Things Reviews

Pros

Things is unparalleled in one area: design-empowered usability/simplicity. Productivity tools often compete on feature sets, but Things shows that sticking to a core set of features and evolving their design can yield better results than simply adding more features. While other tools can become a chore to keep up to date, Things is a tool you want to use even after several weeks, because of its simplicity.

Of course this doesn't mean it's underpowered or lacking in features. It has most of the important hallmarks of a GTD system, and implements them in a UI that makes them accessible. No more, no less.

Cons

Thing's integration with MacOs has been its biggest shortcoming for me. While notifications work well enough, they're not powerful enough to interact with the app in a way that doesn't require you to actually open up the app. For example, the default Reminders app has a notification, which allows you to not only mark it as complete, but more importantly delay the notification, so that it pops right back up after 1hr or the next day. The Things notification on the other hand forces you to switch to the app and configure the delay with several clicks rather than just the one that it should take were the notifications to be more powerful.

Pros

I love how quick and easy it is to put down the things that I need to do every day.

I love that there is an inbox where I can do a mind dump with everything that needs to be done at some point, and then come back later when I have time and sort them into certain days to do them, or defer them for some other time.

I love that the there is a quick add feature on my desktop, as well as the quick add feature on my iPhone, so that I can quickly throw new things into the inbox when a random thought pops into my head. I always struggle with forgetting things for good if I don't write them down when they pop into my head, and this essentially solves that issue for me as I can almost always grab my phone when a though comes in and enter it into Things quickly and know that it will be there when I come back to it later.

I love the way you can use areas, headers, and projects to efficiently label and organize everything. I have multiple ongoing projects that I am working on in different areas of my life, and this makes it easy to keep them all separate, but still be able to keep track of where things are and what the next thing I need to work on is to keep things moving forward.

I love how seamlessly the iPhone app and the desktop app work together. There is no thought involved in it at all. Everything stays in perfect sync no matter if I'm working on my phone or on my computer.

Cons

The only real complaints I have about Things is the lack of any real collaboration support. It would be really useful to be able to add people to certain projects or task lists, or to assign people certain tasks in a project, and they be able to see, add, edit, and mark off tasks as they go. Or be able to have a team track along with how projects are going and what their current status is.

I see a lot of people also complain about the lack of attachments also. While this isn't something that personally affects my workflow, I can see how it would be useful, and understand why people are frustrated that it isn't supported. I think if they had an add on subscription service to allow attachments and collaboration, it would really make it one of the best programs out there.

Pros

I like the concept as I juggle a number of projects at once and need to stay organized. The search functions are powerful. The design is attractive an smart

Cons

At the end of the day I found Things to be cost prohibitive for what it does and I found other options that were better for me.

Pros

This is the best piece of software I have ever bought and I’m a heavy duty user in my job and in daily life. Things has replaced the need to use expensive project management software by providing a very simple interface with no overloading of the UI which lets you do everything while not having to go back and forth etc.

Cons

Things isn’t open source and is not free. It’s expensive when you consider 4/5x point of access but for a lifetime license it’s ok.

Pros

The visual design of things is clear and intuitive. It is easy to add and organize tasks including organizing tasks into projects/areas e.g. personal vice work. It works well with my calendar so that I can see my calendar events in things.

Cons

Primarily that I am unable to see my Things tasks in my calendar. I would very much prefer to work within my calendar including to add and remove tasks and mark tasks as complete in my calendar. Google Calendar gets close but the lack of repeat tasks and the lack of demarcation b/w tasks and reminders makes Google difficult to stay on top of.

Pros

I love how Things keeps me on track and is Synced to all my devices.

Cons

It would be good to be able to collaborate with one other person.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Choosing Things

Switched From

Reasons for Switching to Things

Pros

The aesthetics of it combined with its easy to use feature set. It is well put together. Simple and intuitive.

Cons

For me its strength lies in task managment, not project management. I would like some crossover features.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to Things

Pros

I appreciate the clean design and the fact that it is very powerful yet easy to learn and use. It is also synchronized across all my devices which allows me access wherever I go.

Cons

It is a little on the pricey side especially if you want to use it across your Mac, iPhone and iPad. However, I will say that it is worth the money.

Pros

I love the simplicity and aesthetic of Things. It is intuitive and just works. Syncing is rock solid across platforms. It has the essential features I need: Projects, Areas, tasks, notes, and tags. Headings are nice as well.

Cons

There are a few features I wish were available. I mainly wish there was a way to create some custom views or perspectives, especially with tags. I also wish there was the option for a review function.

Pros

Things is my daily companion. I open the app first thing in the morning and close it as the last one at night. It‘s super intuitive to add and view task for both short- and long-term projects.

Cons

Only a minor downside: widgets currently don‘t update automatically without opening the app. However, the interaction with the widget got way better with the last version so I‘m sure it‘s just a matter of time until background refreshs work properly

Pros

I love how there are no differences no matter what platform I use, whether it be desktop or mobile. It’s reliable, organised and easy to use

Cons

I don’t like the lack of team management features

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Choosing Things

Switched From

Reasons for Switching to Things

Pros

It is so easy to use! I have tried lots of task managers and this one works best for me, mainly because of how little there is to 'play around' with. I love the design and the integration of apps on the Mac, iPhone and iPad are great.

Cons

There are a few small things that could be changed to increase its usefulness, but most of them are 'nice to have' and don't touch on core functionality. Sequential tasks (making task 2 show up once task 1 is completed) are the most obvious missing feature. Prices are high (especially compared to some free, yet still high quality offers) but comparable to their main competitors (OmniFocus, Todoist)

Pros

Responsive and clean UI. While task managers aren't too complicated, Things has a beautiful interface and makes creating tasks a fun experience. The "magic button" which is what I call the create "+" button is a nice way to enable creation of To-dos, projects, or Areas. The default set of groupings works well, from Inbox, to Today, to Upcoming, to Anytime, then Someday. You can also create your own Areas and Projects to meet your own logical grouping. Any tasks that aren't completed get moved over to the next day. Being able to snooze a task by moving it to "tonight" is also useful. You can also configure an alarm to prompt you when you should perform a task.

Cons

Once I accidentally deleted an Area and spent a lot of time trying to find out how to undelete. I still haven't figured this out and had to recreate it from memory. There aren't any collaboration features to work on tasks with other users. Also the one time cost of the software is limited to specific clients (i.e. iOS vs MacOS).

Pros

The 'getting things done' approach works well. Areas of responsibility, projects and general tasks that can be organised in any way that suits. The today view is excellent and the app looks great. Excellent integration with the mac including the shortcuts app, email-to-task and a useful URL scheme.

Cons

You have to purchase a separate version for each platform (iOS, Mac, iPadOS) but it's a one off purchase with no subscription model. So a high price initially to get set up, but perhaps better than an annual fee! No web or Windows interface, so Apple only.

Pros

Its ease of use and the fantastic user interface and user experience. That it works perfectly with the “Getting Things Done” methodology.

Cons

The interaction with the scrollbar of the sidebar on the left side of the app window when using a mouse. It is sometimes hard to get it moving on the first try, because often you are adjusting the width of the sidebar instead.

Pros

I've bounced around from one productivity App to the next, but Things is the first and only one I've stuck with. I absolutely love the way it integrates my "To Do" lists on into my calendar on all my devices and allows me to segment tasks and projects based upon importance and immediacy. It's user interface is incredibly clean, simple and user-friendly, creating a space where even my scattered monkey mind can create a semblance of organization.

Cons

I wasn't a huge fan of having to pay additional cash money to allow the integration between both my phone and computer, but in the end, it was worth it. I'd also like it if there were more options for automated alerts that would remind me to check out my lists during the course of the day.

Pros

I've used Things for years, and it's changed my life. Any time I think "I should remember to do X later," I put it in Things and attach a date when I think I'll get around to it. When that day comes, Things gives me a reminder. Either I do that thing, or I move it to a later date. It's also easy to set up repeating tasks, e.g. to remind yourself of tasks you need to complete every month.

Cons

There's no support for search in the Logbook, where completed tasks go. Sometimes I think "Did I remember to do X?" and searching the Logbook would be the fastest way to confirm.

Pros

Well, the title is an understatement! It's much more than just a GTD system, it's a complete, full featured, beautifully designed tasking software. Each version is a big step from its predecessor. Weather it's integration with Apple ecosystem, or its ease of use, Things is PERFECT

Cons

The only thing that I like least is it's pricing model. Let's face it, it's a bit pricy, specially that they do not offer bundles. iPhone, iPad, MacBook, each require a separate purchase. But hey, it's a great app, great to the extent that this didn't turn me off

Pros

Things is clean, well-designed, and has essentially ever feature I need for a to-do app.

In general, I think this is a great app. Additionally, they've recently updated it to allow for deep-linking of some sort, however I haven't had the time to dig into that further and see what additional functionality it brings with it.

Finally, the design is great. it's clean, it's white. it's simple. You can't beat that - in the day when all apps seem to add in way too many colors, shadows, etc. and overdo it in my opinion. This one hits the mark.

Cons

The pricing structure isn't the greatest. Annual plans have never sat well with me as they don't allow for flexible lifestyles. My tech habits change much more often than annually, for example, and I'd like to onboard and offload apps accordingly.

Pros

I adore pretty much everything about this app. Task creation and management is so simple, with intuitive gestures at the forefront and powerful features tucked underneath when you need it. The experience between Mac, iPhone, and iPad is consistent and absolutely delightful.

If you have a lot of projects up in the air and want a simple way to track and manage them, absolutely get Things. It doesn't have all of the bells and whistles of some kitchen sink apps, but it's all the better for the restraint it shows.

Cons

No collaborative lists for families or teams.

A few clunky UX choices, but they are few and far between.

Pros

Love the ease of use and the cross-device syncing. It's pretty customizable with some issues.

Cons

No Windows support, no time reminders, just dates unless you set up recurring. No location dependence either.

Pros

The UI is fantastic! I use dark mode and looks great. Software is very easy to learn and use. Anyone can easily be on top of the software in no time. I use both the mac desktop app and iPhone app which are both superb. I've also got my calendar linked to the app so I also use Things as the "go-to" place to see what I have coming up on a particular day and so on.

Cons

I wish there was more customisation. For example when you receive an alert on mac, there's an "Options" button which lets you select either "Complete, Snooze for 10 minutes, Snooze for 30 minutes or Snooze for 1 hour". It would be great if we could create our own custom options here. Would just help me save some more time.

Pros

The attention to detail in the design is amazing. Everything is pixel perfect and thought through. This makes it a pleasure to use for my tasks, so I actually do use it! Task creation is easy with the system wide hot key, meaning I can jot things down quickly and file them later.

Cons

The cost is on the high side, especially with the iPad app too. But it works, so for me it's worth it. No windows version, which would be the killer move!

Pros

I love the beauty and minimalism of this application. I use this app to make to do lists, wishlists, and plan projects...basically, I use it to declutter my mind. I love how Things generates neat elegant lists so all that's left for me to do is to get to work.

Cons

The price seems steep but it's worth it. I'd like a dark mode on iPhone, but I understand that's in the works.

Pros

I have multiple projects all with many to-dos for each. I can sort by project or date due to find what's next on my list.

Cons

Sometimes I cannot get the sort feature to work correctly. I'd also like more options for how I'd like to be able to sort and a way to do projects within projects.