An Android to-do list starts with the widget

The home screen is the list

A to-do widget puts today's tasks right on the home screen, so seeing your list stops being a decision. You unlock the phone to text somebody back, and "pick up the prescription" is sitting there looking at you.

That one change fixes the biggest way lists die, which is quietly going unread¹. Nobody forgets to look at their home screen. So when you're trying Android apps, live with each one's widget for a week before judging anything else, and keep the one you actually kept reading.

Google's free one is right there

The built-in answer is Google Tasks, and it's a fair start. It's free, it's tied into Gmail and Google Calendar, turning an email into a task is its best trick, and there's a widget.

Where it stops is where Google stops². You can't share a list with anybody, it doesn't listen in the kitchen, and the further your day gets from Gmail, the thinner it feels. It's a good baseline with a low ceiling.

Saying it beats typing it

Android phones are good listeners, and a list you can talk to wins the moments typing loses. Walking to the car with your arms full, you can still say "add a task: renew the parking pass friday" and be done with it.

The words carry the date, so there's no form waiting for you later. And it should work both ways, because asking what's due tonight deserves an answer out loud, not a notification you have to go find and tap.

The car counts as Android too

Half of Android lives in the driveway. Android Auto puts your list in the car, where a surprising share of remembering happens, on school runs and commutes and the drive back from the store.

A task said at a red light should land on the same list as everything else, and the drive home should be able to read you what's due. If an app you're weighing goes silent the moment you start the engine, that's a bigger gap than anything missing from its settings screen.

What to check before you settle

So the Android checklist is short. A widget you'll actually read. A voice path that works, in the car and out of it. Reminders that land where you can do something about them. And one list underneath it all, no matter which door a task came in through.

42 Todo!'s Android app covers the phone, and the rest is the part we care most about. Say it to Gemini or Alexa, talk to the car through Android Auto, get nudged in Slack if that's where you work, and it's the same list answering every time.

Frequently asked questions

What's the best free to-do list app for Android?

Google Tasks if your tasks are mostly emails, since it's free and lives right inside Gmail. 42 Todo!'s free plan is the one to try when you want the list to reach further, into Gemini, Alexa, the car, and Slack, with no time limit on the free plan.

What makes a good to-do list widget?

It shows today, not everything, and it's readable in the two seconds you actually give it. Adding a task from the widget should be one tap plus the words. If the widget is just a shortcut that opens the app, it isn't doing the job.

Does 42 Todo! work on Android?

Yes. There's an Android app on Google Play, the website works in any browser, and the same list answers through Gemini, Alexa, and Android Auto. It's one list underneath, so checking something off in the car clears it on the phone too.

Can I add tasks by voice on Android?

Yes. Say it to your car through Android Auto, to an Alexa speaker at home, or ask Gemini, like "add a task: schedule the furnace guy next week." The due date comes from how you said it, and you can hear what's due and check things off the same way.

Footnotes

1. What a to-do list app is actually for why a list that waits for you to go look at it loses. ↩
2. Where Google Tasks runs out the fair look at the free one in the sidebar, and its ceiling. ↩