Apple Reminders vs. Todoist

A Comparison of These Two Amazing Apps

I am a task manager junkie, and over time I have used quite a few to try out and see what each one had to offer.

I have used Things 3, Tick Tick, Microsoft ToDo, Apple Reminders, and Todoist.

Each one of these is great in what it does, but Apple Reminders and Todoist rise to the top when I have to choose my favorite task management apps.

If I had written this a year ago I would have had one favorite, Todoist, but with the release of iOS 17 right around the corner, the improvements to Apple Reminders have closed the gap considerably, so much that I would like to do a comparison on the features that they have in common.

Collecting Tasks

In my opinion, one of the most important features of a task manager is how easy is it to get the thought out of your head and in a place where you will remember it.

Todoist makes it easy on your computer while the app or web version is open.

Simply pressing the “Q” key will open a pop-up window, then enter your task and you are done.

In the mobile version, you will need to use either the widget to quickly add a task or open the app and go through the process.

Not quite as easy as the desktop version, but it works.

Apple Reminders is not as easy when you enter the information using the app.

There is quite a bit of information that needs to be entered inside the “i” menu when entering a task, but where Reminders shines is with Siri integration.

Tell Siri what it is that you want to remember and Siri will take care of the rest.

Winner: Apple Reminders

Location-Based Reminders

If you need to remember something based on location both apps are good at this.

The difference between them is that Todoist requires you to have a Pro subscription to attain this ability while Apple Reminders includes it with the app.

Winner: Apple Reminders

Filters and Smart Lists

This is another area where these two apps are very similar.

You can create filters, or Smart Lists in Apple Reminders, to see tasks that have only a high priority, work tasks only, or tasks that are due in the next 14 days.

I love this feature in both apps.

Winner: Todoist

Sub-tasks

Having a large project that can be broken up into smaller tasks can be the difference between being overwhelmed or not, and both of these apps handle this well.

If I had to choose which I like better, it would have to be Todoist.

Winner: Todoist

Tags

This is an area that for the longest time Todoist would be the run-away winner.

That has changed in the last couple of years when Reminders also received the tags functionality.

Winner: Tie

User Interface

This is where Todoist shines.

Some think that this app is fairly basic in its appearance, and I would agree that there are some better apps out there when it comes to the UI, but I think Todoist is beautiful in its design.

Apple Reminders looks a little bit outdated when it comes to its UI, but it still is a very user-friendly app.

Winner: Todoist

The Small Things

When it comes to adding notes, URLs, and images both of these apps are capable of adding this information.

When it comes to adding a file the only one that can do that is Todoist, which gives it the advantage here.

Winner: Todoist

If you are looking for a new task manager these are two excellent apps that will suit your needs perfectly.

I do lean towards Todoist when comparing them head to head, but the Apple Reminders app is closing the gap every year when the latest iOS update is released, and with each update, they apply more pressure on the third-party developers.

If you use either one of these apps or have used both of them at some time I would love to hear your thoughts about them.

Thanks for reading.

Before you go…

If you enjoyed reading this, there are a few ways for you to show your appreciation:

• Follow me on Medium
• Subscribe to Medium
• Clap for this story by clicking on the hands