Todoist vs TickTick vs Mursa: Which Productivity App Actually Fits Your Workflow?
An honest comparison of three popular task managers for people who want to stop app-hopping and actually stick with something
If you are reading this, you have probably tried at least two todo apps in the last year. Maybe more. You downloaded Todoist because everyone recommends it. You tried TickTick because someone on Reddit said it was better. You looked at Notion but it felt like building a spaceship to make a grocery list. And now you are wondering if there is something else out there that might actually stick.
This is not a review where we pretend to be objective and then recommend our own product at the end. We are going to be genuinely honest about what each app does well and where it falls short, including Mursa. The right app depends entirely on how you work.
Todoist: The Reliable Minimalist
Todoist has been around since 2007, which in the productivity app world makes it ancient. And that longevity is actually its biggest strength. It is rock solid. It works on every platform. It loads fast. The natural language input is excellent. You type buy milk tomorrow p1 and it creates a task with a due date and priority.
- Best at: Quick task capture, natural language parsing, cross-platform reliability, clean design
- Price: Free tier available, Pro at $5/month
- Who it is for: People who want a simple, fast task list that stays out of the way
Where Todoist struggles is beyond basic task management. There is no built-in timer, so if you use the Pomodoro technique you need a separate app. There is no goal tracking, no habit system, no analytics beyond basic completion stats. Todoist's AI feature, introduced in 2024, can break a single task into subtasks, but it cannot plan an entire project from a sentence or estimate time.
If your workflow is simple and your main need is capturing and completing tasks quickly across devices, Todoist is hard to beat. It does one thing and does it well. The problem is when you need more than one thing.
TickTick: The Feature-Packed Generalist
TickTick is the app that productivity enthusiasts on Reddit love to recommend. And for good reason. It packs an impressive number of features into one app: task management, calendar view, built-in Pomodoro timer, habit tracker, and a Kanban board. All for $3 per month, which is arguably the best value in the category.
- Best at: Feature density, Pomodoro timer, habit tracking, calendar view, price-to-value ratio
- Price: Free tier available, Premium at $36/year ($3/month)
- Who it is for: People who want a lot of features in one place without paying much
The tradeoff with TickTick is that breadth comes at the cost of depth. The Pomodoro timer works but it is basic. There is no session-to-task linking, no detailed analytics about your focus patterns. The habit tracker records streaks but does not surface insights. And there is no AI planning at all. You still have to manually break down your projects, estimate time, and organize everything yourself.
TickTick also lacks project hierarchy. You have lists and tasks, but there is no concept of projects containing goals containing tasks. If you are a solo founder trying to map out a quarterly plan, you will find yourself working around TickTick's structure rather than with it.
Mursa: The AI-First Productivity System
Full disclosure: we built Mursa, so take this section with appropriate skepticism. That said, we built it because we were frustrated with the exact gaps described above. We wanted one workspace where AI planning, Pomodoro focus, goals, habits, and Slack integration all worked together.
- Best at: AI project planning, Pomodoro-to-task linking, project-goal-task hierarchy, Slack integration, focus analytics
- Price: Free tier available, Pro at $10/month
- Who it is for: Remote workers with Slack-heavy teams, people who need external structure (ADHD-friendly), solo founders juggling multiple projects
Mursa's AI planner is the feature that does not exist anywhere else. You describe a project in a sentence and get back a structured breakdown: project, goals, and micro-tasks scoped to 15-25 minutes each, with time estimates and a daily pace. The Pomodoro timer is connected to your tasks, so every session is tracked against what you were actually working on.
Where Mursa falls short is maturity. Todoist has had 19 years to polish its experience. TickTick has millions of users and a huge feature set. Mursa is newer and still adding features. There is no mobile app yet (macOS desktop app and web app). If you need iOS and Android apps today, Todoist and TickTick are ahead.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
Here is an honest side-by-side of the features that matter most:
Task capture speed
Todoist wins. Its natural language parsing is the fastest in the industry. TickTick is close behind. Mursa is good but not as fast for simple task entry.
AI planning
Mursa wins. Full project breakdown from a sentence. Todoist has basic AI subtask generation. TickTick has no AI features.
Focus timer
Mursa wins. Pomodoro linked to tasks with session history and analytics. TickTick has a basic Pomodoro timer. Todoist has no timer.
Slack integration
Mursa wins. One-click task creation from Slack messages with auto-sync. Neither Todoist nor TickTick offer native Slack task capture.
Goal and project hierarchy
Mursa wins for depth (projects contain goals contain tasks). Todoist has sections and filters. TickTick has lists and folders.
Habit tracking
TickTick and Mursa both offer habit tracking. Todoist does not.
Platform availability
Todoist and TickTick win. Both have iOS, Android, and desktop apps. Mursa currently has macOS desktop and web.
Price
TickTick wins on value at $3/month. Todoist is $5/month. Mursa is $10/month. All three have free tiers.
So Which One Should You Pick?
This genuinely depends on your workflow. There is no universally best app.
You want a fast, reliable task list that works everywhere. You do not need AI planning, a built-in timer, or integrations. You value simplicity and speed above all else.
You want the most features for the least money. You like having a timer, habits, and calendar in one place. You do not mind doing your own project planning and you need mobile apps.
You work in a Slack-heavy team and need one-click task capture. You want AI to break down your projects. You need external structure like Pomodoro and habits. You want your timer linked to your tasks with analytics. You are on macOS.
The best productivity app is the one you actually use. If you have tried Todoist and TickTick and neither stuck, the problem might not be discipline. It might be that you need a different kind of tool, one that does not just list your tasks but helps you plan, start, and finish them. Whatever you choose, stop app-hopping and commit for at least 30 days. That is how long it takes to know if a tool fits your brain.