Top 8 To-do List Apps iPhone

To-do list apps have steadily risen to become the most downloaded of those that currently make up the productivity category, with developers swiftly realizing that most users – whether personally or professionally – prefer to organize their tasks and indeed their days in a checklist format. I for one have always preferred to do so, since the easiest way to manage the things you need to get done throughout the day is the set up objectives and then knock them down. The most important feature of such apps though, at least in my eyes, is their cross platform capabilities: the idea of being able to access your info at the drop of a hat, no matter where you are and what platform you are using. I like having my lists and notes available and to hand at all times, and these apps are typically set up to allow that. The same goes when you consider the integration between these and other apps, and this is particularly useful when you consider work-related situations where you need to take data and hand it off to another app. Here we take a look at our absolute favorite to-do list and task management apps out there for the iPhone.

8. Todo ($4.99)

Todo is the first of these apps that seems to be built around a specific productivity system, in this case David Allen’s popular “Getting Things Done” system. This gives it a decent foundation and allows the rest of the app and its functionality to be developed accordingly. It’s a decent enough app as task management titles go, though there are a few glaring drawbacks that might turn a few users away. The app itself costs $5 at the time of writing, but basic syncing between devices (something that other apps offer as stock) costs around $20 a year and the desktop app can’t be used unless you subscribe, which is definitely a big downer. – Download from iTunes

7. Checkmark 2 ($4.99)

Checkmark 2 is certainly one of the more minimal productivity apps out there, with a clean and simple design but powerful features. The best thing about this app is its lack of clutter, which makes it easier to navigate your lists and see the things you need to see. It also has excellent location based reminders which can be set up to recall specific things when you get home from work, for example, such as remembering to walk the dog! – Download from iTunes

6. Tick ($2.99)

Tick is another to-do list app worth checking out, with a striking tile-based interface that reminds one strongly of the current Windows Phone layout; though, with a lot more color! This is really the name of the game here: the idea of being able to customize everything about your app, setting the colors, fonts, icons and even the color of the cursor on specific lists. – Download from iTunes

5. Things ($9.99)

You’ll have to decide for yourselves whether or not Things is worth the $10 price tag that I’ve seen garner no small amount of criticism, but we here at Top 8 are big fans. The app is rather simple, but includes notes, tags and due dates; you can even customize the different notifications you receive, which is a nice touch. The great thing about this app is that it provides you with what is called the Things Cloud, which of course stores your items and maintains them across all devices and platforms. There is also the opportunity to activate Reminers & Siri, which means that you can use Siri to add new tasks to Things via voice. The app has recently been updated to support the Apple Watch, for which this voice to text entry is of course very important. – Download from iTunes

4. Clear ($4.99)

Clear is an app that lives up to its name in terms of a clean and easy interface, and is one of the easiest to use if you’re worried about getting your head around this kind of productivity app for the first time. As with many of these to do list apps, the control system is very much gesture based in design, with you swiping to delete stuff, complete stuff, add stuff and even to access the menu. If you’re the kind of user that likes to personalize, then you’ll be pleased to hear that Clear comes with a handful of different color themes (around eight in all) and you can even change the sounds and vibration effects when receiving reminders. Many of these are available as separate packs that can be purchased within the app, whereas the app itself – which now supports the Apple Watch – is available from the App Store for around $5 at the time of writing. – Download from iTunes

3. Any.do (Free)

Any.do is a developer that has fast become known for offering slick apps with clean interfaces. At least, we only have their calendar app Cal to go on besides their task management app, but the results are pretty impressive. Anyone who reads this sit regularly will know that we’re suckers for a simplified, clean and elegant interface and Any.do certainly brings this to the dable. The drag and drop mechanics are fun and make it easy for even the inexperienced to work; in fact, a lot of the gesture based stuff on this app is really great, since you simply have to swipe to complete tasks or shake your device to clear any finished tasks. You can attach files and photos to given tasks and then share these with other collaborators, and while the app was designed for the iPhone you can use it on the iPad and your Mac, too.  – Download from iTunes

2. Todoist (Free)

Todoist is another universal app, and offers support on many different platforms including both the web and now the Apple Watch. The app offers task priorities with subtasks and even projects that can be set up within given projects. There are also reminders, recurring tasks such as something that you might do on a daily basis, and a lot more. The recent update for the Apple Watch brings its own added features, such as the ability to dictate notes and add new tasks simply by speaking into your device. And as all the best to-do list apps, this one is great when it comes to integration, combining with such services as Google Drive and Sunrise Calendar to allow you to easily move about  tasks between different apps. – Download from iTunes

1. Wunderlist (Free)

The market for to-do list and productivity apps in general is these days rather saturated, meaning that it’s difficult to isolate any one app and raise it above the rest as the most shining example. Each of the apps listed here are worth your time, I believe, and each will be more useful depending on what you’re looking for from this kind of app. As a personal favorite, I’d pick Wunderlist as the best of these to-do list apps, or at least the one use and rely on the most. This is the perfect example of a universal productivity app, in that it supports both web and desktop versions as well as the Apple Watch, and allows you to sync task lists seamlessly across different platforms. – Download from iTunes