The 7 best reminder apps in 2026
Most reminders are lost before they are ever set. You think of something in the middle of a conversation, and saving it means leaving that conversation: find the reminder app, type the task, then tap through a date and a time. Two or three steps is all it takes to think "I'll do it later" and forget.
Pokobot removes that detour. It lives inside WhatsApp, the app many people already have open all day, and you set a reminder by sending one ordinary sentence, such as “remind me to pay rent on Friday at 6pm.” There is no other app to open, no form and no date picker, and the reminder comes back as a WhatsApp message. That is why it tops this list. Apple Reminders, free and already on every iPhone, is a close second.
The others still earn their place. Todoist is the strongest choice when reminders belong inside a structured task system, TickTick adds habits and focus tools, and Microsoft To Do is the best completely free cross-platform option. Google Tasks keeps things simple inside Gmail and Calendar, and Any.do combines a planner with paid WhatsApp delivery.
We make Pokobot, so this is not an independent ranking. We checked the products' current documentation and public plans on 28 September 2026, named a clear limitation for every option, including our own, and say plainly when a competing app fits the job better.
The short answer
Start with Pokobot if your day runs through WhatsApp: you set a reminder in the chat you already have open, in plain words, and it arrives there too, so you never switch apps. An iPhone owner who wants something free and built in may need nothing beyond Apple Reminders. Someone managing large projects across several platforms may be happier in Todoist or TickTick.
Free does not always mean limited. Apple Reminders, Microsoft To Do and Google Tasks cover ordinary personal reminders without a subscription. Paid plans become useful when you need deeper organisation, several alerts for one task, advanced repeat rules, location alerts, habits, calendar views or a different delivery channel.
| App | Best for | Where reminders arrive | Free option | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pokobot | Setting reminders without leaving WhatsApp | WhatsApp messages | Full 7-day trial | No free plan, projects, location alerts or offline app |
| Apple Reminders | Most Apple users | Apple notifications on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Watch | Included with Apple devices | Apple-first rather than truly cross-platform |
| Todoist | Structured tasks and projects | Mobile, desktop and email notifications | Free plan with task reminders | The best custom reminder controls are paid |
| TickTick | Tasks, habits and focus in one app | Mobile, desktop and email notifications | Free plan with task reminders | Calendar and advanced reminder features are limited on free |
| Microsoft To Do | Free cross-platform reminders | App notifications on web, desktop and mobile | Completely free | Personal and work accounts stay separate |
| Google Tasks | Simple tasks beside Gmail and Calendar | Google app notifications | Free with a Google account | Minimal organisation and repeat controls |
| Any.do | A daily planner that can also use WhatsApp | App notifications; WhatsApp on paid plans | Free personal plan | WhatsApp and advanced reminder features cost extra |
How we compared the reminder applications
A reminder application has two jobs: make it easy to save the task at the moment you think of it, then put the alert somewhere you will notice it. We weighted those two jobs most heavily, because a reminder that never gets set, or gets swiped away, is worth nothing. We compared capture speed, one-off and recurring schedules, the delivery channel, supported platforms, organisation, collaboration and what remains available without paying.
This is a fit comparison, not a score assembled from feature counts. A project manager will naturally have more features than a lightweight reminder service. That does not make it better for someone who wants to save one thought in ten seconds. We also separated built-in apps from subscriptions and a permanent free plan from a time-limited trial.
Prices, limits and platform features change. The linked official pages are the source of truth. Check the current plan in your country before moving important reminders or paying for a year.
1. Pokobot: best overall, with no other app to open
Pokobot is a reminder contact inside WhatsApp. When something comes to mind, you do not switch apps. You send a sentence such as “remind me to pay rent on Friday at 6pm” in a chat you already have open, Pokobot replies with the time it understood, and the reminder comes back as a WhatsApp message when it is due. One-off reminders, recurring schedules, faster repeats with quiet hours, snoozing, cancelling and reminders for another person all happen in the same thread.
That fixes the two places reminders usually fail. Saving one takes a single message instead of opening an app and filling in a task, a date and a time, so you set it the moment you think of it. And the alert arrives where you already read your messages, not in a tray of app notifications that are easy to swipe away. There is nothing to install, no account form and no dashboard to check.
It is deliberately not a full task manager: there are no projects, labels, calendar view, location alerts, attachments, offline mode or permanent free plan. Every feature is available during a 7-day trial with no card required, and after that reminders need a paid subscription. If you want to organise a large backlog, Todoist or TickTick below will suit you better. If you mostly want to remember things on time without changing apps, Pokobot is our top pick.
Remind me in 2 minutes to check this workedOpen in WhatsApp 2. Apple Reminders: best free pick for iPhone users
Apple Reminders is the sensible first choice if your life already runs on an iPhone, iPad, Mac or Apple Watch. It understands plain-language dates, works with Siri, supports time and location alerts, handles custom repeats, and gives you lists, tags, subtasks, attachments and shared lists without another subscription.
Its largest strength is also its boundary. The experience is excellent across Apple devices and available through iCloud on the web, but it is not a native Android or Windows system. Shared lists also work through iCloud accounts. If everyone involved uses Apple hardware, that may not matter at all.
Even on an iPhone, setting a reminder still means leaving what you were doing: open Reminders, type the task, set the date and time. Siri shortens that, but speaking to your phone is not always possible in a meeting or on a train. If you spend most of the day in WhatsApp, Pokobot, above, lets you do it without leaving the chat, and it also reaches Android users.
3. Todoist: best all-round task manager
Todoist is the best reminder app here when the reminder belongs to a larger body of work. Its natural-language quick add is fast, recurring dates are flexible, and projects, sections, labels, priorities, filters and shared tasks can hold much more than a list of isolated alerts. It works across the web, desktop and mobile platforms.
The free Beginner plan includes task reminders, recurring due dates and five personal projects. Pro adds far more projects, a calendar layout, task duration and custom reminders such as several alerts before one task or a location-based reminder. That makes the free plan useful rather than ornamental, while the paid plan is for people building a real task system.
Choose Todoist if you want to organise and review work. Skip it if your only problem is noticing one reminder at the right moment. A full task manager can become another inbox if you do not want the structure it provides.
4. TickTick: best for tasks, habits and focus
TickTick puts a task list, habit tracker, calendar, Pomodoro timer and Eisenhower Matrix in one product. It is the strongest option in this list if reminders are only one part of a broader routine and you want to record what you completed, protect focus time and see habits alongside tasks.
The free plan includes natural-language input, recurring tasks, cross-platform sync and up to two reminders per task. Premium expands the calendar views and capacity and adds features such as email and constant reminders. That last option is useful when a normal one-time notification is too easy to dismiss.
The tradeoff is density. TickTick offers more views and controls than someone seeking a simple reminder may want. Choose it for the suite. Choose a built-in app or chat reminder if maintaining the system would become another task.
5. Microsoft To Do: best completely free cross-platform app
Microsoft To Do is free, available on the web, Windows, macOS, iPhone and Android, and capable enough for most personal lists. Tasks can have a separate due date and reminder time, repeat daily through yearly or on a custom schedule, and include steps, notes and files. My Day gives you a fresh daily list without deleting the unfinished tasks behind it.
It is especially useful if Outlook is already where work enters your day. Flagged messages can appear as tasks, and scheduled work sits in the Planned list. The main complication is account ownership: personal and employer accounts remain separate, so personal obligations can end up trapped in a work account you may not keep forever.
Choose Microsoft To Do when you need a capable free app on several kinds of device. Todoist is stronger for advanced organisation, while TickTick adds habits and focus tools.
6. Google Tasks: best for simple reminders inside Google
Google Tasks is a small, free task list that sits beside Gmail, Calendar, Drive and other Google tools. You can turn an email into a task, add a date and time, and create daily, weekly, monthly, yearly or custom repeats. Dated tasks also appear in Google Calendar.
The simplicity is deliberate. Tasks supports lists and subtasks, but it is not built around projects, filters, rich notes or a wide range of reminder styles. Some recurring-task rules are restrictive: shared tasks and subtasks cannot repeat, and a recurring task cannot be moved to another list.
Choose it if you live in Gmail and want the shortest path from an email to a dated task. Look elsewhere if you need collaboration, rich organisation, several reminders for the same task or an alert outside Google's notification system.
7. Any.do: best planner with optional WhatsApp reminders
Any.do combines tasks, lists, a calendar and a daily planning routine in a polished cross-platform app. The free personal plan includes ordinary task lists and reminders. Paid plans add advanced recurring rules, location reminders and the WhatsApp integration.
The WhatsApp bot can create tasks, receive forwarded messages and send due reminders into the chat. It is an extension of the Any.do account rather than the whole product. You connect a number through the app, and recurring reminders must still be created and completed through the main app for the series to continue correctly.
Choose Any.do if you want a planner first and WhatsApp as another way to capture and receive tasks. If you want no dashboard or extra app and prefer to set, receive and manage every reminder inside one chat, Pokobot is the simpler choice.
How to choose a reminder app in five minutes
Do not move your whole life into a new app on the first day. Use one ordinary reminder to test the exact point where your current system fails. The best reminders are useful because of what happens when they arrive, not because the settings screen looked impressive.
Pick one real reminder
Use a small task due today or tomorrow. Avoid a critical medication, payment or appointment until you have confirmed that notifications work on your device.
Create it the way you normally would
Try typing, voice capture, an email action or a chat message. Count the steps and notice whether you would realistically do them while busy.
Check the confirmation
Confirm the date, time, timezone and repeat rule. A fast capture method is not useful if an ambiguous phrase silently becomes the wrong schedule.
Wait for the real alert
Lock the phone and continue your day. When the reminder arrives, notice where it appears, whether sound and focus settings allow it through, and whether you act or swipe it away.
Move and cancel one reminder
A system has to be easy to maintain after plans change. Test rescheduling, completion and cancellation before adding recurring obligations.
Questions, answered
- What is the best reminder app?
- Pokobot is our top pick, especially if you spend your day in WhatsApp: you set a reminder by sending one plain sentence in the chat, without opening another app, and it arrives as a WhatsApp message. Apple Reminders is the best free starting point for iPhone users. Todoist is better for structured projects, TickTick for tasks plus habits and focus, Microsoft To Do for a completely free cross-platform app, Google Tasks for a simple Google-based list, and Any.do for a planner with optional WhatsApp delivery.
- What is the best free reminder app?
- Apple Reminders is the strongest free choice inside the Apple ecosystem. Microsoft To Do is the best completely free option across Windows, macOS, web, iPhone and Android. Google Tasks is a simpler free choice for people who already work in Gmail and Google Calendar. Todoist and TickTick also have useful free plans.
- What is the best reminder app for iPhone?
- Start with Apple Reminders. It is included with the phone and supports Siri, time and location alerts, repeating reminders, lists, tags and sharing. Consider Pokobot if you would rather set reminders from WhatsApp without opening another app, or Todoist or TickTick if you need a larger cross-platform task system.
- What is the best reminder app for Android?
- Microsoft To Do is a capable completely free choice. Google Tasks is the simplest option for Google users. Todoist is better for structured projects, while TickTick combines reminders with habits, calendar views and focus tools. Pokobot needs no separate Android app because it works through WhatsApp.
- Which reminder app is best for recurring reminders?
- Todoist and TickTick offer flexible recurring tasks inside full task systems. Apple Reminders handles ordinary and custom repeats well on Apple devices. Microsoft To Do and Google Tasks cover daily through yearly schedules for free. Pokobot is useful for repeats that should arrive in WhatsApp, including sub-daily schedules with an active window.
- Can a reminder app keep reminding me until I act?
- Some apps offer persistent or constant alerts, but the behavior and plan differ. TickTick lists Constant Reminder among its paid features. Pokobot can repeat on a schedule, but it cannot detect whether you completed the task and automatically stop or continue based on that. Test persistent alerts carefully so important notifications do not become background noise.
- Can I get reminders through WhatsApp?
- Yes. Pokobot is managed entirely inside a WhatsApp chat. Any.do also has a WhatsApp integration on its paid plans, although recurring reminders still depend on the main Any.do app. Other dedicated WhatsApp reminder services are compared in Pokobot's separate WhatsApp reminder apps guide.
- You make Pokobot. Is this ranking independent?
- No. Pokobot publishes this article and ranks itself first. We put it there because setting a reminder in a chat you already have open removes the step where most reminders get lost. The comparison still lists Pokobot's limitations, names cases where competing products are better, links to official product documentation and records when the information was checked.