Dev tools · alternatives · 2026

24 alternatives to A plain-text file format for todos and check lists

After having cycled through various CLI-based todo apps, I started to realise that I actually don’t need a tool at all for managing my todos. Most of the time, my use cases are quite simple, like viewing my todo items, checking them off, or adding a new one. Rather than having to memorise CLI commands for these interactions (which I’m not super good at), I figured that it’s easier for me to use my text editor directly, and have an editor plugin help me with the visual structure and some convenience functionality. So, kind-of similar to Emacs Org Mode, but without having to use Emacs. I…

A plain-text file format designed for managing todos and checklists without requiring specialized software. Users can edit todo files directly in their preferred text editor, with optional plugins providing visual… Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. A plain-text file format for todos and check lists launched in 2022; newer entries below may have overtaken it.

1
Sublime Todo▲262
Minimalist, text editor-based task management for macOS
2024 · its alternatives →
2
CLI plain-text notes & bookmarks with Git, sync, encryption, and more▲240
CLI and local web plain text note‑taking, bookmarking, and archiving with linking, tagging, filtering, search, Git versioning & syncing, Pandoc conversion, + more, in a single portable script. - xwmx/nb
2020 · github.com · its alternatives →
3
Todo Kanban Board▲84
Manage project tasks using plain text markdown file.
2020 · marketplace.visualstudio.com · its alternatives →
4
A web front end for your Org-files▲92
emacs-viewer - A web frontend for your Org-files (100% faithful to GNU+Emacs!)
2022 · codeberg.org · its alternatives →
5
Todo▲95
A simple command line todo list manager
2016 · github.com · its alternatives →
6
Redline▲293
Minimal Menubar Todo
2024 · vanka.me · its alternatives →
7
Plain Org – A new org mode app for iOS▲132
Download Plain Org by Xenodium Ltd. on the App Store. See screenshots, ratings and reviews, user tips, and more apps like Plain Org.
2021 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →
8
Todotxt+▲93
Plain Text task management on iOS, based on Todo.txt
2017 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →
9
Simple Todo▲124
Change browser new tab into a simple todo list
2021 · its alternatives →
10
A dead-simple Trello-like TODO manager▲106
2019 · todox.app · its alternatives →
11FA
Fresh – A new terminal editor built in Rust▲187
I built Fresh to challenge the status quo that terminal editing must require a steep learning curve or endless configuration. My goal was to create a fast, resource-efficient TUI editor with the usability and features of a modern GUI editor (like a command palette, mouse support, and LSP integration). Core Philosophy: - Ease-of-Use: Fundamentally non-modal. Prioritizes standard keybindings and a minimal learning curve. - Efficiency: Uses a lazy-loading piece tree to avoid loading huge files into RAM - reads only what's needed for user interactions. Coded in Rust. - Extensibility: Uses…
Dec 2025 · sinelaw.github.io · its alternatives →
12EA
Eno – A lightning fast, user-friendly YAML/TOML alternative▲102
eno [1] - A modern plaintext language w/ libraries [2] for JavaScript, Python, Ruby & soon more! We migrated a big relational research database to a file-based solution - requirements were: - Super fast and easy editability for users - Highest performance for parsing/validating >10K documents on every user change. Our trials with YAML/TOML showed us that we wanted something both faster [3][4] and easier [4], something tailored for file-based content management ... and after months of research & development it's now publicly available (under MIT license) for everyone! Last but…
2018 · its alternatives →
13
Tasks.txt▲147
Plain text task manager for macOS
Jul 2026 · taskstxt.app · its alternatives →
14
Rich-CLI – A CLI toolbox for highlighting, Markdown, JSON and rich text▲126
Rich-cli is a command line toolbox for fancy output in the terminal - Textualize/rich-cli
2022 · github.com · its alternatives →
15
PO File Editor▲97
Free editor for translations in portable object files
2021 · pofile.net · its alternatives →
16
Mac TODO Menubar▲144
All your todos easily accessible from your menu bar!
2018 · its alternatives →
17
Tdo – keyboard driven, hackable todo list▲78
2016 · mstijak.github.io · its alternatives →
18
Todapp▲141
A simple todo list application.
2018 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →
19
Plain Text List▲133
Easily copy and paste-able lists for all your needs
2018 · its alternatives →
20
Todo▲131
A simple all-in-one todo list app for tasks and projects.
2020 · anshudweep.github.io · its alternatives →
21
Todo for hackers▲101
CLI Todo app for hackers
2015 · github.com · its alternatives →
22
todoMini▲71
Open source todo list web app.
2019 · todomini.app · its alternatives →
23
owo – OneNote to Plain Text▲83
Hey kind stranger. Hope you find it useful. Any comments or suggestions are appreciated :) Enjoy your day!
2022 · github.com · its alternatives →
24
Todo2▲131
Hi HN, I just launched Todo2 – an AI-powered project management extension for the Cursor AI editor. I built Todo2 after getting frustrated with leaving my IDE to plan tasks in ChatGPT/Perplexity. It lets you create todos by simply prompting, auto-researches latest best practices, and keeps everything inside Cursor. It’s free with 14-days trial on the Cursor Marketplace. Would love your feedback or questions! Thank you - https://todo2.pro
2025 · todo2.pro · its alternatives →

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Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →