If you're searching "3ThingsPal vs Todoist," you're really asking whether the answer to your to-do chaos is a better system or a smaller one. Todoist is one of the most capable task managers ever made — a "second brain" trusted by 50 million people. 3ThingsPal is the deliberately tiny to-do list we make for ADHD brains: three tasks a day, and no room for a backlog.
This is an honest comparison — Todoist is genuinely great software, and for a lot of people it's the right pick. Here's how to tell which camp you're in.
The core difference: organize everything vs finish three things
- Todoist is a power planner. Projects, labels, filters, priorities, natural-language due dates, recurring tasks, collaboration — it can model your entire life and work. The more you put in, the more it can do.
- 3ThingsPal is a constraint. You pick three tasks for today. That's the ceiling. Instead of organizing an ever-growing list, you protect your attention by keeping the day small and finishable — a design built specifically around ADHD overwhelm.
3ThingsPal vs Todoist at a glance
| Todoist | 3ThingsPal | |
|---|---|---|
| Built around | Organizing everything | Finishing three things today |
| Best for | Projects, work, power users | ADHD overwhelm & daily focus |
| List size | Unlimited tasks & projects | Three tasks a day, on purpose |
| Structure | Labels, filters, priorities | One short list, no backlog |
| Privacy | Cloud account & sync | Simple, private on your device |
| Pricing | Free tier + Pro (~$4/mo) | Free, simple to start |
Where Todoist wins
Todoist is superb, and we mean that. If you manage real projects, juggle work and personal tasks, collaborate with a team, or love systems like filters and labels, Todoist gives you power that a three-task app simply won't. Its natural-language input ("every Monday at 9am") and cross-platform sync are best-in-class. For people who thrive on organizing, it's the better tool — and you should use it.
Where 3ThingsPal fits better
Choose a deliberately tiny list like 3ThingsPal if:
- Your Todoist inbox has become a guilt pile of things you'll never do.
- Every new feature is one more thing to configure instead of finish.
- You have ADHD (or just get overwhelmed) and need the day to feel small and reachable.
- You want three clear tasks, not a system to maintain — kept simple and private on your device.
"I set up the perfect Todoist for two weeks, then spent a month avoiding it because the list only ever grew. Three things a day is the first list I've actually finished."
The bottom line
Todoist answers "help me organize everything." 3ThingsPal answers "help me stop drowning and just do today." If more structure genuinely helps you, Todoist is excellent. But if every capable planner you've tried eventually became another backlog to feel bad about, the fix isn't a better system — it's a smaller one.
Frequently asked questions
Is 3ThingsPal a good Todoist alternative for ADHD?
It's a good alternative if Todoist's flexibility becomes the problem. Todoist is a powerful task manager with projects, labels, filters, and priorities — great for organizing a lot. For ADHD brains, that same power often turns into an endless, guilt-inducing backlog. 3ThingsPal deliberately caps you at three tasks a day, so instead of managing a giant list you just pick what matters and finish it.
Why only three tasks a day in 3ThingsPal?
The three-task limit is the whole point, not a missing feature. Open-ended lists reward adding tasks, and for people who get overwhelmed easily the backlog becomes a source of shame rather than momentum. Limiting the day to three forces prioritization, makes "done" actually reachable, and protects you from the ever-growing list that Todoist and similar apps make it easy to build.
Can 3ThingsPal handle work projects like Todoist?
No, and that's intentional. If you need sub-tasks, shared projects, team collaboration, natural-language scheduling, or filters, Todoist is the better tool and we'd point you there. 3ThingsPal is for daily focus, not project management — its job is to keep today small and finishable, so it stays private and simple on your device instead of trying to organize your entire life.
Just three things today. That's it.
Trade the endless backlog for a list you can actually finish. Simple, private, and built for brains that overwhelm easily.
Download 3ThingsPal on the App Store →Related: 3ThingsPal vs Structured, 7 ADHD To-Do Apps Worth Trying, and why guilt-based focus apps backfire. Questions? Email us.