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ByDesign

Comparison

ByDesign
OmniFocus

ByDesign vs OmniFocus

OmniFocus is the GTD system for Apple devices. ByDesign plans the goal and runs the day.

OmniFocus gives you an inbox, projects, tags, defer and due dates, Review, and a Forecast that lists your actions next to your calendar events, with custom perspectives and automation in Pro. ByDesign starts further back: goals, habits, notes and a year canvas, with AI that builds the plan from a goal, schedules it around your hours and shows you before anything saves, on every platform, with sharing and chat.

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What you get with ByDesign that OmniFocus doesn’t offer

  • AI that builds and schedules the plan

    Say a goal and get tasks, subtasks, courses and deadlines on your calendar, with a preview you approve. OmniFocus 4.9 adds Siri AI in beta, which can create and edit actions and break a goal into steps on OS 27, and Apple Intelligence date parsing; nothing schedules the work for you.

  • A calendar you can edit, both ways

    Edit an event in ByDesign or in Google and Apple Calendar and both stay right, with Outlook and ICS subscriptions too. OmniFocus’s Forecast shows your device’s calendar events “for display purposes” only; they open in Apple Calendar or the calendar app you pick, and the web app doesn’t show them at all.

  • Goals, habits, notes and a year on one canvas

    Goal pages with progress, a habit tracker with streaks and stats, nested pages, and a year-to-quarter-to-day canvas. OmniFocus has projects and folders, repeating actions, rich-text notes on actions, and a Forecast list with a one-month sidebar.

  • Every platform, and your team

    Web, Mac, Windows, iOS, iPad and Android, with shared pages, assignments, chat and per-seat team plans. OmniFocus runs on Apple devices; Android and PC get the paid web companion, and there is no shared workspace to assign or discuss work in.

ByDesign vs OmniFocus, 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

    OmniFocus

    Limited: Siri AI, betaOn OS 27 with Siri AI beta access, Siri can break a goal into actions in OmniFocus; no courses, deadlines or calendar placement

  • AI scheduling with a preview you approve

    ByDesign

    Included: Preview, then acceptConflicts shown; nothing saves until you say so; AI and AI Plus plans

    OmniFocus

    Not available: Forecast listDue items, flagged items and events by day, ordered by hand in the Flexible layout

  • Auto-schedule around your hours

    ByDesign

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

    OmniFocus

    Not available: Estimated durations onlyUsed for the latest start date, not for placing actions

  • Planning assistant chat

    ByDesign

    Included: In the app, full contextSees your calendar, goals, habits and notes; moves and reschedules items; AI and AI Plus plans

    OmniFocus

    Limited: Siri, betaAsk Siri about your OmniFocus items or to flag what’s on screen; no chat inside the app

  • Voice control

    ByDesign

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

    OmniFocus

    Limited: Siri and Apple Voice ControlCreate and edit actions through Siri AI on OS 27; Voice Control support on Mac

Calendar and views

  • Two-way calendar sync

    ByDesign

    Included: Google and AppleEdit events in either place; Outlook and ICS subscriptions too

    OmniFocus

    Limited: Forecast reads your calendarsEvents from the device’s calendars show beside actions “for display purposes” and open in Apple Calendar or the app you pick; not in OmniFocus for the Web

  • Year-to-day planning canvas

    ByDesign

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

    OmniFocus

    Limited: ForecastDay tiles plus a sidebar calendar for the next month; no year view

  • Kanban boards

    ByDesign

    Included: Custom columnsMain board plus boards per page

    OmniFocus

    Not available: On the roadmap“Most of the initial design work done”; engineering starts after OmniGraffle 8 ships, per Omni’s July 2026 update

  • Sticky notes, images and pinned pages on the calendar

    ByDesign

    Included: Yes

    OmniFocus

    Not available: No

  • Customisable dashboard

    ByDesign

    Included: Drag-and-drop widgetsScore board, tasks, habits, inbox, pinned pages, Kanban

    OmniFocus

    Limited: Custom perspectives, ProFilter and group your actions by rules; home-screen widgets, no in-app dashboard

Notes, habits and goals

  • Notes and pages

    ByDesign

    Included: Nested pagesTables, code, embeds, sub-pages, backlinks; publish to the web

    OmniFocus

    Limited: Rich-text notes on actionsWith attachments; no standalone pages

  • Habit tracker

    ByDesign

    Included: Check-ins and streaksSkip a day, stats, habits with friends

    OmniFocus

    Limited: Repeat schedulesActions repeat on real-world schedules; no streaks or stats

  • Goals with progress

    ByDesign

    Included: Goal pagesTasks, resources, percent complete, shareable

    OmniFocus

    Not available: Projects and folders instead

  • Courses and roadmaps from the Hub

    ByDesign

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

    OmniFocus

    Not available: Project templates through automation, Pro

  • Pomodoro timer

    ByDesign

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

    OmniFocus

    Not available: No

  • Time tracking on tasks

    ByDesign

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

    OmniFocus

    Limited: Estimated durationEstimate how long an action will take; no timer

Collaboration and platforms

  • MCP for Claude, ChatGPT and other assistants

    ByDesign

    Included: YesClaude Desktop, Claude Code and ChatGPT guides

    OmniFocus

    Limited: In progressOmni says it is working towards MCP support; today, customers wire it up themselves through Omni Automation, a Pro feature

  • Share pages and assign tasks

    ByDesign

    Included: View, comment or editAssign tasks; @mention in comments

    OmniFocus

    Not available: Single-userEach person keeps their own database; Omni is “working toward” Omni Links for OmniFocus

  • Built-in chat

    ByDesign

    Included: Direct and groupThreads, reactions, polls

    OmniFocus

    Not available: No

  • Team plans

    ByDesign

    Included: Per seatAdd or remove members in settings

    OmniFocus

    Limited: Team licencesBuy seats for employees; each person’s OmniFocus stays their own

  • Apps

    ByDesign

    Included: Web, Mac, Windows, iOS, iPad and Android

    OmniFocus

    Limited: Mac, iPhone, iPad, Watch and Vision ProAndroid and PC only through OmniFocus for the Web, a paid companion without calendar events

OmniFocus column based on features, specs, manual: Forecast, manual: Inspector, release notes, Siri AI post, 2026 roadmap update and buy on October 26, 2026. If something has changed, email info@bydesign.io.

Both apps cover the basics

  • Inbox and natural-language dates
  • Projects, folders and tags
  • Due dates, reminders and flags or priorities
  • Flexible repeat schedules
  • Rich-text notes with attachments
  • Sync across devices
  • Home-screen widgets
  • Keyboard shortcuts
  • Multiple interface languages
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Why people switch from OmniFocus 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.

OmniFocus: OmniFocus is built for capture and review: you write the actions, file them into projects, set defer and due dates and work the list. Siri AI, in beta on OS 27, can add actions and break a goal into steps, but nothing lands on a calendar.

ByDesign AI goal plan with tasks, tags and durations

A schedule you approve, not a list you work through

Set your hours, breaks and buffers once. ByDesign places tasks into the real gaps, splits long ones, shows the proposed week and waits for your OK.

OmniFocus: OmniFocus’s Forecast is a reorderable list of due items, flagged items and calendar events by day. Estimated durations exist, but nothing places an action into a time slot for you.

ByDesign week view with the planning assistant previewing changes

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.

OmniFocus: Forecast shows the days ahead as tiles, with a sidebar calendar for the next month. Kanban is on Omni’s roadmap; there is no year view, no goal pages and no habit stats.

ByDesign planning canvas showing a full year of plans

On every device, with your team

ByDesign runs on the web, Mac, Windows, iOS, iPad and Android, so your plan is there on a work PC too. Share pages, assign tasks, @mention in comments and chat in the app.

OmniFocus: OmniFocus runs on Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Vision Pro. Android and PC users get OmniFocus for the Web, a paid companion without calendar events. There is no assigning, commenting or chat; Omni is “working toward” bringing Omni Links to OmniFocus.

ByDesign team workspace

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 Callio

    Can I just say I love you. Finally, a good-looking app that isn’t complex as hell. There are tears in my eyes. I’ll happily pay for this!💯

  • From TuneOutlyson003

    I just wanna say that I have FINALLY found a to-do list app where I can have recurring tasks and habit/org systems in one place. This is awesome because I keep wondering if one day my autonomous self will break....this is awesome so far!

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 plan the goal, not just work the list?

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

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