What is the best Todoist alternative?

There is no single answer, because people leave Todoist for opposite reasons. If you want the same tool with more in it, TickTick is the closest swap. If you want something calmer on Apple hardware, Things 3. If you want free and simple, Apple Reminders or Google Tasks. If the length of the list is what stops you starting, a one-card-at-a-time app like Nearer targets that specifically.

Is there a free alternative to Todoist?

Several. Apple Reminders, Google Tasks and Microsoft To Do are all free and tied to ecosystems you probably already use. TickTick has a usable free tier. Nearer has no free tier, only a 7-day trial that needs no card.

Why do people switch away from Todoist?

Usually one of three reasons. They want a feature behind the paywall such as calendar view or reminders, they want to stop paying a subscription, or the list grew until opening it felt like work in itself. The first two are solved by switching apps in the same category, and the third generally is not.

Which Todoist alternative works on Windows and Android?

TickTick and Microsoft To Do both have full native apps across platforms, and Google Tasks travels through the browser. Things 3 and Apple Reminders are Apple-only. Nearer runs in any browser, though it has no native apps at all.

Best Todoist alternatives, sorted by why you’re leaving

We make one of the apps below, so a ranking from us would be worth very little. What is worth something is matching the app to the reason you started looking, because people leave Todoist for opposite reasons and the right answer flips depending on which one is yours.

Work out which one you are

Wanting a feature Todoist charges for is a different problem from wanting to stop paying, and both are different from opening the app and closing it again without doing anything. The first two are solved by switching to another app in the same category. The third usually is not, because every app in that category shows you the whole list.

Six options worth a look

You want Todoist, with more in it

TickTick

The closest like-for-like swap. Lists, tags, filters and recurring rules land where you expect, and it also bundles a calendar, habit tracking, a pomodoro timer and a priority matrix.

Best for: People who like how Todoist works and want more capability per pound, particularly if a calendar view is the thing Todoist made you pay for.
The catch: You are solving a features complaint. If the real problem is that opening the app makes you want to close it, adding a matrix and a habit module makes that worse.

Nearer vs TickTick, in detail

You want calm, and you own Apple hardware

Things 3

A deliberately restrained planner built around Today, Upcoming, Anytime and Someday. Widely held to be the best-looking task app anyone has made, bought once per platform instead of by subscription.

Best for: Apple-only users who plan a week in advance and want an app that feels good enough to keep opening.
The catch: Mac, iPhone, iPad and Watch only, with no web version, so a Windows work laptop or an Android phone leaves you stranded. You also buy each platform separately.

Nearer vs Things 3, in detail

You want free, simple and already installed

Apple Reminders

Genuinely capable now. Lists, sections, tags, smart lists, location and time alerts, family sharing, and the best voice capture available on an iPhone.

Best for: Anyone whose Todoist use never went past a few lists and some due dates. Reminders does that at no cost and with deeper system integration.
The catch: Capture is where it stops. There is no help working through a long list, and it thins out fast once you leave Apple hardware.

Nearer vs Apple Reminders, in detail

Your work already runs on Microsoft 365

Microsoft To Do

Free, straightforward lists with a My Day view, plus two-way flow with Outlook flagged email and Planner tasks.

Best for: People living in Outlook and Teams who want assigned work and personal tasks in the same place without paying for anything extra.
The catch: Fairly basic outside that ecosystem, and the integration is the entire argument. Away from Microsoft it has little to recommend it over the others here.

The length of the list is the problem

Nearer

A card-based app that shows one item at a time and keeps the rest out of sight. Finish a card and the next one arrives without you choosing it. Tasks, resetting routines and flashcards all run the same way.

Best for: People who know exactly what needs doing and still cannot start, and who have reorganised their task system more than once without it helping.
The catch: Ours, so weigh it accordingly. No free tier, no collaboration, no integrations, no native apps, no projects or sub-tasks, and no importer for the backlog you have already built.

How Nearer compares with Todoist directly

You want the least possible app

Google Tasks

A minimal list that lives inside Gmail and Google Calendar, with tasks appearing on your calendar when dated.

Best for: People who want somewhere to put six things and never think about the tool again, especially inside a Google-centred workday.
The catch: Very limited. No tags, no meaningful filtering, and a mobile app that has always felt like an afterthought.

Features and pricing are described in general terms because the specifics change. Check each app’s own site before deciding.

If nothing on this list has fixed it before

Switching task apps every few months is a recognisable pattern, and the new app always works for a fortnight. That is the honeymoon of a short list rather than evidence about the tool, and the same weight returns as soon as the list fills up again.

When that is the cycle, the thing to change is how much of the list you see at once rather than which app renders it. We go through the mechanism in why your to-do list feels overwhelming, which is worth reading before you migrate anything anywhere.

Try Nearer free for 7 days

No credit card required. $49.99 per year, or $5.99 per month after the trial.

Common questions

What is the best Todoist alternative?: There is no single answer, because people leave Todoist for opposite reasons. If you want the same tool with more in it, TickTick is the closest swap. If you want something calmer on Apple hardware, Things 3. If you want free and simple, Apple Reminders or Google Tasks. If the length of the list is what stops you starting, a one-card-at-a-time app like Nearer targets that specifically.
Is there a free alternative to Todoist?: Several. Apple Reminders, Google Tasks and Microsoft To Do are all free and tied to ecosystems you probably already use. TickTick has a usable free tier. Nearer has no free tier, only a 7-day trial that needs no card.
Why do people switch away from Todoist?: Usually one of three reasons. They want a feature behind the paywall such as calendar view or reminders, they want to stop paying a subscription, or the list grew until opening it felt like work in itself. The first two are solved by switching apps in the same category, and the third generally is not.
Which Todoist alternative works on Windows and Android?: TickTick and Microsoft To Do both have full native apps across platforms, and Google Tasks travels through the browser. Things 3 and Apple Reminders are Apple-only. Nearer runs in any browser, though it has no native apps at all.