OmniFocus vs Todoist
We give OmniFocus a 2.8 GPA and Todoist a 3.6, out of 4.0. OmniFocus grades higher on features. Todoist grades higher on value for money, the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
OmniFocus
Project-based task manager for Apple devices, with a web companion
Todoist
Cross-platform to-do list with natural-language task entry
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAOmniFocusGood | 3.6GPATodoistExcellent | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BA v4 Standard licence is $74.99 once, which is under two years of a typical to-do subscription. Fair if you keep it. But custom perspectives and automation need Pro at $149.99, and the subscription is $99.99 a year. | 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 | CNo free plan. You get a 14-day trial with no automatic charge when you start it from an Omni Account. After that the app turns into a viewer: you can look at your tasks but that's about it. | BFree forever, and reminders are included now. But 5 projects is tight. Work, home, one side thing and you're done. |
| Features | AProjects, folders, tags, flags, due dates and defer dates, with repeats. Forecast puts tasks next to your calendar and Review steps through projects on a schedule. Pro adds saved custom views, Focus mode and scripting. | 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 | C4.0 from about 340 App Store ratings, which is low for this category. There's a lot here: perspectives, defer dates, review cycles. It pays you back, but not on day one. | A4.8 from around 129,000 App Store ratings. Open it, type a thing, done. Nobody needs a tutorial for this. |
| Platforms and integrations | BMac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Vision Pro, plus a web version. The web one needs an Apple setup first and costs $4.99 a month on top of a licence. No Windows or Android apps, and Apple Calendar is the one listed integration. | AMac, Windows, Linux (yes, really), iPhone, Android, web, watch and browser. There's an API too if you like wiring things together. |
| Best for | running lots of projects on Apple devices | 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: OmniFocus and Todoist. How we grade
Where they differ
- OmniFocus starts at $74.99 one-time for a v4 Standard license, or $99.99 per year by subscription. Todoist starts at $5 per user / month, billed yearly.
- Todoist has a free plan. OmniFocus does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Todoist lists Windows, Linux and Android apps.
- Only Todoist lists a browser extension.
- OmniFocus is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- OmniFocus can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Todoist also covers templates, natural-language input and kanban boards.
At a glance
| OmniFocus | Todoist | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $74.99 one-time for a v4 Standard license, or $99.99 per year by subscription | $5 per user / month, billed yearly |
| Free plan | None | Beginner plan: 5 personal projects, task reminders, list and board layouts, 3 filter views and 1 week of activity history. |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial with no automatic charge when started from an Omni Account; afterwards the app is a free viewer. | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | The Omni Group | Todoist Inc. |
| Price read from | omnigroup.com | todoist.com |
| Checked | Oct 4, 2026 | Oct 4, 2026 |
Who each one suits
OmniFocus
- People managing many projects on Apple devices
- Workflows built around defer dates, tags and regular project reviews
- Buyers who want to choose between a one-time license and a subscription
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
OmniFocus
- Native apps are for Apple devices only. Web access comes with the subscription or costs $4.99 a month on top of a license.
- Custom perspectives, Focus mode and automation are Pro features and are not in the $74.99 Standard license.
- There is no free plan; after the 14-day trial the app falls back to a viewer mode.
- Education discounts do not apply to subscriptions or to purchases made through the App Store.
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
OmniFocus
- Projects, folders and tags
- Actions are grouped into projects and folders and labeled with tags, flags, due dates and defer dates. Repeat schedules handle recurring work.
- Forecast
- Shows upcoming actions together with calendar events. Calendar integration is available in the native apps but not in the web version.
- Review
- A review mode steps through projects at a regular interval, such as once a week, so that projects and goals stay current.
- Custom perspectives and Focus (Pro)
- Pro adds custom perspectives, which are saved views built from filtering and grouping rules in a perspective editor, along with Focus mode.
- Automation (Pro)
- Pro runs Omni Automation plug-ins and, on Mac, AppleScripts.
- Encrypted sync
- Syncing through the free Omni Sync Server or a server of your own is described by the vendor as end-to-end encrypted. The web version requires Omni Sync Server.
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
OmniFocus
OmniFocus for the Web Subscription$4.99
per month, or $49.99 per year
Browser access as an add-on. Requires an existing OmniFocus setup on Mac, iPad, iPhone or Apple Vision Pro.
v4 Standard License$74.99
one-time purchase
Version 4 with all 4.x updates on Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Apple Vision Pro, with the standard feature set.
OmniFocus Subscription$99.99
per year
The latest Pro version on Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Apple Vision Pro plus web access, with no charge for major version upgrades.
v4 Pro License$149.99
one-time purchase
Version 4 with all 4.x updates, plus the Pro features: custom perspectives, Focus mode and automation.
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
OmniFocus
- Lifetime license
One-time v4 license instead of a subscription
A v4 Standard ($74.99) or Pro ($149.99) license is bought once and kept, with all 4.x updates included, as an alternative to the $99.99 yearly subscription.
- Education
Education pricing on licenses
Staff, faculty and students of accredited educational organizations can buy discounted licenses from Omni's Educational Store. Subscriptions and App Store purchases are excluded.
- Other savings
Quantity discount on perpetual licenses
Each license beyond the first in the same transaction takes a further 5% off the whole order, up to 30%. The discount is not available on subscriptions.
- Other savings
Family sharing through an Omni Account
A personal license or subscription can unlock the apps for immediate family members living in the same household. OmniFocus for the Web access cannot be shared.
- Other savings
Upgrade pricing for owners of versions 1 to 3
The purchase page says upgrade discounts are available. The App Store listing shows upgrades from v1-v3 at $37.49 for v4 Standard and $74.99 for v4 Pro, half the full license prices.
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.
