Todoist vs Microsoft OneNote

Todoist and Microsoft OneNote are both productivity options. Todoist lists 6 features across 6 platforms; Microsoft OneNote lists 7 features across 6 platforms — see the full breakdown below, sourced from each vendor's own site rather than ratings or reviews.

Side-by-side summary

ComparingTodoistMicrosoft OneNote

CategoryProductivityProductivity

Alternatives tracked33

PlatformsWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, AndroidWeb, Windows, macOS, iOS, iPadOS, Android

Pricing modelFree + paid plansFree + paid plans

Best for Todoist

Positioned for individuals, freelancers, and agile teams who want fast, cross-platform task capture with natural language parsing, clean interface views, and minimal project management friction.

Best for Microsoft OneNote

Positioned for individuals and teams already in the Microsoft ecosystem who want free-form, notebook-style note-taking with handwriting and voice capture across all their devices.

Feature comparison

Every feature listed here comes directly from each vendor's own official site.

Todoist

Natural-language quick task entry with automated date, priority, and label parsing
Recurring due dates and custom reminder alerts
Multiple layout views: list, board (Kanban), and interactive calendar
Projects, sections, sub-tasks, priority flags, and custom filter views
Shared team workspaces with role-based member assignments and comments
Built-in AI Task Assist for breaking complex projects into actionable steps

Microsoft OneNote

Notebook, section, and page hierarchy for organizing notes
Handwriting and digital ink with stylus support for sketching and annotating
Voice transcription to capture notes from audio
Real-time collaboration for multiple users working on shared notebooks
Full-text search across notebooks
Copilot in OneNote for drafting plans, generating ideas, and organizing information
Free version, with additional features included in Microsoft 365 subscriptions

Pros and cons

Todoist

Pros

Natural-language quick task entry with automated date, priority, and label parsing
Recurring due dates and custom reminder alerts
Multiple layout views: list, board (Kanban), and interactive calendar
Projects, sections, sub-tasks, priority flags, and custom filter views
Shared team workspaces with role-based member assignments and comments
Built-in AI Task Assist for breaking complex projects into actionable steps

Cons

Free plan is limited to 5 active projects and excludes calendar view and custom reminders
Lacks built-in time tracking or extensive document/wiki capabilities compared to all-in-one workspaces

Microsoft OneNote

Pros

Notebook, section, and page hierarchy for organizing notes
Handwriting and digital ink with stylus support for sketching and annotating
Voice transcription to capture notes from audio
Real-time collaboration for multiple users working on shared notebooks
Full-text search across notebooks
Copilot in OneNote for drafting plans, generating ideas, and organizing information
Free version, with additional features included in Microsoft 365 subscriptions

Cons

OneNote itself is available free on the web, but desktop Microsoft 365 apps, larger cloud-storage entitlements, and bundled Copilot capabilities require a Microsoft 365 subscription.
Paid OneNote value is bundled with the broader Microsoft 365 subscription rather than sold as a simple standalone OneNote plan, so comparisons should account for the rest of the bundle.

Key differences

Todoist lists Natural-language quick task entry with automated date, priority, and label parsing, Recurring due dates and custom reminder alerts, Multiple layout views: list, board (Kanban), and interactive calendar, Projects, sections, sub-tasks, priority flags, and custom filter views, Shared team workspaces with role-based member assignments and comments, Built-in AI Task Assist for breaking complex projects into actionable steps that Microsoft OneNote doesn't list.
Microsoft OneNote lists Notebook, section, and page hierarchy for organizing notes, Handwriting and digital ink with stylus support for sketching and annotating, Voice transcription to capture notes from audio, Real-time collaboration for multiple users working on shared notebooks, Full-text search across notebooks, Copilot in OneNote for drafting plans, generating ideas, and organizing information, Free version, with additional features included in Microsoft 365 subscriptions that Todoist doesn't list.
Todoist supports Linux, which Microsoft OneNote doesn't list.
Microsoft OneNote supports iPadOS, which Todoist doesn't list.

Choose Todoist if…

Choose Todoist if this fits: Positioned for individuals, freelancers, and agile teams who want fast, cross-platform task capture with natural language parsing, clean interface views, and minimal project management friction. Compared with Microsoft OneNote specifically, Todoist also offers Natural-language quick task entry with automated date, priority, and label parsing, Recurring due dates and custom reminder alerts, Multiple layout views: list, board (Kanban), and interactive calendar, and 3 more features that Microsoft OneNote doesn't list, plus Linux support that Microsoft OneNote doesn't list.

Visit Todoist

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Choose Microsoft OneNote if…

Choose Microsoft OneNote if this fits: Positioned for individuals and teams already in the Microsoft ecosystem who want free-form, notebook-style note-taking with handwriting and voice capture across all their devices. Compared with Todoist specifically, Microsoft OneNote also offers Notebook, section, and page hierarchy for organizing notes, Handwriting and digital ink with stylus support for sketching and annotating, Voice transcription to capture notes from audio, and 4 more features that Todoist doesn't list, plus iPadOS support that Todoist doesn't list.

Visit Microsoft OneNote

Explore the Todoist alternatives decision guide

Facts on this page are sourced from each vendor's official site (linked below), not from ratings or reviews. Products change — verify anything that matters to your decision directly on the vendor's own site before switching. See our Disclaimer and Sources Policy.