Grumpty vs Todoist
A reminders tool whose reminders are free, and that already knows what a house needs.
Todoist is one of the best task managers going, and we mean that. If you already run your life in it, adding a few home jobs is no effort. The snag isn't the recurring dates, which it does well. It's two things it was never built for: free reminders and any idea what a house needs.
At a glance
| What | Grumpty | Todoist |
|---|---|---|
| Knows home maintenance | ~100 jobs, sensible frequencies | Empty, you type every job |
| Reminders | Free daily grumble | A paid Pro feature |
| Lead time before it's due | Baked into every job | Set each one yourself |
| Reschedules from when you did it | Yes | Yes, with the every! syntax |
| Overdue vs upcoming | Sorted into buckets | Build your own filters |
| Price of the reminders | Free | Pro, ~$60/yr |
Where Todoist wins
It's fast, it's everywhere, and the natural-language quick add is a joy: type "clean the gutters every! 3 months" and it schedules from the day you actually finish, not a fixed date. Labels, filters, projects, the lot. If you live in Todoist already and just want somewhere to park a few household jobs, it'll do it without complaint.
Where Grumpty wins
Two gaps. First, Todoist's time-based reminders are a Pro feature (around $60 a year at the time of writing); on the free plan the thing that's meant to remind you mostly won't. Grumpty's daily grumble is free and stays free. Second, Todoist starts empty and knows nothing about a house: you supply every job, every frequency and every lead time, and keeping all that current is itself a chore. Grumpty arrives with around a hundred common jobs at sensible frequencies, each with its own lead time baked in, so it grumbles while there's still time to book someone, and sorts what's overdue from what can wait.
So which one?
If you already run everything in Todoist and don't mind paying for Pro, point it at the house too; it's a fine tool and the every! trick handles the rescheduling. If you'd rather not build the whole list, set every lead time by hand, or pay for the reminders, that's the gap Grumpty fills, free.
Questions people ask
Can Todoist handle recurring home maintenance?
Yes, and the recurring dates are good: "every! 3 months" even reschedules from the day you finish. The catch is the reminders are a paid Pro feature, and Todoist knows nothing about a house, so you supply every job, every frequency and every lead time yourself. Grumpty comes with the jobs and the timings already in, and the grumble is free.
Are Todoist's reminders free?
No. Time-based reminders are a Pro feature (around $60 a year at the time of writing). The free plan handles the tasks but not the nudging, which for a reminders tool is the bit you wanted. Grumpty's daily grumble is free, no card.
I already use Todoist for work. Why add Grumpty?
Because home upkeep isn't a work to-do. It needs lead time to book a pro, it should reschedule from when you did it, and it's the kind of thing you forget exists until something leaks. Grumpty does only that, with the jobs already in and the reminding free, so it works whether or not you remember to open it. Keep Todoist for everything else.
Compare with others
Stop keeping the house in your head
Grumpty is a free home-maintenance app: add a job once, it tracks the date, grumbles when it's due, and rolls it forward the moment you mark it done. No card.
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