Apple Reminders vs Reminders MenuBar

Apple Reminders

• People who use only Apple devices
• Shared grocery and household lists among iCloud users
• Location-based reminders and adding tasks by voice with Siri

Reminders MenuBar

• Mac users who keep their tasks in Apple Reminders
• Adding or checking off reminders without opening the Reminders app
• Keyboard users who want a global shortcut for quick capture

Apple Reminders

• Apps are listed only for Apple devices; on anything else, reminders are reached in a web browser at iCloud.com.
• On iCloud.com a reminder's title, notes, day or location alert and flag can be edited; Apple directs you to the app for other details.
• Sync and shared lists depend on iCloud, and collaborators need to use iCloud as well.
• Apple notes that certain features are available only in select languages and regions.

Reminders MenuBar

• macOS only, and it requires macOS Monterey 12 or later; there is no iPhone, iPad, Windows or web version.
• It is a front end to Apple Reminders, not a separate task store: it needs permission to access reminders and relies on Apple's own sync.
• The README lists Homebrew and a direct download from GitHub as the install routes and mentions no Mac App Store listing.

Apple Reminders

Smart Lists

Built-in lists such as Today, Scheduled, Flagged and Assigned to Me fill themselves. Custom Smart Lists gather reminders by tag, date, time, location, flag and priority.

Tags, subtasks and sections

Reminders can carry tags and subtasks. A list can be divided into sections and shown in a column view, which Apple suggests for simple kanban boards.

Time, location and Messages alerts

A reminder can repeat daily, weekly or at a custom interval, fire on arriving at a place or getting in the car, or appear the next time you message a tagged person.

Shared lists and assignments

Everyone on a shared list can add and complete reminders, changes show up for all collaborators in real time, and reminders can be assigned to people on the list.

Grocery lists and templates

Grocery lists group items into sections such as dairy and produce on their own. Any list can be saved as a template and shared with others through a link.

Natural language and Apple Intelligence

A typed phrase such as "Jog every other morning" sets the schedule. Apple Intelligence can sort a list into categories and suggest tasks from shared text or web pages.

Reminders MenuBar

Reminders in the menu bar

Every interaction happens in a popover opened from the macOS menu bar, which can show an icon, a counter or the title of the next upcoming reminder.

Natural-language entry

New reminders are typed in natural language that sets the due date, list and tags. Version 2.2.0 added typing shortcuts for flagged (!f) and urgent (!u) reminders.

Edit and complete reminders

Reminders can be marked as completed or edited in place, including their due dates, priorities, recurrence rules, lists and tags.

Upcoming view, search and filters

An upcoming section shows reminders within a time interval you configure, a search covers all reminders, and lists and tags filter what is displayed.

Sync through Apple Reminders

The app uses Apple's EventKit store to access the reminders on the Mac, the same ones shown in Apple Reminders and synced through iCloud, after a one-time permission request.

Global shortcut and in-app updates

A global keyboard shortcut toggles the app from anywhere, and since version 2.0.0 updates are delivered inside the app through Sparkle.

Apple Reminders

• Free$0

  Every feature of the app on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple Vision Pro, plus browser access at iCloud.com.

Reminders MenuBar

• Free$0

  The complete app, installed with Homebrew or as a disk image or zip archive from the GitHub releases page.