12 Best Daily Planner Apps in 2026
From visual timelines to AI automation, this guide compares the best daily planner apps and how they handle real-life schedule changes.
Daily planning isn’t just task management. It’s an intentional practice of orchestrating your day—deciding not just what to do, but when to do it, and making that plan feel achievable instead of overwhelming.
Unlike general productivity tools that throw endless task lists at you, the best daily planner apps help you build a realistic daily structure. They unite your calendar, tasks, and commitments into a single view, then guide you through planning rituals that actually stick.
Whether you’re transitioning from paper planners, looking for morning planning support, or wanting AI to handle the heavy lifting, this guide covers twelve daily planning apps that excel at the specific practice of planning your day.
We tested each tool’s daily planning features, morning/evening workflows, and how they handle the inevitable chaos when plans change. Here’s what actually works in 2025.
What Makes a Great Daily Planner App
Not every task manager qualifies as a daily planner. True daily planning tools share specific characteristics that support the practice of intentional day orchestration.
1. Clear Daily View
The best daily planner apps prioritize your daily view above all else. You should see your entire day at a glance—tasks, meetings, breaks—without drowning in weekly or monthly noise. Daily focus, not overwhelming long-term backlogs.
2. Morning Planning Support
Daily planning is a morning ritual for most people. Great planners make it easy to review yesterday, plan today, and set yourself up for success. This isn’t about complex workflows—it’s about answering “what am I doing today?” quickly and clearly.
3. Time-Based or Timeline View
Seeing your day spatially changes everything. When tasks appear alongside calendar blocks, you can actually see if your plan is realistic. Visual timelines, time blocking, or scheduling features help you understand how your day flows, not just what needs doing.
4. Task + Calendar Integration
Daily planning fails when tasks live separately from your calendar. The best planners show meetings AND tasks together in one unified view, giving you the full context of what’s actually possible today.
5. Flexibility
Plans change. Meetings run over, urgent tasks arrive, energy crashes mid-afternoon. Great daily planners make rescheduling effortless—drag-and-drop adjustments, easy postponement, forgiving workflows that adapt to reality.
6. Reflection Support
The best planners don’t just help you plan—they help you learn. End-of-day review features, completion tracking, and pattern recognition turn daily planning from a chore into a practice that actually improves over time.
Types of Daily Planning Approaches
Daily planners solve the same problem in very different ways. Understanding these approaches helps you choose the right tool for your planning style.
Manual/Intentional (Sunsama-style)
You decide everything. These tools guide you through deliberate planning rituals—reviewing yesterday, choosing today’s focus, time blocking tasks yourself. Highly intentional, deeply personal, requires 15-30 minutes of planning time daily.
Best for: People who love the planning ritual itself, those who want complete control, anyone transitioning from paper planning.
Visual Timeline (Structured-style)
See your day spatially. Time-based views show exactly when things happen, with visual progress bars and timeline layouts. You still plan manually, but the visual representation makes time management intuitive.
Best for: Visual thinkers, people with ADHD who benefit from structure, anyone who thinks in time blocks rather than lists.
AI-Assisted (Trevor AI-style)
AI suggests, you review and adjust. These tools offer smart scheduling recommendations based on your calendar, deadlines, and priorities, but you maintain final control. Balance between automation and agency.
Best for: People who want help without giving up control, those overwhelmed by too many tasks, anyone tired of manual time blocking.
Automatic + Energy-Aware (rivva-style)
AI plans everything automatically. You wake up to a day already orchestrated around your energy levels, calendar constraints, and priorities. Minimal planning time required, maximum structure achieved.
Best for: People who want results without planning burden, executives juggling complex schedules, anyone tired of spending 30 minutes every morning planning.
The 12 Best Daily Planner Apps for 2025
1. rivva – AI Daily Planning with Energy Awareness
Planning Style: Automatic + Energy-Aware
Best For: Busy professionals who want daily structure without daily planning time
rivva brings AI intelligence to daily planning—you wake up to a day already planned around your energy, not just your calendar.
Daily planning features:
Visual Daily Timeline: See your entire day at a glance with tasks, meetings, breaks, and your energy curve mapped out
Energy-Aware Scheduling: Strategic work gets scheduled during peak hours, routine tasks during valleys, matching work to your actual capacity
Ranked Priority: Clear “do this next” guidance eliminates decision fatigue—just follow the plan
Automatic Adaptation: Plans adjust throughout the day as meetings run over or priorities shift—no manual replanning needed
Two-Way Google Calendar Sync: Tasks scheduled in rivva appear on your calendar, calendar changes update your plan
If you love the practice of daily planning but hate spending 30 minutes every morning doing it, rivva offers the best of both worlds. You get a thoughtfully planned day (the outcome you want) without the planning burden (the time cost). Nia does the planning overnight, considering your energy forecast and calendar constraints.
Pricing:
Monthly: $13.99/month
Quarterly: $31.50/quarter ($10.50/month billed quarterly)
7-day free trial
Pros:
Little time spent on daily planning
Energy-aware (plans around your actual capacity)
Adapts automatically throughout day
Clear daily structure and guidance
Visual timeline view
Cons:
Requires trust in AI planning
No Android app (iOS and web only)
Try rivva free: Get daily planning without the planning time. Start your 7-day trial →
2. Sunsama – Intentional Daily Planning Ritual
Planning Style: Manual/Intentional
Best For: People who value the planning ritual and want complete control
Sunsama treats daily planning as a mindful practice, not a checkbox. The app guides you through structured planning rituals that help you choose what matters, schedule it realistically, and end your workday on time.
Daily planning approach:
Sunsama’s guided workflows walk you through planning each morning and reflection each evening. You manually pull tasks from integrated tools (Gmail, Slack, Asana, Trello, Todoist), drag them into today’s plan, time block them on your calendar, and set realistic workloads.
Daily planning features:
Guided Daily Planning Ritual: Step-by-step morning workflow helps you review yesterday, plan today, and set intentions
Time Blocking: Drag tasks directly onto your calendar to visualize your day
Task Consolidation: Pull tasks from email, Slack, project management tools into one planning dashboard
Workload Limits: Set daily task limits to prevent overcommitment
Daily Shutdown: Evening ritual helps you reflect on completion, move unfinished tasks, and prepare tomorrow
Calendar Integration: Two-way sync with Google Calendar and Outlook
Pricing:
$20/month (monthly billing)
$16/month ($192/year, annual billing)
14-day free trial (no credit card required)
Pros:
Beautiful, calm interface designed for mindful planning
Deep integrations with popular productivity tools
Guided rituals create consistent planning habits
Strong focus on work-life balance
Timeboxing 2.0 coming in 2025 (auto-schedule tasks)
Cons:
No AI automation—everything is manual
Most expensive daily planner ($20/month)
No free plan
Planning rituals require 20-30 minutes daily
3. Structured – Visual Timeline Daily Planner (iOS)
Planning Style: Visual Timeline
Best For: Visual thinkers, ADHD community, anyone who wants simple daily structure
Structured combines tasks, calendar events, and routines into a beautiful visual timeline. The app’s clean design and intuitive interface make daily planning feel natural rather than overwhelming.
Daily planning approach:
Structured displays your day as a visual timeline with color-coded tasks, icons, and progress indicators. You manually plan your day, but the visual representation makes time management intuitive. Popular in the ADHD community for its clarity and focus.
Daily planning features:
Visual Timeline: See your entire day laid out with tasks, events, and routines
Calendar Sync: Import events from Apple Calendar, Google Calendar
Recurring Routines: Set up morning/evening routines that automatically populate
Energy Monitor: Balance daily plans to avoid burnout (developed with medical professionals)
AI Subtasks: Break down complex tasks automatically using Apple Intelligence
Focus Mode: Full-screen task view to maintain concentration
Custom Icons & Colors: Personalize your timeline with visual organization
Pricing:
Free: Core features
Pro: $64.99 lifetime (iOS/iPad/Mac) or subscription options
Available on iOS, iPadOS, macOS, Android, and Web
Pros:
Beautiful, intuitive visual interface
Excellent for ADHD and visual learners
One-time purchase available (lifetime)
Strong Apple ecosystem integration
Calendar and Reminders sync
Free version is quite capable
Cons:
Android and web versions less mature than iOS
Limited project management features
No team collaboration
Basic compared to full productivity suites
4. Trevor AI – AI-Assisted Daily Planning
Planning Style: AI-Assisted
Best For: People who want planning help while maintaining control
Trevor AI bridges manual planning and automation. The AI suggests optimal scheduling based on your availability, deadlines, and priorities, but you review and approve everything before it hits your calendar.
Daily planning approach:
Trevor AI’s “Plan My Day” feature analyzes your tasks and calendar, then suggests time slots for each task. You can accept suggestions with one click or manually adjust. It’s planning help, not planning replacement.
Daily planning features:
AI-Powered Scheduling: Trevor predicts task duration and suggests optimal time slots
One-Click Planning: Accept AI suggestions to instantly schedule your day
Focus Mode: Break tasks into 5-step action plans with timer support
Task Hub: Centralized view with color-coding, notes, and priorities
Calendar Integration: Real-time sync with Google Calendar and Microsoft Outlook
Drag-and-Drop: Manual time blocking when you want control
Daily Email: “Start My Day” email with progress insights and scheduling advice
Pricing:
Free: Basic features with limited AI
Pro: $5/month (annual) or $6/month (monthly)
7-day free trial
Pros:
Affordable ($5/month annually)
Balance of AI assistance and manual control
Clean, simple interface
Good calendar integrations
Helpful for people new to time blocking
Cons:
AI features require paid plan
No energy awareness
Limited compared to Motion or Reclaim AI
Mobile experience less robust than desktop
5. Sorted³ – Hyper-Scheduler for Daily Planning
Planning Style: Manual/Visual
Best For: Power users who want to hyper-schedule every minute of their day
Sorted³ combines tasks, calendar events, and notes into a unified timeline for “hyper-scheduling”—planning your day down to specific time blocks with drag-and-drop flexibility.
Daily planning approach:
Sorted³ calls itself a “hyper-scheduler” because it encourages planning every part of your day, not just work tasks. The timeline view shows everything in sequence, and you can schedule tasks by hour or minute.
Daily planning features:
Unified Timeline: Tasks, events, and notes in one continuous timeline
Auto-Schedule: AI can schedule tasks automatically based on available time
Drag-and-Drop: Instantly reschedule by dragging tasks to new time slots
Calendar Sync: Import events from iOS Calendar and Google Calendar
Notes & Attachments: Rich formatting, checkboxes, images, drawings in task notes
Custom Views: Day, week, month views with customizable layouts
Recurring Tasks: Set up daily, weekly, or custom recurring routines
Pricing:
Free: Basic features
Pro iOS/iPad: $14.99 one-time purchase
Pro Mac: $24.99 one-time purchase
Pros:
One-time purchase (no subscription)
Flexible hyper-scheduling approach
Clean, intuitive interface
Good for people who like detailed planning
Works offline
Cons:
iOS and macOS only
Learning curve for hyper-scheduling
Limited team features
Separate purchases for iOS and Mac
6. TimeBloc – Simple Visual Time Blocking
Planning Style: Visual Timeline
Best For: Budget-conscious users who want simple time blocking
TimeBloc offers straightforward visual time blocking without the complexity of other planners. Block your day into events with icons and colors, create routines, and integrate with your existing calendar.
Daily planning approach:
TimeBloc keeps daily planning simple: create time blocks for your day, personalize them with icons and colors, set up recurring routines, and get notifications. It’s time blocking basics done well.
Daily planning features:
Visual Timeline: Block your day by hour or minute with customizable icons and colors
Routines: Create recurring schedules that automatically populate
Calendar Integration: Sync with Google Calendar, iCloud, Outlook
Notifications: Get reminded for each time block
Statistics: Track how you spend time across categories
Dark Mode: Easy on your eyes for night planning
Pricing:
Free: Core features with limitations
Premium: $59.99/year or lifetime purchase
Available on iOS, Android, Web
Pros:
Very affordable
Simple, focused on essentials
Good for beginners to time blocking
Calendar sync works well
Clean interface
Cons:
Limited features compared to competitors
Some users report app crashes and bugs
Basic compared to Structured or Sorted³
Customer support issues reported
Free version very limited
7. Any.do – Daily Planning List with “My Day”
Planning Style: List-Based with Daily View
Best For: People who prefer list-based planning with calendar integration
Any.do combines a traditional task list with calendar views and a daily planning feature called “My Day” that helps you organize each day’s priorities.
Daily planning approach:
Any.do’s “My Day” feature provides a daily planning interface where you can review tasks, set priorities, and schedule your day. The app prompts you each morning to plan through “Any.do Moment” reminders.
Daily planning features:
My Day View: Dedicated daily planning screen showing today’s tasks and calendar
Plan My Day: Morning reminder feature to review and organize daily tasks
Calendar Integration: Sync with Google Calendar, iCloud, Outlook
Voice Entry: Add tasks quickly using voice commands
Color Tags: Organize and prioritize with custom color categories
Recurring Tasks: Set up daily, weekly, or monthly repeating items
WhatsApp Integration: Create tasks via WhatsApp messages
Pricing:
Free: Basic task management and daily planner
Premium: Personal plan (pricing varies by region)
Family: $99.96/year (up to 4 members)
Teams: Collaborative workspace with advanced features
Pros:
Generous free plan
Simple, clean interface
Good mobile apps
WhatsApp integration unique
Calendar sync works well
Cons:
No 7-day advance planning in free version
Recurring tasks require Premium
Limited daily planning features compared to dedicated planners
Calendar view locked behind Premium
Performance issues on desktop reported
8. TickTick – Daily View with Planning Features
Planning Style: List-Based with Calendar Views
Best For: People who want comprehensive task management with daily planning views
TickTick is primarily a task manager that includes robust daily planning features, multiple calendar views, and habit tracking for building consistent daily routines.
Daily planning approach:
TickTick’s daily view shows tasks scheduled for today alongside calendar events. You can time block tasks, use the Pomodoro timer for focus sessions, and review completion at day’s end.
Daily planning features:
Daily View: See today’s tasks with calendar events integrated
Multiple Calendar Views: Day, 3-day, week, month views
Pomodoro Timer: Built-in focus timer with white noise options
Habit Tracker: Build daily routines with streak tracking
Smart Lists: Create filtered views of tasks by priority, date, or custom criteria
Calendar Sync: Integrate with Google Calendar, Apple Calendar
Natural Language: Quick task entry like “Meeting Monday 3pm”
Pricing:
Free: 9 lists, 99 tasks per list, basic features
Premium: $35.99/year or $2.99/month
Very affordable compared to competitors
Pros:
Excellent value ($35.99/year)
Generous free plan
Clean, intuitive interface
Cross-platform (iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, Web)
Strong task management features
Pomodoro timer built-in
Cons:
Not primarily designed for daily planning
Calendar features require Premium
More task manager than daily planner
Limited collaboration features
Occasional sync delays reported
9. Google Calendar – Can Be Used for Daily Planning
Planning Style: Calendar-First
Best For: People who want free, reliable calendar management with basic planning
Google Calendar isn’t marketed as a daily planner, but many people use it that way by creating events for tasks, using color-coding, and viewing the daily agenda.
Daily planning approach:
Use Google Calendar for daily planning by creating calendar events for both meetings and tasks, color-coding by category, and checking the daily agenda view each morning. It’s manual but free and reliable.
Daily planning features:
Multiple Views: Day, week, month, year, schedule/agenda views
Task Integration: Google Tasks appear alongside calendar events
Color-Coding: Organize events by category with custom colors
Reminders: Get notified before events
Recurring Events: Set up daily, weekly, or custom recurring items
Sharing: Share calendars with family or team
Mobile Apps: iOS and Android with good widget support
Pricing:
Free for personal use
Included with Google Workspace for businesses
Pros:
Completely free
Reliable and widely used
Excellent integration with Gmail
Works across all platforms
Family calendar sharing
No learning curve for most people
Cons:
Not designed for daily planning
No guided planning rituals
Manual task scheduling only
Basic compared to dedicated planners
No energy awareness or AI
Task features minimal
10. Fantastical – Calendar with Daily Planning View
Planning Style: Calendar-First with Task Support
Best For: Apple users who want an enhanced calendar experience with some planning features
Fantastical is a premium calendar for Apple devices that adds natural language entry, weather forecasts, task integration, and multiple viewing options to make daily planning more pleasant.
Daily planning approach:
Fantastical enhances calendar management with features that support daily planning: natural language entry makes adding events fast, calendar sets let you toggle between work/personal views, and task integration shows to-dos alongside appointments.
Daily planning features:
Natural Language Entry: Type “Lunch with Sarah Tuesday at 1pm” and Fantastical creates the event
DayTicker View: Quick overview of your day at a glance
Multiple Views: Day, week, month, quarter, year views
Task Support: Integration with Apple Reminders, Todoist, Google Tasks
Weather Forecast: 10-day AccuWeather forecast integrated in calendar
Calendar Sets: Toggle between work, personal, family calendar groups
Meeting Templates: Save frequently used event types
Time Zone Support: Easy scheduling across multiple zones
Pricing:
Free: Basic calendar features
Premium: $5.49/month or annual pricing
Family plan available
14-day free trial
Pros:
Beautiful, polished interface
Best-in-class natural language parsing
Excellent Apple ecosystem integration
Weather integration helpful for planning
Calendar sets great for work/life balance
Cons:
Apple devices only (Mac, iPad, iPhone)
Premium features expensive compared to alternatives
Task management basic
Not focused on daily planning rituals
Better suited for personal use than professional
11. Akiflow – Daily Planning with Task Consolidation
Planning Style: Task Consolidation + Time Blocking
Best For: Power users juggling multiple tools who need task consolidation
Akiflow pulls tasks from email, Slack, Asana, ClickUp, Notion, and other tools into a unified dashboard where you can time block them onto your calendar using keyboard shortcuts.
Daily planning approach:
Akiflow consolidates scattered tasks into one place, then offers “Daily Rituals” (morning planning and evening shutdown) to help you plan and reflect. The command bar and keyboard shortcuts make power users fast and efficient.
Daily planning features:
Universal Task Inbox: Pull tasks from 3,000+ tools (Slack, Gmail, Asana, ClickUp, Todoist)
Time Blocking: Drag-and-drop tasks onto calendar view
Daily Rituals: Guided morning planning and evening shutdown workflows
Command Bar: Keyboard shortcuts for power users
Smart Time Slots: AI suggests optimal scheduling times
Aki AI Assistant: Chat with AI to create, schedule, and manage tasks
Calendar Sync: Real-time sync with Google Calendar, Outlook
Pricing:
No free plan
$19/month (annual billing) or $24.99/month (monthly)
7-day free trial
Pros:
Excellent for consolidating multiple tools
Powerful keyboard shortcuts
Good daily planning rituals
Strong integrations (3,000+ apps)
Calendar and task unification
Cons:
Expensive ($19-25/month)
No free plan
Mobile apps less robust than desktop
Steep learning curve
Overkill if you only use a few tools
12. Motion – AI-Powered Automatic Scheduling
Planning Style: AI-Automated Project Management + Daily Planning
Best For: Teams and individuals who need project management plus daily planning
Motion uses AI to automatically schedule tasks, meetings, and projects on your calendar, rebuilding your schedule when things change. It’s more comprehensive than most daily planners.
Daily planning approach:
Motion doesn’t ask you to plan—it plans for you. The AI schedules all your tasks based on deadlines, priorities, dependencies, and calendar availability, then automatically reschedules when meetings shift or new work arrives.
Daily planning features:
AI Auto-Scheduling: Tasks automatically placed on calendar based on availability and deadlines
Dynamic Rescheduling: Calendar rebuilds when meetings change or urgent tasks arrive
Project Management: Full project tracking with dependencies and milestones
Team Scheduling: Coordinate team calendars and shared projects
Meeting Booking: Let others book time with you
Priority Management: AI factors urgency and importance into scheduling
Task Dependencies: Link related tasks for proper sequencing
Pricing:
Individual: $34/month (annual) or $44/month (monthly)
Team: Pricing varies by size
7-day free trial
Pros:
Powerful AI auto-scheduling
Combines project management + planning
Great for teams
Automatic rescheduling saves time
Comprehensive feature set
Cons:
Very expensive ($34-44/month individual)
Overwhelming for simple daily planning
No energy awareness
Learning curve
May feel like AI has too much control
Daily Planning Best Practices
Getting the most from your daily planner requires more than just choosing the right app. These practices help turn daily planning into a sustainable habit that actually improves your productivity.
Morning Planning Rituals
Start before you start. Don’t check email or Slack first—plan first. Spend 5-30 minutes (depending on your planning style) reviewing what’s on your plate and building your daily roadmap.
Review yesterday. What got done? What didn’t? This isn’t about guilt—it’s about learning your patterns and adjusting expectations.
Be realistic about time. Most people overestimate what they can accomplish. If you’re constantly moving tasks to tomorrow, you’re planning too much.
Time Blocking Strategies
Group similar work. Batch emails, calls, or deep work together. Context switching kills productivity more than you realize.
Protect deep work time. Schedule your most important work during your peak energy hours, and guard that time fiercely.
Include buffer time. Things take longer than expected. Build 10-15 minute buffers between major blocks.
Handling Interruptions
Expect them. Every day will have some chaos. Don’t build a plan that collapses when one thing goes wrong.
Use a “parking lot.” When urgent tasks arrive mid-day, add them to a list to triage later rather than immediately derailing your plan.
Reschedule, don’t panic. If your 2pm task gets bumped, quickly find a new slot rather than working late trying to force it in.
Evening Reflection
End intentionally. Spend 5-10 minutes reviewing what you accomplished, not what you failed to finish.
Prepare tomorrow. Quick scan of tomorrow’s calendar and priorities so you’re not planning from scratch in the morning.
Identify patterns. Notice when you consistently complete tasks versus when you don’t. Your energy and focus have patterns worth learning.
Weekly Planning vs. Daily Planning
Both matter, but differently. Weekly planning sets direction and priorities. Daily planning executes on those priorities with realistic time blocks.
Sunday/Monday overview. Look at the week ahead to identify crunch days, deadline clusters, and opportunities to spread work more evenly.
Daily wins, weekly wins. Track both daily completion and weekly progress toward bigger goals. Celebrate both.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the best app for daily planning?
The “best” daily planner depends on your planning style. If you love the planning ritual, choose Sunsama. If you’re visual, try Structured. If you want AI to plan for you, rivva or Motion are excellent. If budget matters, start with TickTick or Google Calendar.
How do I plan my day digitally?
Start with a daily planner app that shows both tasks and calendar together. Each morning, review what needs to be done, check your calendar for available time, then schedule tasks into realistic time blocks. Most planners offer guided workflows to make this easier.
Is daily planning worth the time?
Yes, but only if you’re efficient about it. Spending 30 minutes planning to save 2-3 hours of confusion and context-switching is worth it. If planning takes longer than that, consider AI-assisted tools like Trevor AI or fully automatic planners like rivva.
Should I plan my day the night before or morning of?
Morning planning works better for most people. Your energy, sleep quality, and overnight thoughts affect what’s realistic for today. Evening planning can help reduce morning anxiety, but expect to adjust your plan the next morning anyway.
What’s better: paper or digital daily planning?
Digital planners offer dynamic rescheduling, calendar integration, and automatic carry-forward of unfinished tasks—things paper can’t match. But if the physical act of writing helps you think, hybrid approaches work: plan on paper in the morning, then log in your digital tool.
How long should daily planning take?
Manual planning (Sunsama, Sorted): 15-30 minutes
AI-assisted planning (Trevor AI): 10-15 minutes
Automatic planning (rivva, Motion): 30 seconds to review
Quick check-in: 5 minutes minimum
If planning takes longer, you’re likely overthinking or using the wrong tool for your style.
Conclusion
Daily planning is a deeply personal practice. Some people love spending 30 minutes each morning orchestrating their day. Others want that structure without the planning burden.
The right daily planner depends on your planning philosophy, how much control you want, whether you think visually or in lists, and how much time you’re willing to invest in the planning process itself.
If you love planning rituals: Sunsama guides you through intentional daily workflows that make planning feel meaningful rather than mechanical.
If you think visually: Structured or Sorted³ give you beautiful timeline views that make time management intuitive.
If you want AI help: Trevor AI suggests, you approve. Motion schedules everything automatically. rivva plans your day around your energy with help from your AI assistant.
If budget matters: Google Calendar is free and reliable. TickTick offers excellent value at $36/year. Any.do has a capable free plan.
The best daily planner isn’t the one with the most features—it’s the one you’ll actually use every day. Many of these tools offer free trials. Test your top two choices for a week each before committing.
Ready for daily planning without the planning time?