27 Free CLI Task Management and Todo List Apps for Your Terminal

Terminal or CLI (Command Line Interface) task management and Todo list apps are software applications that allow users to manage and organize their tasks and to-do lists directly from the command line. These apps provide a text-based interface where users can input and manage their tasks, set deadlines, add notes, and mark tasks as completed.

One of the main advantages of using Terminal or CLI task management apps is their efficiency and speed. Users can quickly add, modify, and view tasks without the need for a graphical user interface. This can be especially useful for individuals who work primarily in a command line environment or prefer a minimalist approach to task management.

Additionally, Terminal or CLI task management apps often integrate with other command line tools or scripts, allowing for automation and customization. Users can create scripts or workflows to automate repetitive tasks, set up reminders, or generate reports based on their task data.

By utilizing Terminal or CLI task management apps, individuals can boost their productivity by having a streamlined and focused approach to managing their tasks. These apps provide a distraction-free environment and encourage users to stay organized and prioritize their work effectively.

In this post, you will find a collection of the best terminal-based CLI apps to manage your tasks, projects and to-do lists effectively.

1- Taskwarrior

Taskwarrior is a popular Terminal or CLI task management and Todo list app. It is an open-source software that provides a robust set of features for managing tasks, including task tracking, due dates, priorities, tags, notes, and more.

Taskwarrior allows users to efficiently manage their tasks directly from the command line, providing a flexible and customizable task management solution.

Features

Task tracking: Users can create and track tasks, keeping a record of their progress and completion status.
Due dates: Tasks can be assigned specific due dates to help prioritize and manage deadlines.
Priorities: Users can assign priorities to tasks, ensuring that important tasks are given the appropriate attention.
Tags: Tasks can be labeled with tags for easy categorization and organization.
Notes: Users can add notes to tasks, providing additional context or details.
Recurring tasks: Taskwarrior supports recurring tasks, allowing users to set up tasks that repeat at specified intervals.
Filters: Users can filter and search for tasks based on various criteria, such as tags, due dates, priorities, and more.
Customization: Taskwarrior is highly customizable, allowing users to configure settings, create custom reports, and define their own task attributes.

2- Taskwarrior TUI

This is a free and open-source Terminal User Interface (TUI) app for Taskwarrior that you didn't know you wanted.

Features

vim-like navigation
live filter updates
add, delete, complete, log tasks
multiple selection
tab completion
colors based on taskwarrior

3- Taskwiki

Taskwiki is a free project management tool in vim that enhances productivity by combining vimwiki and Taskwarrior.

4- Dstask

Dstask is a personal task tracker designed to help you focus. It is similar to Taskwarrior but uses git to synchronise instead of a special protocol.

Features

Powerful context system (automatically applies filter/tags to queries and new tasks)
Git powered sync/undo/resolve (passwordstore.org style) which means no need to set up a sync server, and syncing between devices is easy!
Task listing won't break with long task text (unlike taskwarrior, currently)
note command -- edit a full markdown note for each task. Checklists are useful here.
open command -- open URLs found in specified task (including notes) in the browser
zsh/bash completion (including tags and projects in current context) for speed
A single statically-linked binary
import tool which can import GitHub issues or taskwarrior tasks.

5- Ultralist

Ultralist is a command-line task management system based on the Getting Things Done system. It focuses on due dates, projects, contexts, statuses, and task recurrence. The CLI is fast, powerful, intuitive, and open source.

6- Taskell

Taskell is a free and open-source CLI kanban board/task manager for Mac and Linux.

Features

Per project task lists
vim style key-bindings
Stored using Markdown
Clean diffs for easy version control
Support for sub-tasks and due dates
Trello board imports
GitHub project imports

7- Geek Life

Geek-life is a free CLI To-Do List / Task Manager designed for developers, DevOps, and sysadmins. It offers keyboard shortcuts, markdown support, project management, task notes, and low resource usage. Boost your productivity with this lightweight and feature-rich app.

8- Todoman

Todoman is a command-line task manager that stores todos in icalendar files, allowing for syncing via CalDAV. It is part of the pimutils project and can be found on GitHub. It is compatible with Unix-like OS but not supported on Windows.

Features

Listing, editing and creating todos.
Todos are read from individual ics files from the configured directory. This matches the vdir specification.
There's support for the most common TODO features for now (summary, description, location, due date and priority).
Todoman should run on any major operating system (except Windows).
Unsupported fields may not be shown but are never deleted or altered.

9- mashiro-task

mashiro-task is a command-line utility for efficient task management, with a focus on recurring tasks and prioritizing three current tasks. It offers features like the "add" command to create and add new tasks to your list.

10- Calcure

Calcure is a free and open-source Modern TUI calendar and task manager that boosts productivity. It allows you to manage events and tasks, display birthdays, and import data from other applications like calcurse and taskwarrior.

Features

Vim keys
View tasks and events from .ics files synced with clouds
Operation with fewest key presses possible
Todo list with subtasks, deadlines, and timers
Birthdays of your abook contacts
Import of events and tasks from calcurse and taskwarrior
Icons according to the name ✈ ⛷ ⛱
Private events and tasks •••••
Plain text database in your folder for cloud sync
Customizable colors, icons, and other features
Resize and mobile friendly
Current weather ⛅
Support for Persian calendar

Platforms

Windows
Linux
macOS

11- PLS-CLI

PLS-CLI is a free and open-source minimalist and full configurable greetings and TODO list.

12- Todoska

Todoska is a simple, fast, and powerful todo list manager that can boost productivity. It is designed to help manage tasks and boost efficiency.

13- Todo (CLI)

Todo (CLI) is a free and open-source command-line tool to manage the Todo lists of your projects.

14- todo.txt-cli

This is a free simple and extensible shell script for managing your todo.txt file.

15- todolist-lua

todolist-lua is a simple todolist for the command line written in Lua.

16- todo

A simple command-line todolist manager which can be as powerful as you want it to be.

17- Ekko

https://github.com/blackhorseya/ekko

18- Go CLI Todo App

https://github.com/heybran/gtodo

19- Go Todo

This is a simple command-line todo application written in Go. It allows you to create, read, update, and delete tasks into/from a local JSON file.

20- Terminal Tasks

Terminal Tasks is a simple terminal task list powered by Ora.

21- t

t is a command-line todo list manager for people that want to finish tasks, not organize them.

22- Please

Please is Todo list in terminal. Written with C++.

23- Tasklist-cli

Tasklist-cli is a simple and elegant command line application to manage tasks and todos. Tasklist-cli exists to bring all the needed functionalities for simple project management to the terminal. No graphical interface is needed; this tool is easy enough to use to improve your workflow.

Features

add todo tasks.
mark tasks as done.
revoke done tasks.
delete done tasks.
add due date to a task.
add subtasks to projects.

24- Task

Terminal tasks todo tool for geek.

25- TTDL (Terminal ToDo List)

A CLI tool to manage todo lists in todo.txt format.

26- Task

Terminal or CLI task management and todo list apps, such as Task, can boost productivity by providing a simple and efficient way to create and manage to-do lists without any additional complications.

Features

Any input is regarded as a new task unless it's a specific command
Writes tasks and settings into a seperate json file so you could sync it with other machines
Handles multiple files just fine so you can seperate your task lists
Doesn't require you to learn weird input syntax, commands or grow additional arms to get your shit done
Doesn't slow you down when writing new tasks
Does one thing and does it well
Not bloated

27- td

Your todo list in your terminal.

1- Taskwarrior

Features

2- Taskwarrior TUI

Features

3- Taskwiki

4- Dstask

Features

5- Ultralist

6- Taskell

Features

7- Geek Life

8- Todoman

Features

9- mashiro-task

10- Calcure

Features

Platforms

11- PLS-CLI

12- Todoska

13- Todo (CLI)

14- todo.txt-cli

15- todolist-lua

16- todo

17- Ekko

18- Go CLI Todo App

19- Go Todo

20- Terminal Tasks

21- t

22- Please

23- Tasklist-cli

Features

24- Task

25- TTDL (Terminal ToDo List)

26- Task

Features

27- td

Tags

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