Todoist Review 2026: The Cross-Platform Workhorse, Karma System Included

Todoist has been one of the two or three most-recommended task managers in the personal productivity world for over a decade, and it has earned the position with a combination of reliability, cross-platform parity, and a natural-language date parser that still sets the category standard. It is also now heavier than it used to be, priced on a subscription that has climbed, and saddled with a gamification system that I cannot defend with a straight face.

What Todoist is

A task manager. Projects, sub-projects, tasks, sub-tasks, labels, filters, reminders, comments, and a natural-language date parser. Available on iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Linux, and web. Syncs flawlessly between them. Shared projects with team members.

What Todoist does well

Cross-platform parity. Every feature works on every platform. This is rarer than it should be — most productivity apps have a "primary" platform and "second-class" elsewhere. Todoist does not.

Natural-language input. Type "buy milk Tuesday 5pm" and Todoist parses it. Type "call mom every other Sunday" and Todoist handles the recurrence. The parser handles compound dates, times, and recurrences better than any other task manager I've tested.

Reliability. I have never lost a task in Todoist. Sync is reliable. Offline mode works. Push notifications arrive.

Collaboration. Shared projects, task assignment, comments. For small teams or couples coordinating logistics, Todoist's collaboration is solid — not best-in-class for teams (Asana wins that) but good enough.

Integrations. Todoist integrates with nearly everything — Google Calendar, Slack, Gmail, Zapier, IFTTT, plus native integrations for Apple Reminders sync. For users who want their task manager to talk to the rest of their stack, Todoist covers the most ground.

Where Todoist falls short

Weight. Todoist in 2026 is heavier than Todoist in 2020. More features, more surface area, more places to customize. For users who want a clean, considered task manager, Things wins this comparison.

Karma. Todoist's Karma system assigns points for completing tasks and takes them away for postponing. The intent is gamification; the reality is that it quietly nudges you to check off tasks for points rather than for meaningful completion. Most serious users ignore it. The feature should probably be retired.

AI features. Todoist's AI features (task suggestions, re-wording, prioritization help) are underwhelming. They are not better than pasting a task list into ChatGPT.

Free tier. Todoist's free tier has tightened over time. Five active personal projects, limited filters, no reminders. For casual users the free tier still works; for serious users the Pro subscription is close to mandatory.

Aesthetic. Todoist is fine-looking. It is not beautiful. Users who care about how their tools feel will find Things, Amie, or even Apple Reminders more satisfying to live in.

The honest Karma assessment

I want to spend a minute on Karma because users ask. Karma awards points for completing tasks, taking them away for postponing, with levels (Beginner, Novice, Intermediate, Professional, Expert, Master, Grandmaster, Enlightened). The underlying behavior Karma rewards — completing tasks — is real. The variable Karma encourages you to optimize, points, is not.

In my own use, Karma never changed my task completion rate. I turned it off two years ago and forgot about it. No one who cares about getting things done should spend more than thirty seconds thinking about Karma.

Pricing

Free tier is functional for light users (5 active projects, 3 filters, no reminders). Pro is $5/month or $48/year, which adds unlimited projects, reminders, and more features. Business is $8/user/month for team features.

Who should use Todoist

• Cross-platform users (iOS + Windows, Android + Mac, etc.)
• Couples or small teams sharing task lists
• Users who want a reliable, widely-integrated task manager
• Users who need natural-language date parsing

Who should not use Todoist

• Apple-only users who want the prettiest option (use Things)
• Users who want minimalism (use Apple Reminders)
• Serious GTD practitioners (use OmniFocus)
• Users who want tasks and calendar on one surface (use Amie)

Bottom line

Todoist is the best cross-platform task manager in the category and a perfectly fine tool for most users who end up there. It is not the most beautiful, and it is not the lightest, and the Karma gamification is a relic. For users who actually need cross-platform parity and deep integrations, Todoist earns its position in the recommendation set.