TickTick: The Swiss Army Knife Problem
TickTick is impressive. Seriously. Tasks, habits, Pomodoro, calendar, notes, Eisenhower matrix, tags, filters, custom smart lists, widgets, themes...
I counted. It has over 50 distinct features.
That's amazing if you need all 50. But here's what happened when I tried it: I spent my first week exploring features instead of actually planning my day.
What TickTick Does Incredibly Well
- Everything in One App: Tasks, habits, Pomodoro, calendar, notes. Truly all-in-one.
- Habit Tracking: Dedicated habit feature with streaks and stats. Actually good.
- Pomodoro Timer: Built-in focus timer with task integration. Works great.
- Smart Lists: Create complex filtered views. Power users love this.
- Platform Support: Literally everywhere. Web, iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, Linux, Apple Watch, browser extensions.
- Affordable: Free plan is generous. Premium is only $36/year.
If you want a productivity Swiss Army knife, TickTick delivers.
The Overwhelm Factor
Here's my TickTick journey:
Week 1: "Wow, look at all these features! Pomodoro! Habits! Eisenhower matrix! This is amazing!"
Week 2: "Wait, should I use tags or lists? How do I set up smart lists? Is this the right way to organize?"
Week 3: "I have 15 lists, 30 tags, and I'm not sure where anything is anymore."
Week 4: "I just want to plan my day without choosing between 8 different views."
TickTick's power is also its problem. Choice paralysis is real.
Life Balance: TickTick Misses This
TickTick has lists. You could create lists like "Work", "Health", "Family". Technically, you're tracking categories.
But here's the difference: TickTick won't show you the imbalance.
I had 47 tasks in my "Work" list and 2 in my "Health" list. TickTick didn't care. It just showed me both lists equally.
Funtasking's Purpose Wheel? One glance and you see: "Work is crushing you. Body is ignored. Mind is empty." Visual truth.
Gamification: TickTick Has None
You complete tasks in TickTick and... nothing happens. Checkmark. Done. Next task.
Funtasking? Earn 2 coins for a 30-minute task. Save up for a reward you actually want. It's silly, but it works.
When TickTick Wins
Let's be fair. TickTick beats Funtasking on:
- Habit tracking: Dedicated feature with streaks. We're building this, but they have it now.
- Pomodoro: Built-in focus timer. Ours is coming soon.
- Platform coverage: They're everywhere. We're iOS/Web/Android-soon.
- Power features: Smart lists, filters, tags. Great for complex workflows.
- Maturity: Years of development. Rock solid and stable.
If you need those features, TickTick is a solid choice.
When Funtasking Wins
- Simplicity: We do one thing (daily planning + life balance) really well.
- Purpose Wheel: Automatic life balance visualization. TickTick can't do this.
- Gamification: Coins and rewards make tasks feel rewarding.
- Less overwhelming: No choice paralysis. Opinionated design.
- Burnout prevention: Built into the core, not an afterthought.
The Feature Bloat Trap
TickTick keeps adding features. Every update brings something new. Sounds great, right?
But here's the trap: more features ≠ better results.
I didn't need 50 features. I needed to see that I was working 60 hours and exercising zero. TickTick couldn't show me that. Funtasking did, instantly.
Pricing: Both Affordable
TickTick: Free plan is solid. Premium is $36/year (great value for what you get).
Funtasking: Free with full features. Premium coming soon with advanced analytics.
Both are affordable. This isn't about money.
Who Should Choose TickTick?
- You want all productivity features in one app
- You need habit tracking and Pomodoro now
- You enjoy customizing and organizing systems
- You're a power user who uses smart lists and filters
- You already manage life balance well manually
- You don't feel overwhelmed by choice
Who Should Choose Funtasking?
- You want focused daily planning, not 50 features
- You need visual life balance tracking
- You're motivated by rewards and gamification
- You feel overwhelmed by too many options
- You want to prevent burnout, not optimize productivity
- You prefer opinionated design over infinite customization
Can You Use Both?
Technically yes, but why? They both want to be your daily planner.
Better question: What's your actual problem?
Need every productivity feature in existence? TickTick.
Need to see life balance and prevent burnout? Funtasking.
Final Verdict
TickTick is like a fully-loaded sports car with 47 buttons on the steering wheel. Powerful, but overwhelming.
Funtasking is like a Tesla with autopilot for life balance. Fewer buttons, clearer purpose.
Both get you somewhere. Pick the ride that matches your style.