The best app for mac 2021? The list of apps that help you get more done just gets bigger every year. With this collection of our favorites, you’ll be able to do everything your MacBook is capable of – and maybe more.
There are numerous options to choose from, so the information presented above is just a few examples of how to create features into benefits for your product descriptions.
Wunderlist
(Free + IAP)
One of the most popular to-do list apps, Wunderlist provides an easy daily planning for work tasks, household routine, movies to watch – literally everything you might forget. Reminders and due dates will help you avoid missing deadlines and failing to get important tasks done. Hashtags and folders simplify organization of a work process. Share your to-dos with colleagues, friends or family; comment the items and add notes to capture your ideas. The app is available for the widest range of devices: iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android, Windows, Kindle Fire and the Web.
Reminders
There’s no better place to begin this list than with an app that comes with your Mac. Reminders was overhauled in 2019 with a fresh appearance and feature set making it more robust. And with iCloud, you can sync with your other devices, so your to-dos are with you no matter where you go.
Reminders notable features:
- Share lists and to-dos with others in your home or office.
- Set up recurring tasks and alerts that are fully customizable.
- Create location-based reminders for your other devices.
- Attach files, images, and URLs.
- Add priority and notes to reminders.
If you aren’t sure which to-do list app you should try first, as a Mac owner it simply makes sense to check out Reminders. It may just have everything you need built right in and doesn’t cost a dime.
- Availability: iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch
- Cost: Free
Things (macOS, iPhone, iPad)
To-do list apps tend to fall into two categories: the complex and the minimalist. Things is somehow both.
Open Things for Mac and it looks simple: you’ve got an Inbox for your tasks and the option to add more lists. Dig a little, though, and there are all kinds of advanced tools here. There are nesting ways to organize your tasks: areas can contain tasks or projects; projects can contain tasks or headers that can also contain tasks; even tasks can contain sub-tasks if you want. It sounds confusing but it isn’t, which really speaks to how well Things is designed. There’s no right way to use this system. Use as many or as few of the organizational options given to you, however you like, to make sense of your chaotic list of tasks, choose which things you want to do today, and then do those things.
Other applications offer features like this, sure, but Things manages to do so without feeling cluttered. And as a native application with no Windows or web equivalent, Things feels very much at home on the macOS desktop. Combine this blend of functionality and beauty with features like a system-wide tool for quickly adding tasks, integration with your calendar so you can see your appointments while planning your day, intuitive keyboard shortcuts, reminders with native notifications, and syncing to an iPhone and iPad app. It’s a powerful way to organize your tasks—and then accomplish them.
Things price: The macOS version costs $49.99 but offers a 15-day free trial. The iPad version costs $19.99, and the iPhone version costs $9.99.
Todoist
(Free + IAP)
Available for almost any platform, Todoist is considered one of the best to-do list apps for work and everyday life. It offers access to your task lists from anywhere. You can share your tasks with friends, family or colleagues to get more done. Breakdown into subtasks, reminders, comments and attachments are available, as in many other apps. The fun feature is Karma that allows you to track productivity and visualize the dynamics of your achievements.
TickTick: Things & Tasks To Do
A favorite in this category of apps is TickTick. The app is also available on mobile devices so you’re always in sync. It offers a customizable appearance and flexible settings to help you manage your tasks.
TickTick notable features:
- Share lists and to-dos with others in your home or office.
- Set up recurring tasks and alerts that are fully customizable.
- Create location-based reminders for your other devices.
- Attach files, images, and URLs.
- Add priority and notes to reminders.
TickTick is a terrific app for managing your to-dos. It’s flexible, robust, attractive, and gives you everything you need at no charge.
- Availability: iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch
- Cost: Free with a premium upgrade that gives you calendar widgets, custom Smart Lists, task durations, historical statistics, and much more
GoodTask (macOS, iPhone, iPad, Watch)
Reminders is great but not exactly feature-rich. GoodTask is unique in that it uses Reminders as a backend: add anything to GoodTask, and it will show up in Reminders and vice versa. So what’s the point? GoodTask offers features that Apple doesn’t in Reminders.
First there’s Calendar integration, meaning you can see your calendar appointments and your tasks in one place. You can also create smart lists, allowing you to filter your tasks using things like tags, due dates, and locations. You’ll have to spend some time setting this up before it’s any better than Reminders, but if you’ve got a specific overview of tasks in mind, you can probably design it here. GoodTask also offers an assortment of widgets for Big Sur’s new notification center, and so far as we know, is the first app to do so.
Integration with Reminders means all your tasks sync to the iPhone and iPad without the need for any other software, though there are versions of GoodTask available for those devices if you want the same power on them. And there’s a universal keyboard shortcut for adding events—that alone might make this app worth using over Reminders. Overall, this is a nice upgrade over Apple’s default app, so check it out.
GoodTask for Mac price: $19.99 with a 14-day free trial. GoodTask is also available on Setapp, which is a $10 a month subscription service with access to dozens of Mac applications. There’s also an iPhone and iPad version available for free, with an in-app purchase of $9.99 to unlock all features.
Tasks.org
(Free + IAP)
Back then, there was an open-source to-do list app named Astrid, which was purchased and then shut down by Yahoo. The source code was still available, so user Alex decided to clone the old tool for those who were missing it, and built Tasks. The app has major Astrid features and more: task priorities, categories and tags, reminders of due and overdue tasks, synchronization with Google Tasks and customizable color schemes. Additional plugins and extensions are available as an in-app purchase.
Microsoft To Do
If you have a Microsoft account or are a former Wunderlist user, then give Microsoft To Do a try. Similar to TickTick, this app has a nice visual appearance and is super easy to use.
Microsoft To Do notable features:
- Share lists with others in your home or office.
- Set up recurring tasks and alerts that are fully customizable.
- Attach files, images, and notes.
- Add Steps to your tasks as subtasks.
- Move to-dos to the My Day view to see your daily agenda.
Microsoft To Do might be missing a feature or two that the other apps have. For instance, you can only create location-based reminders with Cortana. But if you’re only using it on Mac, that’s a feature you might not miss. And Microsoft To Do is currently completely free with no in-app purchases.
- Availability: iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android, Windows, and the web
- Cost: Free
Suru
(Free)
For many of us, a to-do list has to be attractive or we’ll never open it. Folks at Esoteric Development, the authors of Suru, definitely know that. The beautiful interface with seven color palettes is not the only advantage: this iOS app allows to break down tasks into subtasks, prioritize, structure and share your projects, and to export task lists into PDF. You can add descriptions and photos to your to-dos so nothing slips out of your mind.
Any.do
One more free task list app for Mac you should take a look at is Any.do. This app offers a terrific design, cross-platform syncing, and a built-in calendar to help you stay on track.
Any.do notable features:
- Share lists and to-dos with others in your home or office.
- Set up recurring reminders.
- Attach files, images, and notes.
- Add a priority tag for important tasks.
- Create subtasks for projects.
With Any.do, you get a simple interface that lets you concentrate on your to-dos. And you can connect your Google Calendar to stay on track with your events and appointments.
- Availability: iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android, and the web
- Cost: Free with a premium version that gives you recurring tasks, location-based reminders, colored tags and labels, and more
Google Tasks
(Free)
A simple Google Tasks manager, available for iOS and Android. It easily synchronizes with Google Calendar and Gmail, which helps you back up important tasks and access your to-do lists from anywhere. Break down tasks into subtasks, set up recurring tasks and create lists. Get reminded at the right time and place by setting up geo-reminders, like for example “remind me to take out the trash when I get home.”
Conclusion
These excellent apps for Mac can help you keep up with all your work tasks and home to-dos. Each one is a little different than the others. So make sure to look for the features you need most in a to-do list app for your Mac, and then give it a go!