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Although there are many to-do list apps, they’re not all created equally. I’ve experimented with dozens, but I finally stopped searching after I tried Things 3. I heard about the app on a podcast, and I now can’t imagine my life without it. Here’s why.
What Is Things 3?
Things 3 is a to-do list app created by Cultured Code. It replaced Things 2 in 2017 and is a paid-for app available on macOS, iOS, the Vision Pro, iPadOS, and watchOS. The cost varies depending on which device you purchase it for (I’ll speak more about that shortly).
Things 3 is currently available for Apple devices only. The app offers checklists, descriptions, a search function, and various other features.
What You Can Do With Things 3
Things 3 lets you create several categories and divide your tasks accordingly. You can add single checklists, but if you have a lot of things that need completing, you can add subtasks to a task. I normally do this when I have several articles to write or I’m editing photos.
Another thing you’re able to do in Things 3 is view the tasks on your to-do list based on their deadlines. You can select from several views:
Things 3 also integrates with Apple Reminders and Apple Calendar. Using the former, you can decide from where in the Reminders app you want to import your to-dos.
How to Get Things 3
you’re able to download Things 3 from the App Store on your Apple device, and you’ll pay for it straight away. Every app is a one-time purchase.
If you get Things 3 for your iPhone, the same license will work on your Apple Watch. For visionOS, iPadOS, and macOS, you need to buy the app on each device.
Pricing varies depending on where you live, but in the US, costs are as follows:
iOS/watchOS
you’re able to get a free Mac app trial, but this isn’t the case for the other available devices.
Download:Things 3 foriOS/watchOS|macOS|iPadOS|visionOS(All paid, pricing varies)
Why Things 3 Is the Best To-Do List App I’ve Used
Now that I’ve explained the basics of Things 3, I’ll go into further detail about why I love using this app.
1. Tasks Automatically Move to the Next Day if Not Completed
Tasks automatically moving to the following day was one of the main reasons I chose Things 3. I’ve used several apps in the past that do something similar by marking the task as “overdue.” To be honest with you, I’m more likely to feel overwhelmed when I see lots of overdue tasks than I am if I just see a big to-do list that needs chipping away at.
While I could change the date in other apps so that the task was no longer overdue, I’d prefer not to have the extra manual work. I’ve found that I’m much more productive than I was before using Things 3, and I have also gotten better at spreading my tasks over the whole week. You can use Things 3 even better by following thesetips to build a more effective to-do list.
2. It’s Much Easier to Divide Work and Personal Life
I always used to put my work tasks in a to-do list, but I never did the same for my personal life or my photography business. Unsurprisingly, I was much more overwhelmed in those two areas—and I overcompensated by piling more work onto my plate.
Other to-do list appsalso have some form of categorization, but they’re nowhere near as intuitive as Things 3 in my opinion. I know that you can manually categorize sections in Notion or Google Docs, but I have better things to do with my time. Things 3’s Areas feature lets me create lists that clearly differentiate my tasks. This makes it easy to work through them as and when I need to.
I also use lists in Things 3 to outline and schedule tasks related to developing products for my photography business (I’m working on Lightroom presets at the time of writing this, for example). I also use this feature for tasks related to language learning. You can add your own emojis, but this isn’t necessary. You can easily move tasks to different categories, too.
I sometimes have longer-term projects to work on, and when I don’t know the exact date for these, I add them to a project instead of an area. It doesn’t matter how you use these; I just use them in this order because it’s easier for me.
3. Copy and Paste Tasks With Minimal Fuss
Besides categorizing tasks into different categories, I love how easy Things 3 makes it to plan my entire week. Rather than creating lots of new assignments, I copy and paste one before editing the details. Then, I add them to a different day via theUpcomingtab.
you may also copy and paste tasks if you only want to plan one day. It’ll take a lot of manual work out of your planning, and if you accidentally create one too many assignments, hit the backspace button and it’ll disappear. You can get severalideas to create a more effective weekly plan.
4. The Interface Is Cleaner Than Many To-Do List Apps
Aesthetics are very important to me, but not if they sacrifice functionality. Things 3 strikes an excellent balance between both. It’s sleek and minimal, but it also has all the features you need. It’s well-laid out, too, meaning that you’ll enjoy using the app.
The app also has simple tabs for logged items (i.e. everything you’ve completed).
Is There Anything I Don’t Like About Things 3?
While I’ve spoken highly about Things 3, it’s not quite perfect. By far my biggest dislike is that you need to purchase separate licenses for each device. I ultimately decided that this was a trade-off I was willing to accept for the other benefits I’ve discussed; I just use Todoist on my smartphone and tablet for quick tasks and reminders. However, you need to decide if you’re willing to deal with this.
You might have reservations about getting Things 3 if you use any non-Apple devices (e.g. a Windows computer or an Android smartphone/tablet). If you’re looking for something that syncs with all of your devices, I’d probably recommend TickTick, Microsoft To Do, or Todoist instead.
