Best Daily Planner Apps for 2024? Motion vs Sunsama vs Akiflow vs Routine

Summary

This video offers a detailed comparison of daily planning apps backed by Y Combinator: Motion, Sama, Akif Flow, and Routine. Motion stands out as a project management tool with AI capabilities for task scheduling and team collaboration. Sama and Akif Flow are task consolidators, with Akif Flow offering a more powerful API for workflow integration. Sama is user-friendly with a beautiful interface. Routine focuses on habit-building and personal planning, lacking the professional flexibility of the others. The video helps viewers determine the best app for their needs, whether personal or professional.

Takeaways

• 📅 All four tools - Notion, Trello, Asana, and ClickUp - are daily planning apps that help with task management, scheduling on calendars, and time blocking.
• 🤖 Notion has AI capabilities that can automatically schedule tasks on your calendar, rearrange schedules for urgent tasks, and prioritize tasks within team projects.
• 👥 Trello is a project management tool that can be used for collaboration with team members, making it suitable for businesses and teams.
• 🔗 Asana and ClickUp are full-fledged project management tools that can integrate with daily planning tools but do not replace the need for a third-party project management tool.
• 💼 If you're part of an organization already using Asana or ClickUp and want personal daily planning, consider Sama or Akiflow.
• 🛠️ Akiflow has a more powerful API for building workflows, making it suitable for technical users who want to automate tasks.
• 🎨 Sama has a more user-friendly interface and a weekly view for planning, making it visually appealing for those who prefer a cleaner look.
• 🚫 Routine is focused on personal use, such as habit tracking, and is not recommended for professional use due to its lack of flexibility in task management.
• 📱 Routine offers a free tier and a mobile app, making it accessible for personal daily planning and habit formation.
• 🔄 Notion's AI feature can automatically reschedule tasks for the following day or week, reducing manual planning effort.

Q & A

What are the three daily planning apps discussed in the video?

The three daily planning apps discussed in the video are Motion, Sama, and Akif Flow.

What is the primary difference between Motion and the other two apps, Sama and Akif Flow?

Motion is a full-fledged project management tool, unlike Sama and Akif Flow, which are more focused on task management and require integration with third-party project management tools like Asana or ClickUp.

How does Motion's AI feature help with daily planning?

Motion's AI feature can automatically schedule tasks on the calendar based on priority, due date, and estimated time to complete, and it can also rearrange the entire schedule when urgent tasks arise.

What is the main advantage of using Akif Flow over Sama?

Akif Flow has a more powerful API that allows users to build more complex workflows and integrations, making it suitable for those who are more technically inclined and want to automate their task management.

Why might someone choose Sama over Akif Flow?

Someone might choose Sama over Akif Flow if they prefer a more visually appealing interface and a simpler approach to daily planning without the need for complex integrations.

What is Routine and how does it differ from the other apps mentioned?

Routine is a daily planner app that focuses more on personal use, such as habit tracking and time blocking for non-work-related tasks. It is less focused on professional use and lacks the flexibility needed for managing work tasks.

What is the recommendation for someone who needs a project management tool with AI capabilities?

For someone needing a project management tool with AI capabilities, Motion is recommended as it provides project management, time blocking, and AI scheduling all in one platform.

How does the video script describe the user experience of Sama and Akif Flow?

The script describes Sama and Akif Flow as tools that require manual planning of the day, where tasks need to be dragged onto the calendar view, unlike Motion which automates this process.

What is the recommendation for a user who wants to integrate their tasks from various tools like Gmail, Slack, and project management software?

For a user who wants to integrate tasks from various tools, Sama or Akif Flow is recommended, with Akif Flow being more suitable for those who want to build powerful workflows.

What is the main use case for Routine according to the video script?

Routine is recommended for personal use, such as building healthy habits or managing non-work-related tasks, rather than for professional use.

Outlines

00:00

📅 Overview of Daily Planning Apps

The paragraph introduces a comparison of daily planning apps, specifically Motion, Sama, Akif, and Routine. It highlights their common features such as task management, calendar integration, and time blocking. The narrator also mentions that all these apps are backed by Y Combinator, setting the stage for a detailed exploration of each tool's unique capabilities and differences.

05:02

🤖 Motion: The AI-Powered Project Manager

Motion is presented as a favorite tool due to its dual functionality as both a task and project manager. It stands out with its AI capabilities, which allow for automatic scheduling and rescheduling of tasks based on priority and urgency. The tool is recommended for those who value collaboration and require a comprehensive project management solution within a daily planning app. It also includes features like task blocking and a meeting scheduler, making it a robust choice for both individual and team time management.

🔄 Sama and Akif Flow: Task Consolidation and Workflow Automation

Sama and Akif Flow are described as tools that centralize task lists and integrate with various other tools like email, project management software, and communication platforms. While both help in consolidating tasks, Akif Flow is noted for its powerful API that enables deeper workflow automation. The paragraph discusses the manual task planning process in these tools and how they differ in integration capabilities, with Akif Flow being more suitable for those with technical skills looking to build complex workflows.

🎨 Routine: Aesthetically Pleasing Personal Planning

Routine is characterized as a visually appealing daily planner with a focus on habit formation and personal use. It is noted for its user-friendly interface and aesthetic design. However, the paragraph points out its limitations in professional settings due to a lack of flexibility in task management and scheduling. The tool is recommended for personal use, hobbies, and those new to time blocking, with the caveat that it may not be suitable for complex work-related planning.

Keywords

💡Daily Planner

A daily planner is a tool used for organizing and managing daily tasks and appointments. In the context of the video, daily planners are software applications that help users schedule tasks on their calendars and manage their time efficiently. The video discusses various apps that serve as daily planners, each with unique features tailored to different user needs.

💡Task Management

Task management refers to the process of organizing, planning, and executing tasks to achieve a desired outcome. The video emphasizes the importance of task management in daily planning apps, as they allow users to input tasks, set priorities, and deadlines, which helps in maintaining productivity and staying organized.

💡Time Blocking

Time blocking is a productivity technique where time is allocated for specific tasks or activities during the day. The video mentions that the apps discussed help with time blocking, which means they assist users in dedicating specific time slots for tasks, thereby improving focus and efficiency.

💡Y Combinator

Y Combinator is a well-known startup accelerator that provides seed funding and guidance to early-stage startups. The video script mentions that all the daily planning apps discussed are backed by Y Combinator, indicating the credibility and potential of these tools in the market.

💡Motion

Motion is one of the daily planning apps featured in the video. It is described as a favorite tool due to its capabilities as both a task and project manager, along with its AI features for planning and scheduling. The video highlights how Motion can automatically rearrange schedules and prioritize tasks, making it a comprehensive tool for time management.

💡Sama and Akif Flow

Sama and Akif Flow are two similar daily planning apps that are compared in the video. They are noted for their ability to centralize task lists and integrate with various tools like email, project management software, and more. The video explains that while they are not full-fledged project management tools like Motion, they excel in consolidating tasks from different sources for personal use.

💡Project Management

Project management is the process of planning, organizing, and managing resources to complete projects efficiently. The video distinguishes Motion as a project management tool, suggesting that it offers more comprehensive features for managing projects and teams compared to Sama and Akif Flow.

💡Integrations and API

Integrations and API (Application Programming Interface) are discussed in the context of how Sama and Akif Flow connect with other tools and services. The video explains that while both apps offer integrations, Akif Flow has a more powerful API, allowing for the creation of more complex workflows, which is beneficial for users who are technically inclined.

💡Routine

Routine is another daily planning app mentioned in the video, known for its beautiful user interface and focus on habit formation and tracking. The video suggests that Routine is more suited for personal use, such as managing hobbies or building healthy habits, rather than professional use due to its limited flexibility in task management.

💡Productivity Tools

Productivity tools are applications or software designed to help users work more efficiently. The video reviews several productivity tools, each with different features, catering to various user needs, from personal task management to professional project collaboration.

💡AI Capabilities

AI capabilities refer to the use of artificial intelligence to enhance the functionality of software. In the context of the video, Motion's AI capabilities are highlighted for its ability to automatically schedule tasks based on priorities and due dates, showcasing how AI can streamline the task management process.

Highlights

Motion, Sama, Akif Flow, and Routine are daily planning apps that help with task management, scheduling, and time blocking.

All four apps are backed by Y Combinator, indicating a high level of innovation and support.

Motion stands out as a project manager with AI capabilities for task planning and scheduling.

Motion's AI can automatically rearrange schedules when urgent tasks arise, saving significant time.

Motion is suitable for businesses and teams, offering collaboration and project management features.

Sama and Akif Flow help centralize task lists and integrate with various tools like email and project management software.

Akif Flow has a more powerful API for building workflows, making it ideal for technical users.

Sama is user-friendly with a beautiful interface and a weekly view planning feature.

Routine focuses on habit formation and personal daily planning with an aesthetically pleasing interface.

Routine is recommended for personal use and hobbies due to its simplicity and free tier.

Motion is the top recommendation for project management and team collaboration needs.

For organizations already using Asana or ClickUp, Sama or Akif Flow can be added for personal task consolidation.

Akif Flow is preferred for those who want to build powerful integrations and workflows.

Sama is recommended for its simplicity and visual appeal, making it a good choice for non-technical users.

Routine is not recommended for professional use due to its limitations in task granularity and flexibility.

The video provides a comprehensive comparison to help viewers choose the right daily planning app based on their needs.

Transcripts

so you're looking for a daily planner

app that can help you with test

management to schedule tasks on your

calendar and help you with time blocking

you probably stumbled upon motion Sam

Sama akif flow and routine and that's

what we're going to be covering in

today's video by the end of this video

you're going to know exactly which one

of these tools you should use because

while on the surface they may seem

similar once you dive in deeper they're

actually quite different from one

another all right let's get into it so

first things first let's get the

commonalities out of the way yes they

are all tools to help you manage your

tasks to pop tasks onto your calendar to

help you with your daily planning and to

help you with time blocking as well

funny enough they are also all backed by

y combinator if you know what that is so

this is really like a battle of the YC

daily planning apps so let's start with

motion which happens to be our favorite

tool out of the bunch what we love about

motion is that it is not just a task

manager but it's actually a project

manager as well so if you are somebody

who works for a business and you have

multiple team members if you're

interested in collaboration at all

motion's going to be the tool that you

should lean towards not only that it

also has AI capabilities to help you

plan and schedule your day so we

personally don't like spending a lot of

time planning our day it's a very manual

process typically and it is with some of

the other tools that we're going to talk

about with motion you can just hit a

keyboard shortcut that opens up the task

module and then you enter in your tasks

you set the priorities and the due date

and the time it's going to take you to

get it done and it's little AI magician

does its thing and it pops it on your

calendar directly for you so say you

have a super busy day and you have a

bunch of things scheduled but an urgent

task comes up you would just set the

priority as ASAP and it would

automatically rearrange your entire

schedule for you this is a huge

timesaver it also has some other cool

features like if you're working on a

larger project you can Mark a task as

blocked by another team member for

example and then motion will help

prioritize that task to be completed by

your team member which is really cool

cuz it actually helps the entire project

move forward it also has a meeting

scheduler which is really cool so with

motion you're really getting this

ultimate platform for time management

not only for yourself but for your

greater team as well so let's move on to

Sama and akif flow Sama and akif flow

are quite similar and it even took me a

while to wrap my head around the main

differences they will both help you

centralize your Tusk list and they will

help bring in task from your different

tools that you're using like your email

and notion for example and slack and a

full-fledged project management tool

like for example Asana or clickup what

you're going to notice is that the

difference between motion and Aki flow

and Sama is that motion is actually a

project management tool so you don't

need to use a thirdparty tool like Asana

or clickup along with motion because it

takes care of all of those capabilities

for you while with akif flow and Sama

you are probably going to be using AA

and clickup along with these daily

planning tools because they don't have a

full-fledged way to help you manage your

projects where this comes in handy

though is if you work for an

organization that for example is using a

sa and you can't get them to move off of

that and you want the time blocking and

daily planning capabilities then perhaps

it's a good time to consider Sama or

akif flow that said there are still

differences between Zama and akif flow

the main difference is really in the

Integrations and the API you're going to

notice that all those tools that I

mentioned earlier like your Gmail and

your slack and your notion and your

project management tool they're going to

all integrate with Sama and aky flow

however aky flow has a much more

powerful API that actually allows you to

build workflows into your daily task

management tool so let me tell you what

I mean so with Sama for example you are

going to have your tasks in your project

management tool and notion for example

you can build integration so that when

certain

tasks are a part of a project for

example they get pulled over to Sama and

then you get to manually plan and

organize your day and what I mean by

manual is that the task will appear and

you have to manually drag them onto your

calendar with oif flow same sort of

thing however it can go one layer deeper

so if you have a CRM for example and you

want to build a powerful integration so

that when a new lead is added to your

CRM you can automatically have that

create a task in aif flow so here here's

where the real difference between the

two of them lies if you are a person

that is more Technical and wants to

build super powerful workflows then we

would recommend Aki flow for you if

you're comparing Sama and Aki flow Sama

is more beautiful to use and I think has

a nicer interface and it's a little bit

less cluttered I also really like their

weekly view planning where you can just

go and drag in your tasks for each day

so if you're not really too fussed about

those powerful Integrations I'd say

since s might be a better app for you in

that case all of this being said just

want to re-emphasize though that the

other main difference between akif flow

Sama and motion is that with akif flow

and Sama you are the one who's going to

be manually planning your day so you're

going to have your tasks that come into

Sama or Aki flow and then you're going

to have your calendar view and you're

going to be dragging each task at the

time that you want it to get done this

is also where the problem lies because

we all know that we don't always get get

all of our tests done on the same day so

while akif flow and Sama have these

really nice shutdown routines for the

end of your day to get you to reflect on

your day and plan your next day ahead we

prefer motion because we don't have to

do anything it just literally

automatically uses AI to reschedule our

tasks for the following day or the

following week depending on when the

deadline is okay so now let's talk about

beautiful routine I say beautiful

routine because in terms of its user

inter face it is absolutely the most

beautiful of the bunch it is

aesthetically pleasing and I think the

team put a lot of effort into making it

just really nice and enjoyable to look

at routine falls into the daily planner

app category in terms of productivity

tools but it is very much more focused

on things like helping you with habits

break new habits create new habits track

habits Etc they are the newest kit on

the Block compared to all the other

tools that we've mentioned in this video

but with that they are very much I guess

limited especially when it comes to

professional use we'd recommend routine

if you have say Hobbies or you want to

just have like a productivity tool

that's free because their lowest tier is

currently free that you can kind of

dabble in this world of daily planning

but if you are considering routine to

help you get work done like in your job

wouldn't really recommend it because

it's not really flexible enough to help

you with the granularity that that's

involved with working on tasks at work

so as an example one of the frustrations

that we had when we were playing around

with routine and trying to use it is

that you have your calendar view of your

day and then you can just add tasks in

like with any other tool but say you

have a task that it's going to take you

two hours to do and it's urgent and you

want to drag it into your schedule it

doesn't shift everything around for you

so that was like immediately a point of

tension and I can't see myself actually

using it for work with priorities and uh

things that I need to work on are

constantly shifting however if I want to

put something in like you know meditate

in the morning or write in my journal or

pick up the kids from school or

something like that then I think routine

could work um very much for your

personal use currently does integrate

with Gmail and your Google calendar and

notion and they do say that they have

like slack and aana coming soon how

however because of the reason that I

mentioned I'm just not sure that they're

quite ready yet for business but they do

have like a business tier coming soon so

maybe they're going to get there it's an

app to keep an eye on but for now

absolutely would say they fit into the

personal daily planning space not

professional okay so let's recap motion

can help you plan your tasks it's a

full-fledged project manager it can help

you with time blocking and it uses AI to

help you schedule your day if you need a

project management tool this is

definitely the tool that I would

recommend first off if you're looking to

collaborate with team members absolutely

would recommend motion over any of the

other daily planning tools if you are

working for an organization that is

already using AO or clickup and they're

pretty much solidified in that and you

just want something for personal use to

help you consolidate your tasks we'd

recommend Sama or akif flow akif flow

more so if you want to build more

powerful workflows like I for example

having a lead come into your CRM and

creating a task for you in aif flow

you're going to get that capabilities

with aif flow but you do have to be more

technical now if you're not more

Technical and you just want a tool

that's going to pull in your tasks then

Sama is a great option as well and it's

also really pretty to use and last but

not least routine is very much for

personal use not professional use so if

you just want to build some healthy

habits if you are a hobbyist if you want

to just try some time blocking then

definitely would recommend it it is a

really beautiful app to use and they

also have a mobile app with a nice

calendar so it's definitely worth

checking out if you want like a light

version but like I said not for

professional use if you like this video

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