Disclosure: I make Zympl, and I’ve put it first because it’s the one I’d recommend for the job described below. The rest of the list is ordered by how well each app fits a daily planning habit, and several beat Zympl at specific things. All prices and features come from the vendors’ own pages as of September 2026. Prices are in USD.
What makes a good daily planner app
A to-do app holds everything you might do. A daily planner helps you decide what you’ll do today, and then shows you what actually happened. I judged each app on five things:
- It opens on today. The day, not an inbox or a dashboard.
- Plan and record. Can you block time, and see how long things really took? Most apps only do the first. (Why both matter.)
- The rest of the day. Habits, goals, notes, a place to reflect, or a second and third app for them.
- Setup cost. How long before you can plan a real day in it?
- Calm. Does it fade behind your day, or compete with it?
Comparison table
| Price (annual) | Free plan | Time blocking | Records actual time | Habits | Journal | Platforms | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zympl | $29.99 | 14-day trial | Yes | Yes, with reports | Yes | Yes | Web; mobile in development |
| Sunsama | $204 | 14-day trial | Yes | Yes | No | Shutdown ritual | All |
| TickTick | $49.99 | Yes | Premium | Focus timer | Yes | No | All |
| Structured | Varies by region | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Apple, Android, web |
| Morgen | $180 | 14-day trial | Yes, AI-assisted | No | Routines | No | All |
| Things 3 | One-time, from $9.99 | Mac trial | No | No | No | No | Apple only |
| Todoist | $60 | Yes | Pro | No | No | No | All |
| Tweek | $49.99 | Yes | No | No | No | No | Apple, Android, web |
1. Zympl: best all-in-one calm daily planner
Zympl puts the whole day in one quiet place. Tasks with projects, recurring rules and reminders land on today. A one-tap timer on any task builds a timeline of where the hours went, rolled up into weekly and monthly reports. Habits (check-off, count or timed), time goals, markdown notes with smart folders, and a dated daily journal sit beside the plan. There’s nothing to set up, just one accent color, and light and dark themes that follow your system.
- Price: $3.99/month or $29.99/year; 14-day trial with everything unlocked.
- Strengths: replaces four or five single-purpose apps; time reports and time goals; room to write.
- Limits: web-only until the iOS and Android apps ship; no calendar sync, integrations or collaboration.
2. Sunsama: best guided ritual for your work day
Sunsama walks you through planning each morning and shutting down each evening. It pulls tasks from Slack, Gmail, Asana, Jira, Notion and more, and compares planned time with actual time. It’s the gold standard for a mindful work day, priced for people whose employer pays. There are no habits or journal.
- Price: $17/month billed yearly, $22 monthly; no free plan.
- More: Zympl vs. Sunsama · Sunsama alternatives
3. TickTick: best free daily planner
TickTick’s free plan includes tasks, a calendar, 5 habits and a Pomodoro timer, which is more than any other free planner here. Premium adds time-blocking durations, the Timeline view and higher limits. It’s dense rather than calm, but it’s the value leader.
- Price: free; Premium $49.99/year.
- More: Zympl vs. TickTick
4. Structured: best visual timeline (and for ADHD)
Structured shows your day as a colorful vertical timeline, which suits people who need to see the shape of the day. It has habits, a focus timer, energy levels per task, and an Apple Watch app. The free tier covers almost every feature. It doesn’t record actual time, and it has no journal.
- Price: free; Pro is monthly, yearly or $99.99 lifetime, priced by region.
5. Morgen: best for people with several calendars
Morgen brings Google, Outlook, iCloud and Fastmail calendars together, connects your existing task manager, and has an AI Planner that proposes a time-blocked day you approve. It’s ideal if your calendar is the problem. It doesn’t track actual time.
- Price: $15/month billed yearly, $30 monthly; 14-day trial.
6. Things 3: best-designed list for Apple users
Things isn’t a time planner. It has no time blocking or tracking, but its Today and This Evening lists make a lovely daily list for people all-in on Apple. You pay once per platform, with no subscription.
- Price: Mac $49.99, iPhone $9.99, iPad $19.99, one-time.
7. Todoist: best cross-platform task list
Todoist has the best quick-capture on every platform, and Pro adds a calendar layout and task durations for time blocking. The planning ritual, time tracking and habits are up to you.
- Price: free (5 projects); Pro $60/year.
- More: Todoist alternatives
8. Tweek: best paper-like weekly planner
Tweek looks like a week-at-a-glance paper planner: seven columns, no hourly grid, and unfinished tasks roll over. It’s delightfully simple. Recurring tasks, reminders and calendar sync need Premium.
- Price: free (1 calendar); Premium $5.99/month or $49.99/year.
What about Notion?
Notion can be a daily planner if you build one: it has no native time tracking, habits or recurring reminders. It’s better as a home for knowledge alongside a dedicated planner. I cover this in Notion alternatives for daily planning.
What about paper?
Honestly, a notebook is still a great daily planner. If you’re torn, read paper planner vs. digital planner first. The best app for you is the one that keeps what you liked about paper.
Quick picks
- One calm app for the whole day: Zympl.
- A work-day ritual across team tools: Sunsama.
- Free: TickTick.
- ADHD / visual thinkers: Structured.
- Calendar-heavy: Morgen.
- Apple only, no subscription: Things 3.
- Students on a budget: TickTick free, or Zympl at about $2.50/month on the annual plan.