Taskwarrior vs Todo.txt
We give Taskwarrior a 3.4 GPA and Todo.txt a 3.2, out of 4.0. Taskwarrior grades higher on features. They get the same grade 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.
Todo.txt
Plain-text to-do list format with an open-source command-line tool
Free
How we grade them
| 3.4GPATaskwarriorVery good | 3.2GPATodo.txtVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AFree and open source under the MIT license, with no paid edition. The project takes donations through GitHub Sponsors. The only bill you might see is for sync, since the docs say a cloud storage bucket carries a small cost. | AThe todo.sh script and the format are free and open source under the GNU General Public License v3.0. There's no paid version of either. Your whole outlay is a text file. |
| Free plan and trial | AThe whole program is free. There's no paid edition, so nothing is locked. Filters, reports, hooks and custom fields are all yours from the first command. | AAll of it is free: the full command-line script and the open format. With no paid version, nothing is fenced off. And since the list is a plain file, you can walk away with it any time. |
| Features | AMore than 20 standard attributes per task, filters you combine on the command line, contexts that stay switched on, and an urgency score built from a dozen or more factors. Hook scripts and your own fields bend it to any workflow, and everything moves in and out as JSON. | BOne task per line, with (A) for priority, +Project and @context. The script adds, completes, sorts and archives to done.txt, and takes custom actions and add-ons. Small, and it does that fully. But the core format has no due dates of its own: they rely on key:value conventions set by each tool. |
| Ease of use | CIt's a command-line program, so you learn commands before you add your first task. Sync is more work again: you run a TaskChampion sync server or set up a cloud storage bucket yourself. Fine if you live in a terminal, hard going if you don't. | CThe official tool is a shell script, so you add and finish tasks by typing commands like add and do. The README gives install steps only for macOS and Linux. You can also just edit the file in any text editor, which is easy, but then you're doing it all by hand. |
| Platforms and integrations | BMac and Linux, and Windows only through the Windows Subsystem for Linux or MSYS2. Sync goes through a TaskChampion server or an AWS or Google Cloud bucket. The project ships no graphical, web or mobile app. Those are separate community tools. | BThe script runs on Mac and Linux, and on Windows under Cygwin, and there are editor plugins for Vim, Visual Studio Code and Sublime Text. The project's own Android and iOS apps were archived in December 2020, so phone and web apps come from the community. |
| Best for | running your to-do list from a terminal | a to-do list that's just a text file |
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: Taskwarrior and Todo.txt. How we grade
Where they differ
- Taskwarrior is free. Todo.txt is free.
- Only Todo.txt lists a Windows app.
In commonFree planmacOSLinuxOpen sourceWorks offlineLocal-firstKeyboard-firstTasks
At a glance
| Taskwarrior | Todo.txt | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| Free plan | The whole program is free and open source under the MIT license, with no paid edition. The project takes donations through GitHub Sponsors. | The todo.sh script and the todo.txt format are free and open source under the GNU General Public License v3.0, with no paid version. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| Made by | Gothenburg Bit Factory | Gina Trapani and the Todo.txt community |
| Price read from | taskwarrior.org | github.com |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Taskwarrior
- People who work in a terminal and want to manage tasks by typing
- Keeping task data in a local database, with sync as an option
- Scripting a personal workflow with hooks and custom fields
Todo.txt
- People who want their task list in a file they fully control
- Command-line users who add and complete tasks from a shell
- Using several apps and editors against one shared text file
Worth knowing
Taskwarrior
- The project ships only a command-line program. Graphical, web and mobile front ends are separate community tools.
- On Windows it runs through the Windows Subsystem for Linux or MSYS2; Cygwin is no longer supported.
- No hosted sync service is included: you run a TaskChampion sync server or configure a cloud storage bucket yourself.
- Since version 3.0 the docs warn that file-sync tools such as Syncthing or rsync can corrupt task data and are unsupported.
Todo.txt
- The official tool is a command-line script. The project's own Android and iOS apps were archived on GitHub in December 2020.
- The core format covers priority, dates, projects and contexts only. Due dates and other fields rely on key:value conventions set by each tool.
- No sync is built in; the README suggests placing the todo.txt directory on a cloud drive.
- On Windows the script is listed as tested under Cygwin, and the README gives install steps only for macOS and Linux.
Key features
Taskwarrior
- Task commands in the terminal
- Tasks are added, modified and completed with short task commands, and carry attributes such as project, tags, priority and due date out of more than 20 standard ones.
- Filters, reports and contexts
- Reports list tasks through filters you combine on the command line. A context is a named filter that stays active, for example to show only work tasks.
- Urgency score
- Each task gets a numeric urgency score summed from a dozen or more factors such as priority, and the next report sorts tasks by it.
- Sync between replicas
- The task sync command exchanges changes with a TaskChampion sync server, an AWS or Google Cloud storage bucket, a local file or a git repository.
- Hooks and user defined attributes
- Hook scripts in any language run at set events in the program, and user defined attributes add your own fields that can be stored, sorted and shown in reports.
- JSON import and export
- Task data moves in and out through a documented JSON format, which the community tools listed on the project's Tools page build on.
Todo.txt
- One task per line of plain text
- A todo.txt file holds a single task on each line, so it can be read, searched, sorted and edited in any text editor on any operating system.
- Priorities, projects and contexts
- A leading (A) to (Z) sets priority, and +Project and @context markers can sit anywhere in the line. Tools may add key:value pairs such as due:2010-01-02.
- todo.sh command-line script
- Actions such as add, do, pri, append and replace change the file from a shell, and list shows the tasks matching your terms sorted by priority.
- Archiving and reports
- The archive action moves completed tasks from todo.txt to done.txt, and report records the number of open and done tasks in report.txt.
- Add-ons and custom actions
- The script loads custom actions from an actions directory, and the project wiki keeps a directory of add-ons and filters written by community members.
- Community apps and editor plugins
- The project site lists community-built apps for Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and the web, plus editor plugins, that all read the same file.
Plans
Taskwarrior
Free$0
The full command-line program under the MIT license. Sync needs your own server or a cloud storage bucket, which the docs say carries a small cost.
Todo.txt
Free$0
The full todo.sh command-line script and the open todo.txt format, under the GNU General Public License v3.0.
