A task manager is software which enables users to compile a list of tasks to be completed. This list is also known as a to-do list or things-to-do. For the purposes of this article, the term ‘task manager’ should not be confused with monitoring software which provides information about programs and processes running on a computer.
The list of activities that may form a to-do list include chores, grocery lists, reminders for important events (such as purchasing wedding presents or birthday gifts), self management, software development, project / business management, and so on. Task managers help to organise your day, ensuring that you know in an instant what you need to do.
Linux has a large range of open source task managers, in part because many of them have a limited feature set and hence are relatively quick to code. This feature selects our personal favorites, including both console based applications and software sporting an attractive graphical user interface.
To be productive, you may need more than a task manager. Our features on Productivity Tools and Personal Information Managers help to organize your day in other ways.
To provide an insight into the quality of software that is available, we have compiled a list of 13 useful terminal-based task managers. Hopefully, there will be something of interest here for anyone who wants to avoid that sinking feeling of remembering (albeit too late) something important that needs to be actioned. GUI task managers are covered in a separate roundup.
Here’s our verdict captured in a legendary LinuxLinks-style ratings chart. Only free and open source software is eligible for inclusion.
Click the links in the table below to learn more about each task manager.
| Terminal-Based Task Managers | |
|---|---|
| Taskwarrior | Manages your TODO list from the command line |
| Org Mode | Emacs major mode for keeping notes, maintaining to-do lists, and more |
| Todoman | Simple, cli, standards-based task manager |
| Taskell | Command-line Kanban board/task manager |
| dstask | Similar to Taskwarrior but uses git to synchronise instead of a special protocol |
| Dooit | Billed as a to-do manager that you didn’t ask for, but needed |
| Todoist | TODO list web application |
| Yokadi | SQLite powered TODO list tool |
| VIT | Visual Interactive Taskwarrior |
| Tatuin | Task aggregation tool |
| Todo TUI | Vim-like TUI that honors the simplicity of todo.txt |
| Judo | Terminal-based todo list application |
| todo | Lightweight and fast CLI-based todo program |
 Explore our comprehensive directory of recommended free and open source software. Our carefully curated collection spans every major software category.This directory is part of our ongoing series of informative articles for Linux enthusiasts. It features hundreds of detailed reviews, along with open source alternatives to proprietary solutions from major corporations such as Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, and Autodesk. You’ll also find interesting projects to try, hardware coverage, free programming books and tutorials, and much more. Know a useful open source Linux program that we haven’t covered yet? Let us know by completing this form. |