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ByDesign

Comparison

ByDesign
Notion

ByDesign vs Notion

Notion is where you write it down. ByDesign is where it gets scheduled.

Notion is a superb home for docs and databases, and you can build a planner in it if you’re willing to maintain one. ByDesign is the planner: goals, habits, tasks and a two-way calendar come built in, and AI turns a goal into a scheduled plan you approve.

Try ByDesign freeSee the comparison

What you get with ByDesign that Notion doesn’t offer

  • A planner, not a kit

    Habit tracker, goal pages with progress, Pomodoro, time tracking and daily, weekly and someday lists are built in. In Notion they are templates and databases you assemble and keep working.

  • AI that schedules

    Say the goal and ByDesign builds the tasks, subtasks, courses and deadlines, then schedules them, drafted on your calendar with conflicts shown. Notion AI writes, searches and builds pages and databases; it doesn’t schedule tasks into your free time.

  • Your whole year on one canvas

    Year, quarter, month, week and day on one zoomable surface, with sticky notes, images and pinned pages. Notion’s database calendars show a month or a week, and its Timeline view zooms from hours to years, but no single canvas lays out your notes, goals and habits from the year down to the day.

  • Tasks and calendar in one app

    Tasks, events and habits sit on one calendar with two-way Google and Apple sync. Notion keeps its calendar in a separate app, Notion Calendar, and Google events can’t be pulled into a database.

ByDesign vs Notion, feature by feature

Only the differences. What both apps do the same is listed underneath.

  • Included
  • Limited
  • Not available

AI planning

  • AI goal plans

    ByDesign

    Included: Built and scheduledTasks, subtasks, courses and deadlines land on your calendar; AI and AI Plus plans

    Notion

    Limited: Notion Agent builds pages and databasesCan set dates; doesn’t schedule into free time

  • AI scheduling with a preview you approve

    ByDesign

    Included: Preview on the calendarConflicts shown; accept, or undo step by step; AI and AI Plus plans

    Notion

    Not available: No AI scheduling

  • Planning assistant chat

    ByDesign

    Included: Full contextSees your calendar, goals, habits and notes; moves and reschedules items; AI and AI Plus plans

    Notion

    Limited: Notion AIChat over your pages and connected apps; Business plan

  • Auto-schedule around your hours

    ByDesign

    Included: Rules you setWork hours, breaks, buffers, max hours a day, split long tasks

    Notion

    Not available: Notion Calendar auto-blocks busy slots; tasks are placed by hand

  • Voice control

    ByDesign

    Included: Mic and hands-freeOptional wake phrase; AI and AI Plus plans

    Notion

    Limited: Meeting notes and AI voice shortcutAI Meeting Notes transcribes; the iOS AI widget takes voice; Siri opens Notion AI

Planning views

  • Year-to-day planning canvas

    ByDesign

    Included: Year to dayYear, quarter, month, week and day on one zoomable surface; AI and AI Plus plans

    Notion

    Limited: Month, week and timelineDatabase calendars by month or week (day view on mobile); Timeline view zooms from hours to years; no planning canvas

  • Sticky notes, images and pinned pages on the calendar

    ByDesign

    Included: Yes

    Notion

    Not available: No

  • Tasks and calendar in one app

    ByDesign

    Included: One calendarTasks, events and habits together; two-way Google and Apple sync

    Notion

    Limited: Notion Calendar, a separate appGoogle, Outlook and iCloud; database items editable there

Built in, not built by you

  • Habit tracker

    ByDesign

    Included: Built inStreaks, skip a day, stats, habits with friends

    Notion

    Limited: Templates and databasesBuild and maintain your own

  • Goals with progress

    ByDesign

    Included: Goal pagesTasks, resources, percent complete, shareable

    Notion

    Limited: Templates and databases

  • Pomodoro timer

    ByDesign

    Included: Built in25/5/15 cycles with a floating timer

    Notion

    Not available: No

  • Time tracking on tasks

    ByDesign

    Included: Start and pause on any taskTotals per task; “most tracked” filter

    Notion

    Not available: No

  • Courses and roadmaps from the Hub

    ByDesign

    Included: The HubCourses, roadmaps and a habit library; schedule a roadmap straight onto your calendar

    Notion

    Limited: Template gallery and Notion AcademyNo built-in course or roadmap scheduling

Collaboration

  • Built-in chat

    ByDesign

    Included: Direct and groupThreads, reactions, polls

    Notion

    Not available: Comments and mentions

Notion column based on help centre, Notion Calendar, Notion AI FAQ, tasks and dependencies, dashboards and pricing on October 23, 2026. If something has changed, email info@bydesign.io.

Both apps cover the basics

  • Pages with a block editor, sub-pages and embeds
  • Tasks with subtasks and reminders
  • Kanban boards and timeline or calendar views
  • Templates
  • Dashboards (Notion: Business plan and up)
  • Sharing with permission levels, comments and @mentions
  • Per-seat team plans
  • MCP server for AI assistants
  • Markdown export of pages
  • Web, Mac, Windows, iOS and Android apps
  • Widgets on iOS and Android
  • Dark mode
  • Multiple languages
  • Keyboard shortcuts
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Why people switch from Notion to ByDesign

Say the goal. Get a scheduled plan.

Tell ByDesign what you want to achieve. It asks a few questions, then builds the tasks, subtasks, courses and deadlines and schedules them around the life you already have. Replan in one message.

Notion: Notion AI can draft a plan and build a task database for it. Fitting the tasks into your week is still on you.

ByDesign AI goal plan with tasks, tags and durations

Preview the week before it saves

Say “plan my week” and ByDesign drafts the changes on a preview of your calendar, conflicts included. Accept, or undo step by step. Nothing is saved until you say so.

Notion: Notion has no AI scheduling. Notion Calendar auto-blocks busy slots across your calendars; placing tasks is drag-and-drop by hand.

ByDesign week view with the planning assistant previewing changes

Habits, goals and focus, built in

Track habits with streaks and stats, keep goal pages with progress, run a Pomodoro and track time on any task. Open ByDesign in the morning and it already works.

Notion: In Notion, habit trackers and goal pages are templates and databases you set up, and there is no built-in timer.

ByDesign reminders, habits and deadlines on iOS

Your whole year on one surface

The planning canvas zooms from the full year down to a single day. Pin goals, notes and milestones where they belong, drag anything, and the plan keeps up.

Notion: Notion’s database calendars show a month or a week (a day view on mobile), and the Timeline view zooms from hours to years. Dated items from any database can appear there, but no single canvas lays out notes, goals and habits from year to day.

ByDesign planning canvas showing a full year of plans

Don’t take our word for it.

  • From Daniel

    Honestly, Notion was really exhausting for me... Your product works in the simplest way. I’m a product designer, and I’d love to share my feedback with you after using it more :)

  • From E

    I really like ByDesign - a lot. I was looking for something that works for me but is also simple and intuitive enough to work for my 12 yr old daughter who needs to start planning out her homework and chores around her other calendar events. I think this is it - and I have looked at a lot of your competitors - Notion, Motion, Tick Tick, To-Do, Todoist. None have the simplicity of user interface combined with the rich features (but not overly complex). love it😍

  • From Narovsky

    Hello! Just found byDesign less than 8 hours ago, and I’m blown away. It has the best of Workflowy (10 yr customer now), Notion, Google Calendar and ICQ (haha)! Oh and a neat Facebook too -- minus the obscure relatives and friends that rant-post too often. Anyhoo, just wanted to say you guys are working on a winner here

See All The Love →

Make the switch in three steps

No setup project. Start free, connect the calendar you already use, and give ByDesign your first goal.

  1. Start your free trial. No credit card.
  2. Connect your Google, Apple or Outlook calendar.
  3. Say your first goal and watch the plan land on your calendar.

Ready to stop building your planner and start using one?

Start free. No credit card. Tell ByDesign a goal and watch the plan land on your calendar.

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