Things 3 vs Todoist
Things 3 is better for Apple-only users seeking a beautiful, simple, and reliable task manager, while Todoist is superior for cross-platform needs and advanced features like collaboration and integrations.
Things 3 offers a highly polished, intuitive experience for Apple users, excelling in design and ease of use, though it lacks cross-platform support and advanced features. Todoist provides robust functionality, extensive integrations, and broad platform availability, but some users find its interface less intuitive and report occasional syncing or support issues.
Head to head
You are an Apple-only user who values a beautiful, simple, and intuitive interface for personal task management R20. You are willing to pay a one-time fee for each device for a highly reliable and consistent experience R17R41. You prioritize a clean design and ease of use over advanced integrations or cross-platform availability R26.
You need a task manager that works across multiple operating systems, including Windows and web, in addition to Apple devices . You require advanced features like team collaboration, extensive integrations with other services, or support for methodologies like GTD . You prefer a free tier option, even if it means dealing with potential IAP costs for full functionality .
Evidence note: Things 3 reviews are heavily skewed towards Apple-specific issues and praises, reflecting its ecosystem lock-in. Todoist reviews show a broader range of concerns, including interface changes and customer support, which is common for apps with a larger, more diverse user base and free tier.
Frequently asked
Can I use Things 3 on Windows or Android?
Does Things 3 require separate purchases for iPhone and iPad?
Does Todoist integrate with Apple Calendar?
Are there recurring task issues with Things 3?
What reviewers actually said
Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.
- [R2] Things 3 The ADHD Tamer: This deceptively simple app reshaped my life; being able to break tasks down into lists and set recurring routines has been magical for me. Being able to jot down a thought and process it later (in your inbox) is a game changer. I’d buy the software again in a heartbeat!
- [R3] Things 3 Can’t Check Off Recurring Tasks Early: This app came highly praised and the reviews are almost unreal but this app doesn’t have the one feature that, for me, is the most important: inability to check-off recurring tasks due in the future. Complete waste of money as I got the iPad version too. I’m going back to Apple Reminders to get basic functionality.
- [R5] Things 3 Consistency: Thinks app allows me to keep detailed task notes in markdown inside the tasks which helps me find the context and key information quickly. Things app also allows me to set tasks for work during day and also for the end of the day for my personal time, so, it allows me to not think about personal tasks during the day.
- [R7] Things 3 No undo option: Deal breaker. Deleted my to do list without warning. Tutorial on app is atrocious-assumes you already know how to use the app. Better options out there.
- [R20] Things 3 Great: After trying multiple planners and task managers, I can confidently say that this one is the best in terms of design and functionality. Clean and not overwhelming, perfect for daily use. I use it as a grad student and it helps me track my daily goals as well as multiple projects.
- [R24] Things 3 Changed Done to Clear: ios26 update they changed the Done button to Clear. This is absolutely terrible for those of us that have been using Things 3 since its inception. Who thought this change was a good idea? Fire that person.
- [R26] Things 3 The best. I'm satisfied.: Pretty enough that I enjoy using it but also I can just forget about it because of all of the things it does so well.
- [R27] Things 3 Crashes After Opening: I am using iOS26 and whenever I open the app, it crashes. Uninstalled and reinstalled, nothing. Works great on Macbook and iPad tho...
- [R10] Things 3 Coulda been the best: I wasn’t warned about creating an account to keep my entries in the cloud. Lost a lot when I switched phones.
- [R25] Things 3 App doesn’t automatically refresh: The app does not refresh content automatically in the background. Updates only appear when you manually open the app, which is frustrating and interrupts workflow. Background refresh is expected in modern apps, this limitation significantly reduces usability and user experience. Please implement automatic background updates so content stays current without constan
- [R40] Things 3 IPAD Magic Keyboard Interface link issue: I have engaged the Cultured Code team about an issue where the keyboard will randomly lose connection for specific buttons (return, CMD, etc). They stated that it is an apple problem but this is the only app this occurs in. If this issue is resolved. I will update to 5 stars because the app is great otherwise.
- [R1] Things 3 Scamming: Absolute scam having to buy this from all of your devices. Do not waste your money
- [R4] Things 3 Confused: For costing 80$ across all 3 operating systems, this app should support ALL OS features. Where are dynamic island, live activity, location, and focus filter support? You can filter widgets to show tasks with tags. Why can I slo have the whole app filter to only show me selected tags when I’m in a focus mode. Why should widgets be filter able, but the app itself not?
- [R17] Things 3 Only Review I’ve Ever Written: I truly have never considered writing a review for an app. I’m an admin professionally and have spent years testing ways to keep a todo list that didn’t feel like more work. I could never find something easy that somehow cleanly held EVERY todo I have - and here it is! Worth every penny, would buy again and again - my brain has never been happier or less full of junk
- [R18] Things 3 Can’t use across iPhone and iPad with buying another version: Admittedly haven’t gotten much into the functionality, but a big reason is I had planned to quickly input items with my phone on-the-go and then reference on my iPad later. Well, after paying $9.99 for the iPhone version, turns out I need to also pay $19.99 for the iPad version. Seems excessive, haven’t done it.
- [R6] Things 3 Simple: I'd like to see a live activity function for task that are due within a couple of hours.
- [R11] Things 3 great app, major request: have been using it for years. please please please have it so that the widget also shows upcoming calendar events when on the Today view just like in-app, so I can use one widget to see my entire day.
- [R19] Things 3 Be ready to spend a lot and not be able to share with others: I saw all the great reviews and was super excited to buy this app and organize my life! And yes, it’s a great app to organize projects and tasks however it has some serious shortcomings, especially given the exorbitant costs. First, you can’t share with a family member so having a shared family to do list in one app is impossible with
- [R12] Things 3 Lovely app but really badly needs a Recently Deleted section: Title
- [R37] Things 3 Idiotic update: For some reason, when setting reminders, the developers decided to change the “done” button to a “clear” (cancel) button. So now I set a bunch of reminders that I’ll never get notifications about because my usual pattern (setting the reminder) is now the opposite (clearing the reminder). Idiotic stuff.
- [R41] Things 3 Best of the best: Things is probably my favorite app ever made on Mac and iPhone. It’s rare to find software of this quality longevity and reliability and I genuinely base my entire life around it. I hope it’s still here in 30 years from now because I intend to keep using it. I look forward to every update. I’ll be the first line to support the team however I can even after all these years. I kee
- [R22] Things 3 Not Available on Windows: I use Apple products for almost everything except work, where I’m required to use a Windows laptop. Not being able to access Things 3 on Windows or even through a web interface is a major obstacle and dealbreaker. I genuinely love Things 3. It’s one of the best designed task managers available. However, many professionals operate in mixed ecosystems, and the lack of any
- [R31] Things 3 Mac ecosystem only GRRRR: A little did I know that purchasing this app was just a waste of my money. There’s not even a web version, and that’s prehistoric in today’s world. This app looks nice, but it’s useless unless you buy Mac products your entire life. No web version? That’s absurd in 2025.
- [R48] Things 3 Outdated: The app has barely changed in the last 5 years. There's no AI integration like more recent apps, everything has to be planned manually. There is no proper calendar view either. And there's no Web UI. Better options now exist with AI integration that are cross-platform and browser accessible.
- [R39] Things 3 Good App but Cheeky Policy: One has to pay for desktop version separately from the phone version.
- [R63] Todoist Calendar is the one big disappointment: I’m confused why I can’t sync my iCloud or a CalDav calendar with Todoist. I was hoping to move away from Google Calendar so it sucks that the options are so limited. I considered creating my own Todoist integration, but I don’t think the SDK allows me to sync calendar events. Looking for an app that can handle tasks and events with my family. The tasks par
- [R79] Todoist Doesn’t connect to apple calender: Can’t use it for anything, doesn’t even connect to my calender? Built for iOS? Useless app.
- [R82] Todoist No Apple Calendar Integration: No Apple Calendar integration in 2026 is insane. You won’t be able to add your calendar events to Todoist unless you use Google Calendar or Outlook. There are a lot of people that don’t want Google or Microsoft to have access to their personal calendar. Unfortunately, Todoist doesn’t care about those people.
- [R15] Things 3 Repeat Problems: Good app, but can't check off a repeating task the day before it is due. Can only check it off on the day it is due. So if you get it done a day or so early, you are out of luck. Another problem: If I miss checking off a task on a particular day, it shows up on the next day, but there is no way to find the original due date. It just says due today. I’d like to go back and find
- [R30] Things 3 UI could be more intuitive: While Things appears to be the most solid to do app, and one I’ve used for years, there is still room for improvement to make it more intuitive. I use a lot of recurring reminders, and each time have to look up how to make them recur in the app. I don’t have this issue with any other app, but Things makes it hard to do, there’s no clear way to make a reminder recurrin
- [R36] Things 3 Ok but nothing more: I’ve had the app almost three weeks and it’s ok but I’m not impressed. It’s not at all intuitive to use, particularly if you use repeating tasks. Getting started with the system is a frustrating experience and given the functionality or lack of it, not worth the hassle. The different options to input repeating tasks aren’t at all clear and why you should use one or the oth
- [R61] Todoist User: I was enjoying it but with software updates it tells me to download the latest version but will not allow it (I guess the new version can’t be run on older platforms). So, it still asks me to download the new version each time I open it, and it now no longer syncs between devices. And, as far as I can tell, there is NO WAY to contact customer support or get any help with it. A useful tool wh
- [R88] Todoist Support not responding: I’ve been a paid subscriber for over 8+ years. Lost access a week ago. Restore doesn’t work. Support not responding. Already submitted two tickets 7+ days ago.
- [R90] Todoist Account verification flaky: Signed up on a monthly basis, and entered my projects. Started getting accounts verification requests in the app. Asked for email to be sent and tried to verify but it wouldn’t accept it. Subsequently no more emails have reached me. So I asked for help which raised a ticket but no follow up help. Trying to check the ticket says access denied. Warnings received that ac
Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store