PTPL 166 · Beorg May Well Be the Best Free iOS Plain Text Task Manager

Calendar and Reminders integration changes everything

Cropped screenshot of 3 days in Apple Calendar on a Mac, showing tasks created in Beorg. Some span multiple days, some are all-day events, and one is scheduled for a specific time. Apple Calendar screenshot by the Author

Effective productivity workflows include efficient ways to track events, take notes, and manage tasks.

There are thousands of apps to choose from for each of these categories, so it’s vital you define the features you aren’t willing to do without.

When it comes to task management I’m only interested in solutions that work with simple text files, are accessible on my phone, and allow me to schedule tasks in advance, including those that repeat at particular intervals.

My personal productivity toolkit—

Events: Apple Calendar
Notes: Obsidian
Tasks: Beorg

Beorg pros and cons

I recommend Beorg to Org-experts and the Org-adverse alike, for the following reasons:

The app is free (you can pay for extensions, give tips)
All data is stored in plain text files - the only option for digital sovereignty
Offline editing
Agenda view for scheduled and repeating tasks
Overdue tasks appear the following day (I like this as it prompts me to adjust the due date to get rid of the red circle! Nothing slips through the cracks)
Calendar and Reminders integration and peace of mind back up
System-wide alerts, when synced with Reminders
Multiple iOS widgets can show a variety of search results
Access to tasks on Mac via EasyOrg (beginners) or Emacs (experts)
Unlimited sub-tasks
Unlimited notes attached to each task

As with any application, Beorg has limitations. I find them manageable.

Tasks created in Beorg can sync to Apple’s Calendar and Reminders, and tasks created in Reminders can appear in Beorg but you can’t edit them in Beorg
Plain text only: no support for audio, images, or attachments, though you can include links to them
No access to the full Emacs org-agenda customisation options
Filtering of tasks isn’t as powerful as the Obsidian Tasks plugin, which allows more complex boolean logic, date queries and tag combinations
Some functionality isn’t available without paying for extensions, though you can DIY for free
No collaboration

iPhone screenshot showing large Fantastical and small Beorg widgets

The Author’s iPhone homescreen. FYI I don’t use Fantastical, but their widget is my favourite

Beorg alternatives

There are plenty of options when it comes to task management based on simple text files. Here are six that work great for personal tasks, though none of them come close to what Beorg offers.

Noteplan¹ looks almost perfect, but it comes with a hefty subscription fee (unless you’re already a Setapp subscriber).

I consider Obsidian’s Tasks plugin to be Beorg’s closest true competitor. Both the app and plugin are free and store data in plain text files. The Tasks plugin is open source, a huge plus, but there are no widgets or calendar integration. No alerts equals a huge minus in my book.

Beorg’s killer feature is the integration of tasks into Calendar and Reminders, offering system-wide alerts for tasks. No other free iOS plain text task manager offers this level of integration, as far as I am aware. The ability to have multiple iPhone widgets, each with its own search criteria, comes a close second.

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