What People Love About Todoist
Before we get into where Start Page HQ goes further, credit where it's due.
- A best-in-class natural-language date parser — type "submit report Friday at 3pm" and it just works.
- Native apps on every major platform: Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android, web, watchOS.
- A solid free tier with 5 personal projects and the core task experience intact.
- 90+ integrations with calendars, email, voice assistants, and automation tools.
- A long, stable history — over 17 years of refinement and a loyal power-user base.
Where Start Page HQ Goes Further
Specific differences, not vague claims.
A Dashboard, Not Just a Task Manager
Todoist is a dedicated app for tasks. Start Page HQ puts a todo list alongside RSS, weather, calendar, habits, links, and 50+ other widgets — your tasks live in context with the rest of your day.
50+ Widgets in the Same Plan
Todoist Pro covers tasks, reminders, and labels. Start Page HQ ships Todo plus Kanban tasks, habits, Pomodoro, calendar, notes, AI tools, and dev utilities — all included.
On Every New Tab, No App Launch
Todoist is a destination you open. Start Page HQ lives on every new tab in your browser — your todo list is visible the moment a tab opens, no shortcut or quick-add window required.
Built-In Habit Tracker and Pomodoro
Habit streaks and focus timers ship as separate widgets you can place anywhere on a page. Todoist has limited habit support and no native Pomodoro.
One Plan, No Per-Seat Math
Todoist Pro and Business price per user. Start Page HQ is a flat $25/year or $49 lifetime — every widget, every page, sync across every device.
Hosted Web App and Browser Extensions
Use startpagehq.com on any browser, or install extensions for Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge. No native install required to get going.
Side-by-Side Comparison
An honest line-by-line look at how the two stack up.
| Feature | Todoist | Start Page HQ |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free or $4-$8/user/mo | $25/yr or $49 lifetime |
| Free tier | Yes (5 projects) | Free demo only |
| Lives on every new tab | No | Yes |
| Chrome | Yes | Yes |
| Firefox | Yes | Yes |
| Safari | Yes | Yes |
| Edge | Yes | Yes |
| Hosted web app | Yes | Yes |
| iOS / Android apps | Yes | Web app (PWA) |
| Native desktop apps | Yes | No |
| Cross-device sync | Included | Included |
| Natural-language task input | Yes | No |
| Todo / task list widget | Yes | Yes |
| Kanban / board view | Pro tier | Tasks widget |
| Habit tracker | Limited | Built-in |
| Pomodoro timer | No | Built-in |
| Calendar widget | Integration | Built-in |
| RSS / news / podcasts | No | Yes |
| AI tools (image gen, translation, summary) | Assist add-on | Included |
| Developer tools (JSON, regex, diff) | No | Yes |
| Integrations / app marketplace | 90+ | Built-in widgets |
Widgets That Replace Todoist
Drop these onto your dashboard and you've covered Todoist's core features — plus a lot more.
Frequently Asked Questions
For personal task management — daily todos, recurring tasks, projects — the Todo widget covers the core workflow. If you rely on Todoist's natural-language date parsing or its 90+ integrations with email and voice assistants, those are still Todoist's strengths. Many users use Todoist for advanced task workflows and Start Page HQ for the new-tab dashboard.
There is a free public demo at startpagehq.com/demo where you can try the Todo widget and every other widget without signing up. Full access requires a paid plan: $25/year or $49 one-time. Both plans include all 50+ widgets, cross-device sync, and AI credits.
Todoist is free for up to 5 projects; Pro is around $4/month annual ($5 monthly), and Business is around $8/user/month. Start Page HQ is a flat $25/year or $49 lifetime with no tiers — every widget included.
Yes. Cross-device sync is included in the base price. Sign in once and your todos, habits, and dashboards sync across every browser and device automatically.
There is no automated Todoist importer. Most users export their Todoist projects to CSV and recreate the lists in the Todo widget in a few minutes. The Links widget is also a handy place to keep your most-used Todoist URLs alongside the new dashboard.
Start Page HQ's Todo widget uses standard date pickers rather than parsing free-form text. If natural-language input is core to your workflow, Todoist still has the edge on that one feature.