HamsterBase Tasks vs Todoist
We give HamsterBase Tasks a 3.8 GPA and Todoist a 3.6, out of 4.0. HamsterBase Tasks grades higher on the free plan and features. Todoist grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
HamsterBase Tasks
Open-source, local-first task manager with encrypted sync
Todoist
Cross-platform to-do list with natural-language task entry
How we grade them
| 3.8GPAHamsterBase TasksExcellent | 3.6GPATodoistExcellent | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | APro is $20 a year for 3 cloud-synced databases and Cloud Inbox, well under what most paid to-do apps charge. Lifetime is $60 once, which is three years of Pro. The store page says there are no refunds. | AFive dollars a month if you pay for the year, eight for teams. Hard to find anything this good on this many devices for that. |
| Free plan and trial | AUnlimited tasks and every core feature are free, on the web and on your phone. Cloud sync is the only paid part, and you can run your own sync server for nothing if you know your way around Docker. | BFree forever, and reminders are included now. But 5 projects is tight. Work, home, one side thing and you're done. |
| Features | AAreas, projects and collapsible headings, start dates that hide future work, due dates, repeating tasks, and rule-based views on desktop. It leaves out habit tracking and Pomodoro timers on purpose. Attachments need an S3 bucket of your own. | BTyping tasks in and repeating dates are brilliant. Filters are great if you like that sort of thing. No start dates though, and the calendar view is paid. |
| Ease of use | BWe have no App Store rating on record, so a B is as high as we go. Install it and plan, or open the web version in a browser. Attachments and self-hosted sync are the fiddly bits, and both are optional. | A4.8 from around 129,000 App Store ratings. Open it, type a thing, done. Nobody needs a tutorial for this. |
| Platforms and integrations | AMac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android and the web. Cloud Inbox takes tasks in through an HTTP API, and attachments plug into Amazon S3, Cloudflare R2, Backblaze B2 or MinIO. | AMac, Windows, Linux (yes, really), iPhone, Android, web, watch and browser. There's an API too if you like wiring things together. |
| Best for | planning projects privately on every device | all-round to-do lists |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: HamsterBase Tasks and Todoist. How we grade
Where they differ
- HamsterBase Tasks starts at $20 per year (Pro). Todoist starts at $5 per user / month, billed yearly.
- Only Todoist lists a browser extension.
- HamsterBase Tasks is open source, self-hostable and end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- HamsterBase Tasks can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Todoist also covers templates, natural-language input, calendar and kanban boards.
At a glance
| HamsterBase Tasks | Todoist | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $20 per year (Pro) | $5 per user / month, billed yearly |
| Free plan | Unlimited tasks with web and mobile app access. The vendor says all core features are free and only cloud sync is paid; a self-hosted sync server is also free. | Beginner plan: 5 personal projects, task reminders, list and board layouts, 3 filter views and 1 week of activity history. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | HamsterBase | Todoist Inc. |
| Price read from | tasks.hamsterbase.com | todoist.com |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 4, 2026 |
Who each one suits
HamsterBase Tasks
- People who plan in areas and projects and want little else
- Privacy-minded users who want end-to-end encrypted sync
- Using one task list across desktop, phone and browser
- Self-hosters who want to run their own sync server
Todoist
- People who want one task list on every device they own
- Fast capture: typing a task with its date in a single line
- Households and small teams sharing a few projects
Worth knowing
HamsterBase Tasks
- Cloud sync is paid: Pro at $20 a year covers 3 cloud-synced databases, and the store page says no refunds are offered.
- Cloud Inbox content is stored unencrypted on the server until it is pulled into a database, unlike the rest of the data.
- Attachments need an S3-compatible bucket you supply; the files are not end-to-end encrypted and the S3 settings do not sync between devices.
- The vendor says it deliberately leaves out features such as habit tracking and Pomodoro timers.
Todoist
- The free plan stops at 5 personal projects and keeps only 1 week of activity history.
- Calendar layout, task durations and custom reminders all need Pro or Business.
- Personal projects are capped at 5 people, even on paid plans.
Key features
HamsterBase Tasks
- Areas, projects and headings
- Projects are grouped into areas such as Work or Personal and broken into tasks under collapsible headings. Finished projects hide automatically to keep the list short.
- Start dates and reminders
- A task with a future start date stays out of sight until that date arrives. Tasks can also have due dates, and the mobile release notes list reminder support.
- Local-first with encrypted sync
- Data lives on the device and the app works offline. Sync between devices is end-to-end encrypted, and the vendor says it cannot read the data.
- Rule-based custom views
- On desktop, a view is a saved list defined by a rule over fields such as status, tags, start date and due date, so matching tasks appear in it automatically.
- Recurring tasks
- When a recurring task is completed, the next one is created from short rules such as 1w or 1m, with separate rules for the start date and the due date.
- Cloud Inbox and attachments
- Cloud Inbox, a paid feature, appends tasks to a database's Inbox through an HTTP API. File attachments are stored in an S3-compatible bucket that you provide.
Todoist
- Quick Add
- Capture tasks in natural language as they come to you, including recurring due dates and reminders.
- List, board and calendar layouts
- Switch any project between a list, a kanban board and a calendar. The calendar layout needs a paid plan.
- Filters, labels and priorities
- Saved filter views pull tasks from across projects: 3 on the free plan, 150 on Pro and Business.
- Shared projects
- Share a project to assign tasks and comment on them. Personal projects allow up to 5 people on every plan.
- Team workspace
- Business adds public and private team projects, folders, roles and permissions, and shared templates.
- Ramble and Task Assist
- Ramble turns spoken thoughts into tasks; free accounts get limited sessions. Task Assist is included from Pro.
Plans
HamsterBase Tasks
Free$0
Unlimited tasks with web access and mobile app access, and data kept on the device. Cloud-synced databases are not included.
Pro$20
per year
Everything in Free, plus 3 cloud-synced databases and Cloud Inbox. The US App Store lists the same year of Cloud Pro at $19.99.
Lifetime$60
one-time payment
Everything in Pro with lifetime access for a single payment.
Todoist
Beginner$0
5 personal projects, task reminders, list and board layouts, and 3 filter views.
Pro$5
per user / month, billed yearly ($60)
300 projects, calendar layout, task durations, custom reminders, 150 filter views and Task Assist.
Business$8
per user / month, billed yearly ($96)
Everything in Pro, plus a shared team workspace with up to 500 team projects, roles and central billing.
Ways to pay less
HamsterBase Tasks
- Lifetime license
Lifetime access for $60
The pricing section lists a Lifetime plan at $60 as a one-time payment with everything in Pro, which equals three years of the $20-a-year Pro plan.
Todoist
- Annual discount
Save 20% with yearly billing
Todoist's pricing page lists a 20% saving on Pro and Business when billed yearly instead of monthly.
