Inflow is a well-made ADHD app built on cognitive behavioral therapy — structured modules, an AI companion, live body-doubling sessions and habit programs you work through over time, on a subscription. For people who want guided, educational support, it's genuinely good. But it's also a commitment, and not everyone wants a course; some just want help getting through the day. If you're looking for an Inflow alternative for ADHD, here's what Inflow actually costs, when it's worth paying, and five alternatives worth a look — starting with the simplest.
Is Inflow free? What it costs and when it's worth it
Three questions land on this page more than any other, so here are the straight answers.
Is Inflow free? No. It's free to download and there's a 7-day free trial, but the program itself is behind a subscription. Inflow's own FAQ is unusually decent about the trial trap: it says it refunds people who forget to cancel, and it runs an access program for people who can't afford the price. Still, there is no free tier — if you want an ADHD app you can use for nothing indefinitely, that's the alternatives below.
How much does Inflow cost? Inflow sells a monthly and an annual subscription, and it doesn't publish the number on its website — you see it at checkout, and it varies by country and platform. It's listed in the App Store under Health & Fitness rather than Productivity, and it's priced like a health program rather than a to-do app, which is consistent with what it is. Two practical notes from its cancellation instructions: cancel at least 24 hours before the renewal date, and deleting the app does not cancel the subscription — you have to do it in your Apple Account's Subscriptions screen.
Is Inflow worth it? It depends whether you want to be taught or to get things done. Inflow's value is the program: the CBT-style modules on focus, time management, emotional regulation and rejection sensitivity, the Quinn AI companion for breaking tasks down, and the live coworking rooms. If you're newly or late diagnosed and nobody has ever explained the mechanics of your brain, that's the whole point and it can be worth a therapy-adjacent price. If you've already done that work — or your problem is simply that you freeze at a wall of tasks every morning — you'd be paying for content you may not open twice. That's the case for an alternative, and which one depends on where your day actually breaks. We compared it head-to-head with the best-known visual planner in Inflow vs Tiimo.
1. 3ThingsPal — the radically simple daily list
If Inflow felt like too much, 3ThingsPal is the opposite end of the spectrum. You pick three things for today — that's the entire app. No curriculum, no streak pressure, no growing backlog of unfinished tasks. Your three things sit on a Lock Screen widget and Live Activity as a gentle external brain, so the next step is always one glance away. It's free to start with an optional upgrade, needs no account, and it's the pick for people who don't want to manage a system, they just want to start.
Skip it if you want to be coached. There's no course here, on purpose.
2. Tiimo — the visual planner for time blindness
If your wall is time blindness — knowing what to do but not when, or not being able to begin — a visual, time-based planner helps, and Tiimo is the best-known one built for neurodivergent users. It lays the day out as colour-coded blocks with a focus timer, an AI co-planner that groups and prioritises a brain-dump, Apple Calendar and Reminders sync, and widgets for the Lock Screen. There's a real free tier on iOS and Android; Tiimo Pro unlocks everything including the web planner, and the seven-day trial is on the yearly plan only. It's the strongest Inflow alternative when structure, not coaching, is what you're missing.
Skip it if planning the day is itself the thing you avoid — a timeline you have to fill is still a timeline.
3. Todoist or TickTick — the flexible task manager
If you actually like organising and need one trusted place for everything — work, home, projects — a full task manager is a fair swap. Todoist is the cleaner capture-and-organise tool; TickTick bundles a calendar, Pomodoro timer and habit tracker into the same app. Both have free plans that cover one person's tasks. Go in knowing the risk: for many ADHD brains the list grows into a guilt-inducing backlog, and the app that holds everything becomes the app you stop opening. We wrote up the visual-versus-list trade-off in Tiimo vs Todoist.
Skip it if your last three task apps died of backlog. A fourth one will too.
4. A habit or coaching app — if the coaching was the point
If what you valued in Inflow was the education and the accountability, the closest alternatives are other CBT- or habit-focused programs, and they'll also tend to be subscription-based, since the value is in the guided content. Two honest checks before you switch: whether the new app teaches something Inflow didn't, and whether you finished Inflow's modules in the first place. If you didn't, the problem probably wasn't the curriculum. Worth it if you want to be taught; overkill if you just want a daily nudge.
5. Apple Reminders plus a widget — the free option
Don't overlook the free option: your phone's built-in Reminders plus a Lock Screen widget can cover a lot, if you'll actually maintain it. The honest catch is the "if" — bare reminders give you no help resisting overwhelm and no reason to keep the list short, which is exactly why purpose-built ADHD apps exist. It's the right answer for someone whose only complaint about Inflow was the price and who already runs a tidy Reminders list.
How they compare
| App | Best when your problem is… | Free tier? | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3ThingsPal (three things a day) | Overwhelm — you freeze at long lists | Yes, no account | Free + optional upgrade |
| Inflow (CBT coaching) | You want to be taught & coached | No — 7-day trial | Monthly or annual subscription; price at checkout |
| Tiimo (visual planner) | Time blindness & starting | Yes | Pro subscription; trial on yearly only |
| Todoist / TickTick (task manager) | Organising many projects | Yes | Free plan + paid tiers |
| Reminders + widget | You'll maintain it yourself | Yes | Free |
"Inflow was good but it became one more thing I was behind on. Three things a day is the only one that didn't turn into homework."
Which of those five is yours depends on where the day breaks rather than on which app is best, so it is worth answering that first: our free ADHD app finder asks five questions — including what your last abandoned app failed at — and names one, with its cost and its catch.
The bottom line
If you want structured coaching, an Inflow-style app is right. If your real problem is freezing at a wall of tasks, go the other direction entirely — pick three things, today, and let everything else wait.
Frequently asked questions
Why look for an Inflow alternative?
Inflow is a CBT-based ADHD app built around structured education, coaching, and habit programs, on a subscription. People often look for alternatives because they want something cheaper, simpler, or focused on day-to-day execution rather than a guided course. The best alternative depends on whether you want coaching, planning, or just help getting through today.
Is Inflow free?
No. Inflow is free to download and offers a 7-day free trial, but the program itself sits behind a monthly or annual subscription. Inflow's own FAQ says it refunds people who forget to cancel the trial, and it runs an access program for people who can't afford the subscription. If you want an ADHD app that's genuinely free to use, look at the alternatives above rather than expecting a free tier from Inflow.
How much does Inflow cost?
Inflow sells a monthly and an annual subscription after a 7-day free trial, and it doesn't publish the price on its website — the figure shows at checkout and varies by country and platform. It's priced as a health program rather than a productivity utility, which is consistent with what it is. Check the current number in the App Store subscription sheet before the trial ends, and remember that deleting the app does not cancel the subscription.
Is Inflow worth it?
It depends on whether you want to be taught or to get things done. If you're newly or late diagnosed and nobody has ever explained the mechanics of your brain, Inflow's CBT modules, AI companion and live body-doubling sessions are the whole point and can be worth a therapy-adjacent price. If you've already done that work and just need to get through Tuesday, you're paying for content you may not open twice, and a cheaper execution tool is the better buy.
What is the simplest Inflow alternative for ADHD?
If you want the least friction, 3ThingsPal is about as simple as it gets — you pick three things to focus on today and that's the whole app. There's no course to complete, no backlog to manage, and no subscription required to start, which suits people who bounce off heavier ADHD apps.
Are there free Inflow alternatives?
Yes. 3ThingsPal is free to start with an optional upgrade and no account. Tiimo keeps a usable free tier on iOS and Android. Todoist and TickTick both have free plans that cover a single person's tasks. Coaching-heavy apps like Inflow tend to be subscription-only because the value is in the guided content, while lightweight planners and task apps are more likely to be free or low-cost.
No course. No backlog. Just three things.
The simplest way to beat ADHD overwhelm — pick three things for today and keep them on your Lock Screen. No account.
Download 3ThingsPal on the App Store →Related: Inflow vs Tiimo, The 7 Best To-Do List Apps for ADHD and Tiimo vs Todoist. Questions? Email us.