TickTick vs Upbase (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick TickTick: it is second in our ranking of to-do list apps, and it grades higher too, 3.4 against 2.0.
Checked Oct 4, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
TickTick grades higher on value for money, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
TickTick
To-do list with a calendar, habit tracker and Pomodoro timer built in
Upbase
Client work management with a personal daily planner
Which one is for you
Pick TickTick if
- Fits if you want tasks, habits and a focus timer in one app, not three
- Works for people who move between Windows, Mac, Linux and a phone and want the same lists on all of them
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you're staying free, with 9 lists, 99 tasks a list, 5 habits, 2 reminders a task and 1 attachment a day
- Not for you if you want every calendar view, task durations or email reminders without paying
- Skip it if you share a list with a crowd, since it's 2 members on free and 29 on Premium
- Watch out: the site sells Premium only at $49.99 a year, and the $4.99 monthly option is on the App Store
- Watch out: location-based reminders are listed as iOS only
Pick Upbase if
- Fits if you run a small agency and want clients to see their own tasks as guests
- Works for solo planners who want time blocking and can stay inside 5 projects
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you pay per person: $10 a user a month, against a typical $3.99 for this category
- Tight if you stay free, because it's 5 projects and 3 guests
- Too light for you if you want recurring tasks or reminders without paying, as both are Premium
- Watch out: each workspace is upgraded and charged separately
- Watch out: the pricing page shows no monthly-billed per-user price, only $10 a user
How we grade them
| 3.4GPATickTickVery good | 2.0GPAUpbaseFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPremium is $49.99 a year, about $4.17 a month, which sits in the middle of what this category charges rather than below it. It buys 299 lists, multiple calendar views, task durations and 299 habits. The site sells it by the year only; the App Store also lists $4.99 monthly. | D$10 per user a month on yearly billing, when this category's dearest tenth starts at $9. The flat Unlimited plan is $99 a month, and a team of five on Premium pays $50 a month. |
| Free plan and trial | BFree for good, with sync across devices, list and kanban views and a basic calendar. 9 lists and 99 tasks a list is enough that one person could really live here, though 5 habits, 2 reminders a task and 1 attachment a day are tighter. | CFree forever, with unlimited tasks, time tracking and the planner. But 5 projects and 3 guests is a cap you'll hit, and Premium has a 14-day trial. |
| Features | AType a task and it picks out the date, or just say it out loud. Show a list as a board, a timeline or an Eisenhower matrix. Then the calendar, the habit tracker, the Pomodoro timer and shared lists with tasks assigned. It covers the whole job and bundles three things rivals sell separately. | CList, board and calendar views, time blocking, client guests, time tracking and Google Calendar sync. Recurring tasks, reminders and custom fields need Premium, and API access is listed as in progress. |
| Ease of use | A4.9 from 46,196 App Store ratings. Dates and times are recognized as you type, so adding a task doesn't mean filling in a form. | CProjects, views and client guests all have to be set up before it is useful. No store rating is on record. |
| Platforms and integrations | AWeb, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android and a browser extension, and it connects to Notion and Google Calendar. One catch: location-based reminders are listed as iOS only. | BWeb, iPhone, Android and a browser extension, with Google Calendar, Docs, Sheets and Slides. No desktop app is listed. |
| Best for | tasks, habits and a focus timer in one app | client work plus a daily planner |
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: TickTick and Upbase. How we grade
Price against what you get
TickTick starts at $4.17 a month when paid by the year and scores 4.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Upbase starts at $10 a month for each person and scores 2.3.
TickTick scores higher and starts $5.83 a month lower. Of the other to-do list apps on the chart, none scores higher than TickTick for less, and 44 score higher than Upbase for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- TickTick also covers natural-language input, Pomodoro timer and habit tracking.
- Upbase also covers time blocking and time tracking.
At a glance
| TickTick | Upbase | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $49.99 per year (about $4.17 per month) | $10 per user / month, billed yearly |
| Free plan | 9 lists, 99 tasks per list, 5 habits, 2 reminders per task and 1 attachment per day, with list and kanban views, a basic calendar view and sync across devices. | Unlimited tasks, 5 projects, 3 free guests, unlimited members and storage, time tracking and the daily planner. |
| Free trial | None listed | 14-day free trial of Premium |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Appest Inc. | Upbase |
| Price read from | ticktick.com | upbase.io |
| Checked | Oct 4, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
TickTick
- The free plan is capped at 9 lists, 99 tasks per list, 5 habits and 1 attachment per day.
- Multiple calendar views, task duration and email reminders are listed as Premium features.
- The pricing page shows Premium only as a $49.99 annual plan; a $4.99 monthly option appears on the App Store listing.
- Location-based reminders are listed as iOS only.
Upbase
- The free plan stops at 5 projects and 3 guests; recurring tasks, reminders and custom fields need Premium.
- The pricing page does not show a monthly-billed per-user price, only $10 per user a month at the default view.
- Per-user plans are charged per workspace, so each workspace is upgraded separately.
- API access is listed as in progress.
Key features
TickTick
- Typed and spoken task capture
- Dates and times are recognized as a task is typed. Voice Capture turns speech into one or more tasks and uses AI to pull out dates and priorities.
- Calendar views
- Yearly, monthly, weekly, multi-day, multi-week and agenda views show tasks alongside subscribed calendars. The free plan has a basic calendar view; Premium lists multiple views.
- Kanban, timeline and matrix
- A list can be shown as a kanban board, as a timeline for tasks that have a duration, or as an Eisenhower matrix that sorts tasks by urgency and importance.
- Pomodoro timer
- Work on a task in 25-minute focus intervals. Statistics report focus time next to completed tasks and habit logs.
- Habit tracker
- Habits are logged and charted in the same app as tasks. The free plan allows 5 habits and Premium allows 299.
- Shared lists
- Share a list with other people and assign tasks to them. The member count is 2 on the free plan and 29 on Premium.
Upbase
- Daily and weekly planner
- Drag tasks onto days of a weekly planner, block out time for each one, and see the team's schedule in one view.
- Client dashboard and guests
- Clients are added as guests who see only what is shared with them. Free includes 3 guests; Premium has unlimited.
- Tasks in list, board and calendar views
- Tasks are unlimited on every plan, with custom fields, recurring tasks and reminders on the paid plans.
- Time tracking and timesheets
- Track time on tasks on every plan. Timesheets are part of Premium and Unlimited.
- Google Calendar two-way sync
- Shows Upbase tasks and Google Calendar events together. The comparison table lists it for Premium and Unlimited.
Plans
TickTick
Free$0
9 lists with 99 tasks each, list and kanban views, date recognition as you type, task reminders and cross-platform sync.
Premium$49.99
per year
299 lists with 999 tasks each, multiple calendar views, task duration, email reminders, themes and 299 habits.
Upbase
Free$0
Unlimited tasks, 5 projects, 3 free guests, list, board and calendar views, daily planner and time tracking.
Premium$10
per user / month, billed yearly (monthly price not shown)
Unlimited projects and guests, custom fields, automations, recurring tasks, reminders, timesheets, AI assistant.
Unlimited$99
per month for unlimited users, billed yearly ($119 billed monthly)
The Premium features at a flat price for every user in a single workspace.
Ways to pay less
TickTick
- Education
25% off Premium for students, faculty and staff
Eligible students, faculty and staff can apply with proof of status for 25% off one year of Premium. TickTick lists the price after the discount as $37.99.
- Annual discount
Annual billing costs about 17% less than monthly
The App Store listing shows Premium at $4.99 monthly or $49.99 annually, so a year paid up front costs about 17% less than 12 monthly payments ($59.88).
Upbase
- Annual discount
Yearly billing lowers the flat plan to $99
The Unlimited plan is $119 per month billed monthly or $99 per month billed yearly, according to the pricing page FAQ.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, TickTick or Upbase?
As of Nov 13, 2026, TickTick starts at $49.99 per year (about $4.17 per month), and Upbase starts at $10 per user / month, billed yearly. One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, TickTick or Upbase?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both TickTick and Upbase have a free plan.
Which platforms do TickTick and Upbase run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only TickTick lists macOS, Windows and Linux apps. Both list a web app, iOS and Android apps and a browser extension. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.