MinimaList: To do list 4+

I’m fairly new to the app, but I’ve tried many apps and planners over the years. One of the simplest things that has worked for me has just been keeping a Notes page with checklists in separate chunks. But there were some limitations to that because things you finish don’t move to the button and it can be cumbersome and cluttered. As soon as you download this app, you can enjoy the simplicity right away. You are not immediately hit with any kind of push for premium upgrades and can use enough of the features to benefit from it. I like that I can sort of keep multiple lists nicely organized on one page by using the subtask feature because out of sight is out of mind for me. It has a really minimalist nice view. And I love the intuitive user experience of how you can quickly add tasks, switch between lists, reorder items, see all lists at a glance, cross off items, and shake away old finished tasks. I will see how it syncs with the laptop, because it’s important to me to be able to access the lists from multiple devices. This is a great less-is-more app that still gives you the option of using other neat features like focus tools and color coding. I did pay for the upgrade to check out the other features and support the app, but even the free version was better than mostly everything else I’ve tried as a mix of digital handiness with written list simplicity!

I always have a lot on my plate, so I maintain a detailed, long-running checklist in another app, which is great for the big picture, but gets a bit overwhelming to use from day to day. I usually end up jotting a shorter to-do list on a Post-it note or mini legal pad of the few things I need to focus on and get done. So as my creative work shifts more and more to coffee shops (love that iPad Pro!) I was hoping I could bring this into the digital realm as well.

MinimaList seems to fit the bill nicely. It’s not a feature-heavy to-do list with nested checkboxes and tons of metadata; it reads like a simple scratchpad you can cross things off as you get them done. The paradigm of gestures and all the settings take a short time to get used to, but once they’re in place it works great as a simple daily checklist. I have it synced on both my iPhone and my iPad Pro and use both equally, and while I often launch the app itself, the widget is just as useful to check what’s next or to tick off items as they get done.

I get the sense from the settings page that there are some functionalities I haven’t figured out yet; time will tell, but for now it does just what I want it to do. I haven’t used the pomodoro functionality yet, but I use the pomodoro method from time to time so I’ll have to check that out soon. Great app, looking forward to seeing it develop!

The list is condensed nicely so you can see many items at once. Once you learn the hand movements like swiping this way or that.. it’s very enjoyable to use! The tutorials are very helpful and short and sweet as you would expect from a minimal design. I really like the name too. I’m a big fan. I don’t usually pay for apps but this one is worth it. It’s really helping me stay on track with my tasks. I tried a couple other apps that were too big, ugly, and clunky and had distracting ads.. I’ve been accomplishing much more each day by making lists in my phone, and this is the best list/checkmark app I’ve found so far. I’m more likely to see/use my list in my phone than on a piece of paper, sadly. I know this from experience and from really really trying with paper ones. I was surprised that there wasn’t an option to put checkmarks to mark a task completed - instead of strikethrough; since the app icon is a checkmark. Maybe the option is there and I just haven’t found it yet. The hand gesture tips/wizard pop up gradually and seemingly randomly after you get the hang of each thing. And I think there might still be more features than I’ve been shown so far. Anyway, good job to the people that made it, I don’t usually write reviews. I like the desktop icon too 👏🏼👍🏼