A simple Todoist alternative for a short, quiet list

People look for a Todoist alternative for two opposite reasons. Some want more. Many want less. This guide is for the second group: people who opened Todoist, set up a few projects, and now mostly use it as a short list they feel slightly guilty about.

What Todoist is built for

Start by being fair. Todoist is a strong, mature task manager. It describes itself as a way to get tasks "out of your head and organized in one trusted place", and it backs that up with a lot of capability:

• Quick Add with natural language, so typing "every Friday" sets a recurring date.
• Due dates, recurring dates and reminders.
• Projects, sections and subtasks for breaking work down.
• Labels, priorities and filters for custom views across projects.
• List, calendar and board views.
• Collaboration: shared projects, task assignment and comments.
• Apps almost everywhere, plus browser extensions and many integrations.

If you use that structure, Todoist earns its place. Filters like "everything urgent due today across all projects" are genuinely useful when your work spans many areas and deadlines.

Why some people want less

The same power has a cost: it asks for decisions. Which project does this go in? Which label? Which priority? What date? Each question is small. Together they turn a two-second thought into a small filing job, and small filing jobs are exactly what you skip when you are busy.

A few signs that you might want a simpler list:

• Most of your projects have two tasks in them, or none.
• You set due dates you then move, again and again.
• You mute the reminders, or feel a small dread when they arrive.
• You open the app mainly to add something and close it quickly.
• Your real list is five to ten things, and the rest is decoration.

What you give up with a simple list

Switching to a simple to do list app means giving up real features. Be clear about which ones matter to you.

• Dates and reminders. Nothing will ping you. If a bill must be paid on the 15th, a simple list will not tell you.
• Projects and labels. One list, not many.
• Shared projects. A personal list is personal.
• Views. No calendar, no board.
• Everywhere access. Fewer platforms than a tool that has been around for years.

What you gain

A good Todoist alternative for this kind of list is mostly about what it leaves out. Here is what that buys you.

• Capture in a second. Type the thing, tap plus, done. No choices.
• A list that stays short. Checked items leave the list, so what you see is what is left.
• Quiet. No notifications to manage or mute.
• Less to maintain. There is no system to keep tidy, so there is no system to fall behind on.

The guide on a minimalist to do list explains how to keep a list like this useful without adding structure back.

When to stay with Todoist

Stay if any of these are true:

• You rely on recurring tasks and reminders to run your week.
• You share projects with other people and assign work.
• You use filters, labels or the calendar view regularly.
• You need your list on Android, the web or a desktop computer.

In those cases a simpler app will feel like a downgrade, because it is one. You could also try using less of Todoist: one project, no labels, no dates. If that works, you have your simple list without moving anything.

How to move a short list over

If you decide to switch, keep it manual and small:

1. Open Todoist and look at what is due or overdue, plus anything you starred as a priority.
2. Add only the things you would genuinely do in the next two weeks to the new list.
3. Leave the rest behind for a month. If you do not miss something, it did not need a list.
4. Anything with a hard date goes into a calendar or a reminder, not the list.

Where Very Simple Todo fits

Very Simple Todo is the short, quiet list end of the spectrum. One row at the top to type a todo. A big checkbox, and checked todos leave the open list, with a filter if you want to see what is done. A star for the urgent ones, which sort first. A note under any row for details, search, and a home-screen widget. No reminders, no due dates, no projects, no sharing.

One thing it adds: your AI agent can connect. In Claude you add it as a connector, and Claude can read the list, add todos and check them off when you say they are done. It deletes only when you ask.

If less is what you were looking for, Very Simple Todo is a simple to do list app that stays quiet. It is on iPhone today, costs $0.99 a month, and the first month is free.