Plainlist
Love the bundle.
Tired of the cloud silo.
TickTick packs tasks, a calendar, a Pomodoro timer, and more into one subscription — genuinely useful, and it all lives inside TickTick's own cloud. Plainlist keeps your day and the rhythms that repeat beside it — a habit, a recurring task — in one plain-text file you own, paid once instead of roughly $36 a year.
Free trial · no account · pay once · macOS 12+
Mac-only today, with Windows, iOS, and Android coming soon. TickTick still wins on breadth of platforms and bundled tools.
Today: - draft Q3 report @brain - reply to client emails @ai 14:00 Beside the work: - morning pages - gym # Rhythms live in the same file, not a separate feature
Who this is for
The reason people leave TickTick isn't the bundle — it's where the bundle lives.
TickTick's pitch is genuinely appealing: tasks, a calendar, a Pomodoro timer, and recurring habits, all in one place. That's real convenience. But “one place” means TickTick's own cloud database — every part of that bundle only opens through TickTick, on a subscription that runs roughly $36 a year for the full feature set.
Plainlist is for the TickTick user who wants their day and what repeats beside it — a habit, a recurring task — in the same plain-text file, not a separate feature inside someone else's app. Fewer bundled tools, but the ones that matter for planning are built in, on a file you can open anywhere.
What a single file gives you
Three things one plain-text file gives you that a bundle can't.
Not “we're better” — specific things that change once your day and its rhythms share one file.
Rhythms live beside the work
A recurring habit sits in the same file as today's tasks — not a separate screen in a separate feature.
Pay once, not every year
One Mac purchase instead of an annual charge for the full bundle. No card on file to remember to cancel.
One file, not a bundle you can't export
Everything — tasks, habits, goals — is readable text you can open, back up, or move yourself.
Moving over
Migration is manual — and we won't pretend otherwise.
TickTick can export a backup from Settings, but there's no one-click import into a plain-text outline. A short active list may take minutes; years of TickTick lists and recurring tasks is a manual cleanup job. Start with what's active today, not your whole history.
Practical path
- Export or copy one active TickTick list.
- Paste into a new
.todofile. - Add
-bullets and any @tags you want.
Then plan
- Give today's tasks a
@start. - Rebuild recurring items with
@everyor@quota. - Let Done become your log.
# Reshaped from a TickTick list export Work: - draft launch copy @start(2026-07-18) @est(2h) - send onboarding email @est(15m) Beside the work: - morning pages @every(day) - gym @quota(3/week)
Supporting detail
Plainlist vs TickTick, feature by feature.
Checked July 2026 (TickTick Premium is roughly $36/yr; a free tier exists with lower limits). Re-check current pricing on TickTick's site before deciding.
@every) or weekly quota (@quota), in the same lines as your tasks.Which one is you
Plainlist is the right call if…
The switch makes sense for a specific kind of TickTick user. If this is you, the trade is worth it.
Pick Plainlist if
- You want your day and its recurring rhythms in one file, not a separate bundled feature.
- You'd rather pay once than renew a bundle subscription every year.
- You already keep notes, code, or drafts as plain text and want tasks in the same kind of file.
- You don't rely on TickTick's Pomodoro timer, Eisenhower matrix, or calendar grid.
- You work mainly on a Mac today and can wait for the other platforms.
The honest trade-off
TickTick is more bundled — a calendar, a Pomodoro timer, an Eisenhower matrix, and true cross-platform reach today. Plainlist is one file with fewer built-in tools, paid once. If you lean on TickTick's extra tools daily, staying is the right call. The full “stay with TickTick” list is right below.
Honest cons
You should NOT switch if…
TickTick does several things better than Plainlist. If any of these matter to you, staying is the right call — and that's fine.
Stay with TickTick if…
Does Plainlist have a Pomodoro timer or Eisenhower matrix like TickTick?
No. TickTick bundles a Pomodoro timer and an Eisenhower matrix view alongside tasks. Plainlist is a planner over a text file — neither of those tools exists in it.
Does Plainlist have a built-in calendar view like TickTick?
No, not a month calendar. Plainlist's Plan view organizes tasks by day or exact time, but it isn't a calendar grid the way TickTick's is.
Can I use Plainlist on Android or Windows like TickTick?
Not yet — Plainlist is Mac-only today, with Windows, iOS, and Android coming soon. TickTick already runs on iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, web, and even smartwatches.
Can I import my TickTick tasks automatically?
No. TickTick can export a backup from its settings, but there's no one-click import into Plainlist's plain-text format — you reshape it by hand.
Is there a free tier of Plainlist like TickTick's?
There's a 14-day free trial, then a one-time purchase — no ongoing free tier. TickTick's free plan covers basic use indefinitely at no cost.