Compare · To-dos
SwitchDesk vs Things 3: Mac to-do apps, compared
Last checked
Pick Things 3 if you want
Pick SwitchDesk if
you want to
TL;DR
- Things 3 is $49.99 once on Mac ($9.99 iPhone, $19.99 iPad). SwitchDesk is $12/mo billed yearly, with dictation, meeting notes and screen videos included.
- Things 3 doesn’t share lists in real time. SwitchDesk shares the categories you switch on with your team, and nothing else.
- SwitchDesk runs on the Mac (its iPhone app is coming soon to the App Store), and it has no repeating to-dos.
Press Play to say “add a todo prep pricing slides for thursday”, then press Today’s Todo on the pill.
Side by side
Two Mac to-do lists, row by row
Price, platforms, how to-dos get in, who can see them, and how you plan the day.
| SwitchDesk | Things 3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price model1234 | A subscription: $12/mo billed yearly (Essential), with dictation, meeting notes and video included | One-time purchases: $49.99 Mac, $9.99 iPhone with Apple Watch, $19.99 iPad. Sync is included. |
| Platforms5 | Mac. The iPhone app is coming soon to the App Store. | Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Vision Pro |
| Capture6 | The chat box in your list, Siri (“Add to Fernhill in SwitchDesk”), and to-dos other tools send in | Quick Entry from any app, Mail to Things, Siri and Shortcuts |
| Voice6 | Hold Globe in any app and say “add a todo …”. Say several at once and each is filed under its category. | Siri, on your iPhone, Apple Watch or Mac |
| Sharing7 | Share a category with your team (both plans). Categories you don’t switch on stay private. | No real-time sharing. You can send a plain-text copy through the share sheet. |
| Planning6 | Today’s Todo and This Week, planned by day. Set a due date and the to-do moves onto its day. No repeating to-dos. | Today, This Evening and Upcoming, with deadlines, reminders and repeating to-dos |
| Meetings6 | Records calls with no bot and suggests to-dos when the call ends. “Add all” puts them in your list. | Shows your calendar events alongside Today |
Each footnote links to its source under the FAQ, checked Oct 5, 2026. See the sources →
Voice capture
Say three to-dos in one breath, and each lands in its category.
Hold Globe in any app and talk. SwitchDesk reads the one-line bio you wrote for each category and files each one under the category it matches: Theo’s dentist under Family, the glaze mugs under Pottery Shop.
You say
“add todos: book Theo’s dentist appointment, list the new glaze mugs, and renew car registration”
The pill confirms with “Added 3 todos”. Voice never sets a due date.
SwitchDesk to-do window, Beige theme: Today's Todo: Reply to Daniel about the Q4 hiring plan (in progress); Record Lumora pilot walkthrough. Personal: Pick up the dry cleaning; Renew car registration. Family: Plan Saturday farmers market; Order Theo's school shoes; Book Theo's dentist appointment. Pottery Shop: Order kiln shelves; List the new glaze mugs.
Animation added for this page. The utterance card is an illustration.
Sharing
Share your Fernhill category with your team, and keep the rest private.
Switch a category on and your teammates see its to-dos, including the ones you pull into Today. From Settings → Teams: “Categories you toggle on are visible to teammates. Untoggled categories stay private.”
Sam's to-do list holds Fernhill, Personal, Family and Pottery Shop; in Settings → Teams only Fernhill is switched on, so Maya's own list shows just Sam's Fernhill to-dos — including the Fernhill items he moved into Today.
Teams
Shared with team
Categories you toggle on are visible to teammates. Untoggled categories stay private.
Personal, Family and Pottery Shop stay private.
“See it as” and the dimmed sections are an illustration. Each person needs their own SwitchDesk account today.
Today and This Week
Today’s Todo and This Week, planned by day
Turn on “Organize by day” and This Week splits into Monday to Friday plus a Week Backlog. A due date moves a to-do for you: this week’s dates go under their day, and today’s goes into Today’s Todo. Days roll forward at 3 AM, and anything unfinished moves to today.
SwitchDesk to-do window, Beige theme: Today's Todo: Reply to Daniel about the Q4 hiring plan (in progress); Book Theo's dentist appointment. This Week: Draft the monthly investor update; Order kiln shelves. Personal: Renew car registration; Pick up the dry cleaning.
Pick a due date for “Renew car registration”
It’s under Personal with no date. Try Friday, or today.
Honest answer
Where Things 3 is better
Things 3 is a careful, personal planner. If you plan alone and want every Apple device, it’s the better pick.
- A one-time purchase. Pay once per device, with no subscription. Sync is included.
- Every Apple device. iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Vision Pro, as well as the Mac.
- Repeating to-dos, deadlines and reminders. SwitchDesk has due dates, but no repeating to-dos.
- Areas, projects and headings. For work that runs for months, with checklists inside each to-do.
- Quick Entry and Mail to Things. Add a to-do from any app, or forward an email into your list.
From Cultured Code’s pages and the App Store, checked Oct 5, 2026.
Price and switching
Price, as listed
What each costs
| Plan | Price |
|---|---|
| Things 3 Mac | $49.99 onceMac App Store. A free trial on Mac. |
| Things 3 iPhone & Apple Watch | $9.99 onceApp Store. |
| Things 3 iPad | $19.99 onceApp Store. Sync between devices is included. |
| SwitchDesk Essential | $12/moBilled yearly; $15 billed monthly. |
| SwitchDesk Pro | $18/moBilled yearly; $23 billed monthly. Adds unlimited meeting notes and Recap. |
14-day free trial
Last checked · App Store listings
Switching
Moving from Things 3
Install SwitchDesk.
macOS 14.6 or later. Your list opens from the menu bar.
Write a one-line bio for each category.
In
Settings → Categories. New to-dos are filed using what you wrote there.Share your work category with your team.
Switch it on in
Settings → Teams. Everything else stays private.
Same subscription
Also in SwitchDesk: dictation, meeting notes and screen videos
Shown in the Midnight Blue theme
SwitchDesk’s dictation pill: “Todo Added”, with buttons to add it to Today’s Todo. Voice Dictation
Hold Globe in any app, talk, let go. Clean text lands where your cursor is, and “add a todo …” files a to-do instead.
Explore Voice Dictation →UrgentBlocked Send Lumora the revised proposalFernhillSet up the pilot workspaceFernhillShare the pilot pricing with LumoraFernhillThe SwitchDesk to-do list in the Midnight Blue theme: the Lumora kickoff’s suggested to-dos have landed under Fernhill.
Meeting Notes
Nothing joins the call: your mic and the call’s audio are two tracks on your Mac. When the Lumora kickoff ends, you get the notes and suggested to-dos.
Explore Meeting Notes →Share card for “Lumora pilot walkthrough”: Ready to share · transcript ready. Create Video
Pick Screen, Window or Area, talk with your camera on, and the link is on your clipboard at Stop.
Explore Create Video →
To-Do List questions
More in Help →Can I import my Things 3 list?
Can I set a due date by voice?
Does it have repeating to-dos?
Is there an iPhone app?
Who can see my to-dos?
Settings → Teams: “Categories you toggle on are visible to teammates. Untoggled categories stay private.” Each person needs their own SwitchDesk account today.How much does it cost?
Sources · last checked
- SwitchDesk plans (this site)
- Things 3 for Mac, App Store — $49.99, macOS 13.3 or later · accessed Oct 5, 2026
- Things 3 for iPhone, App Store — $9.99, with an Apple Watch app · accessed Oct 5, 2026
- Things 3 for iPad, App Store — $19.99 · accessed Oct 5, 2026
- Things homepage — devices and the Mac trial · accessed Oct 5, 2026
- Things features · accessed Oct 5, 2026
- Things support: Using the OS Share Feature — no real-time sharing · accessed Oct 5, 2026
- SwitchDesk: the app’s own labels, checked in its source on Oct 5, 2026