Notion, Todoist, TickTick, Microsoft To Do, Trello and Google Keep compared — workspaces, task lists, habits and quick notes matched to your workflow.
A productivity app should give time back, not demand more of it, and the field divides cleanly by job. Kanban boards make a team's status visible; a fast task manager captures chores in plain language; a combined list-and-calendar app builds habits at the same time; and a notes app that opens in one second catches the ideas the heavier tools are too slow for. The six apps reviewed below each lead one of those approaches, from a fully flexible workspace to a free daily planner, chosen so the decision starts from what you actually need to manage rather than which brand is loudest.
Notion folds notes, tasks, databases, wikis and documents into one flexible workspace, with built-in AI for drafting and summarising.
It can host anything from a simple list to a full project-management system, which makes it as useful for organising personal life as a whole team, and Notion AI drafts, summarises and rearranges content inside the pages. That flexibility has a price: the learning curve is steep at the start, very large workspaces can slow down, and the advanced features plus AI require a paid plan.
Todoist balances power and simplicity better than its rivals: add tasks in plain language, organise by projects and priorities, sync everywhere.
It recognises dates written into a task such as "buy bread tomorrow at 9", then organises entries with projects, labels, priorities and reminders so you can run the day without overthinking the system. The free plan limits the number of projects and features, there is no full calendar view without paying, and for genuinely complex projects it is less flexible than Notion's databases.
TickTick bundles tasks, calendar, habit tracking and a Pomodoro timer into one app, with natural-language entry for people building routines.
Tasks accept plain-language input and sort into folders and priorities, while the built-in calendar view shows the same work laid out by date, so productivity and habit formation live in a single place. The calendar and some functions need the premium plan, the sheer breadth can feel overwhelming during the first days, and its community is smaller than Todoist's.
Microsoft To Do is free without artificial limits and genuinely polished, with a My Day view for realistic planning and tight Outlook integration.
Its standout view, My Day, helps you plan each morning without carrying over an intimidating backlog, and lists, steps, reminders and attachments are all included at no charge. It slots naturally into Outlook and the rest of Microsoft 365. It is less capable for projects than Notion or Todoist, it only pays off fully inside the Microsoft ecosystem, and visual customisation is limited.
Trello makes project status visible on kanban boards — drag cards from To do to Done — the most intuitive view of where a team project stands.
Columns and cards carry checklists, dates, labels and attachments, and the whole system is visual, flexible and easy to pick up alone or with a team, with progress readable at a glance. It strains on very large or complex projects, the best features sit behind a paid plan, and as a plain personal to-do list it is heavier and less direct than a dedicated task app.
Google Keep is the fastest place for ideas, shopping lists and voice notes, with time- and place-based reminders; it is fully free and rated 4.7 stars.
It opens instantly for quick capture — text, voice notes, images and checkbox lists — and syncs immediately with a Google account, which makes it the natural companion for thoughts that arrive while doing something else. Organisation is deliberately thin, with no folders or sub-notes, it does not suit long notes or project management, and text formatting is very basic.
Download price only. In-app purchases and subscriptions may cost extra.
Questions & answers
What is the best free productivity app?
It depends on the job. For tasks, Microsoft To Do is completely free and genuinely powerful without artificial limits. For quick notes, Google Keep is unbeatable and also free. Notion, Todoist, TickTick and Trello all offer useful free plans, but each reserves some advanced features for the paid tier, so start free and upgrade only when a specific limit actually blocks you.
Notion or Todoist — which one suits me?
They are different tools. Todoist is a task app: fast, simple and perfect for running the day-to-day list with natural-language entry. Notion is a full workspace for notes, databases, wikis and projects, far more flexible but with a steeper learning curve. If you only want to manage tasks, choose Todoist; if you want information and projects in one place, choose Notion.
Which app is best for organising team projects?
Trello is the most intuitive for teams thanks to its visual kanban boards, ideal for seeing task status at a glance during stand-ups. Notion is more powerful when you also need shared documentation, databases and wikis around the work. Teams already on Microsoft 365 find Microsoft To Do and Planner slot in naturally without another subscription.
More related apps
App library · United States App Store. Prices and availability reflect the last check.
