsoft 365, the best task management app for you is Microsoft To Do. However, if you don’t want a to-do list app from a particular ecosystem, you may install Toodledo on any device or use it in a browser.

What is the best task management app for teams?

Todoist and Asana excel at task management functionalities for teams. They help creatives and developers stay in touch, share documents, schedule meetings, track project status, manage tasks, and meet deadlines. Big corporations and enterprises may prefer something more complex, such as Notion.

What is the difference between task management apps and project management apps?

Task management apps are beneficial for everyone seeking to boost productivity and efficiency, reduce procrastination, and enhance focus, whether at work or home. Therefore, they are task-oriented. Once the tasks are done, the app completes its purpose.

Project management apps, on the other hand, are project-oriented, meaning their purpose doesn’t end when tasks are finished. They feature project analytics, including Gantt charts and Kanban boards, as well as dashboards for an overall project view, and tools for tracking progress. They may also include reporting tools, task scheduling, assigning, and even time tracking for teams.