KomoDo vs Zanshin

KomoDo

• Linux and KDE Plasma users who keep tasks in todo.txt
• People who want their list in a plain-text file they control
• Newcomers to todo.txt who want the format explained in the app

Zanshin

• KDE Plasma users who follow Getting Things Done
• People who already use KMail and KOrganizer
• Adding and filing tasks without leaving the keyboard

KomoDo

• Linux only: the KDE page offers installation through Linux app stores, distribution packages and Flathub, which marks it as desktop only.
• The feature list covers opening, editing, filtering and searching todo.txt files; it mentions no sync, reminders or mobile app.
• The project is young: version 1.0.0 was released on 2025-08-01.

Zanshin

• KDE's app listing offers it for Linux only. The project's install page says there is no Mac version and that the team never tested the Windows build.
• The project pages list no mobile or web app.
• It depends on Akonadi and other KDE libraries, and the KMail, KOrganizer and KRunner features need those KDE applications.
• The project site's last announcement is version 0.5.71 from January 2020; later versions arrive with KDE's regular app releases, most recently 26.08.2 on October 8, 2026.

KomoDo

Works on todo.txt files

KomoDo opens any file that follows the todo.txt specification and can create new ones, so a list stays in a plain-text format that other todo.txt tools read.

Tasks shown as cards

A line with a priority, a date, a +project, an @context and tags such as due: is parsed and shown as a card, not as raw text.

Add, edit and delete tasks

Tasks are added, changed and removed from within the app, which works directly on the todo.txt file.

Filter and search

The task list can be filtered and searched. Version 1.5.0 sped up search and fixed loading of a saved filter.

Built-in todo.txt help

A help section inside the app explains the todo.txt specification, which the project says makes it suitable for newcomers to the format.

Inline links and launch arguments

Version 1.6.0 added Markdown-style inline links in tasks, and version 1.5.0 added arguments for starting the app from the command line.

Zanshin

Inbox for collecting tasks

New tasks land in an inbox so they are written down first and sorted later, which is the collect step of Getting Things Done.

Projects and contexts

Tasks are filed into projects and contexts by drag and drop. Focusing on one project or context, such as phone calls, shows only the tasks that belong to it.

Keyboard control

The app can be driven entirely from the keyboard, with shortcuts to add tasks, move them to a project or a context, and navigate.

Due dates and recurring tasks

A due date makes a task stand out from the rest. Version 0.5.0 added recurring tasks, with a simple recurrence model, and a filter that hides tasks scheduled in the future.

KMail, KOrganizer and KRunner

A task can be created from an email in KMail, overdue and upcoming tasks appear in KOrganizer's calendar view, and typing "todo:" in KRunner adds a task even when Zanshin is closed.

Running task overlay and attachments

One task can be marked as currently running, which puts an overlay at the top of the screen as a reminder of what to focus on. Tasks can also carry attachments.

KomoDo

• Free$0

  The whole application, installed from Flathub, a Linux app store such as Discover or a distribution's package manager.

Zanshin

• Free$0

  The complete desktop app, installed from Linux distribution repositories or AppStream app stores such as Discover.