# Free Todoist Alternatives That Cover What You Actually Use > Free alternatives to Todoist: Microsoft To Do, Google Tasks, Apple Reminders and Remember The Milk, plus how to check which Todoist features you really need. Source: https://www.getmindie.app/blog/free-todoist-alternatives (published 2026-10-29) Todoist is good. You might also be using about a fifth of it. If most of your tasks are "buy stamps" and "call the garage", a free app may cover everything you do, and the question is which one. This guide starts with a quick check of how you use Todoist, then walks through the free options that match each pattern. ## Step 1: Audit how you use Todoist Open Todoist and look at your last month honestly. Tick off which of these you actually used. - **Projects with sections** - **Subtasks** - **Priorities** (and whether you sorted by them) - **Labels and filters** - **Board view** - **Shared projects** with other people - **Natural-language quick add** ("every Monday at 9am") - **Unusual repeats** (like "every third weekday") - **Reminders** at specific times [Todoist](/alternatives/todoist) is built to organise a lot of work: sections, subtasks, priorities, labels, filters, boards and shared projects, with flexible repeat rules. If you ticked most of that list, a free alternative will feel like a step down, and staying put is the sensible call. If you ticked three or fewer, read on. ## Step 2: Match your pattern to a free app ### If you live in Outlook: Microsoft To Do [Microsoft To Do](/alternatives/microsoft-to-do) is free with a Microsoft account. Flagged emails in Outlook become tasks on their own, the My Day view helps you plan each morning, and lists can be shared. It has its own apps and a web version. **Good swap if:** your work happens in Outlook and Microsoft 365, and you used Todoist mostly for lists and dates. **What you give up:** Todoist's labels, filters and board view. **Moving tip:** recreate your most-used Todoist projects as lists, and let My Day replace your Today view. ### If you live in Gmail: Google Tasks [Google Tasks](/alternatives/google-tasks) comes free with a Google account. Tasks appear next to your events in Google Calendar, you can turn an email into a task from Gmail, and it has subtasks. **Good swap if:** your day runs in Gmail and Google Calendar, and you want tasks next to your schedule with nothing new to sign up for. **What you give up:** priorities, labels, filters, boards and shared projects. It's deliberately simple. **Moving tip:** keep three or four lists at most. Google Tasks works best when there's not much to navigate. ### If you're all Apple: Apple Reminders [Apple Reminders](/alternatives/apple-reminders) is free and built into iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch. Siri adds reminders hands-free, it can remind you when you arrive somewhere, and lists can be shared with family. **Good swap if:** every device you own is Apple, and you liked Todoist mainly for quick dated reminders. **What you give up:** anything outside Apple's devices, plus Todoist's filters and boards. **Moving tip:** use location reminders for errands. They fire when you can actually do the task. ### If you need many platforms and sharing: Remember The Milk [Remember The Milk](/alternatives/remember-the-milk) has a free plan and runs on the web, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, iPad, Android and Apple Watch. You type tasks with plain-language dates, share lists and assign tasks to other people. Subtasks, advanced sorting and some integrations are on its Pro plan. **Good swap if:** you switch between lots of devices, or share chores and lists with a household. **What you give up:** subtasks on the free plan. **Moving tip:** start with one shared list for the household and one private list for you, then add more only when needed. ## Step 3: Check the free version holds up for two weeks Free apps often feel fine on day one. The test is week two, when the novelty is gone. 1. **Move only what's active.** Don't copy your entire Todoist history. Bring across tasks due in the next month and the lists you open weekly. 2. **Keep Todoist untouched for two weeks.** Don't delete anything yet. 3. **Note every time you miss a Todoist feature.** Write it down. If the list stays short, the swap worked. 4. **Check how many reminders you missed.** Any app is only as good as its alerts reaching you. 5. **Then decide.** Commit to the new app, or go back knowing exactly why Todoist is worth it for you. ## When the problem isn't the app Some people switch to-do apps every few months and have the same trouble in each one: the reminders fire, and they don't notice them. If that's you, a free app won't fix it, because the issue is where the alert lands. That's the case Mindie is built for, though it isn't free. It lives in WhatsApp, so reminders arrive as messages in a chat you already check. You text it: "Every Friday at 4pm remind me to submit my timesheet" "Remind me on the 1st of every month to check the energy meter reading" It replies with what it understood. When the reminder comes, reply "done" or "snooze 1 hour", and turn on nag mode for anything you keep dodging. Short lists work in the same chat: "add batteries and light bulbs to my hardware list". It has no projects, labels, priorities, subtasks or boards, so it doesn't replace Todoist for project work. Many people keep a free task app or Todoist for planning and send Mindie the few time-bound things they can't afford to miss. You can try it on WhatsApp with no sign-up, then there's a 7-day free trial before the $9 a month or $90 a year plan. If you find yourself ignoring reminders whatever the app, [why reminders fail](/blog/why-reminders-fail) explains the common causes. ## A quick summary - **Outlook user:** Microsoft To Do, free. - **Gmail user:** Google Tasks, free. - **All Apple:** Apple Reminders, free. - **Many devices or a shared household:** Remember The Milk, free plan. - **Heavy project user:** stay with Todoist. - **You keep missing reminders in every app:** fix where the reminder arrives, not which list holds it. ## Reminders worth setting - [Timesheet reminder](/reminders/timesheet): A weekly nudge before timesheets are due, so you're not reconstructing the week from memory. - [Free trial cancel reminder](/reminders/free-trial-cancel): A reminder a couple of days before a trial turns paid, including any app trials you're testing. - [Expense report reminder](/reminders/expense-report): A monthly heads-up to submit expenses while the receipts are still in your wallet. ## FAQ ### Is there a free app as good as Todoist? For heavy project work with labels, filters and boards, Todoist is hard to match. For simple lists and dated tasks, Microsoft To Do, Google Tasks, Apple Reminders and the free plan of Remember The Milk cover most needs. ### Which free to-do app works on both Android and iPhone? Remember The Milk runs on iPhone, iPad and Android, as well as the web, Mac, Windows and Linux. Apple Reminders is Apple only. ### Do I need projects and labels for personal tasks? Usually not. Most personal tasks are single actions with a date, like paying a bill or booking an appointment. Projects and labels earn their place when you're juggling many multi-step jobs at once.