Switching from Things 3 to TaskForge

Maybe you bought an Android phone and Things doesn't follow you there. Maybe you want a Windows machine in the mix, or you'd rather your tasks live as plain text you can read in ten years. Whatever pushed you here, this is the actual path: get your tasks out of Things, set up an Obsidian vault, and open them in TaskForge.

One thing up front. Things has no Export button, and there's no clean file it hands you on the way out. Getting your data into a portable shape is the part that takes work, so most of this guide is about that step. The rest is quick.

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Why people leave Things 3

Things is a genuinely good app. Cultured Code spent years on the design, and on a Mac it still feels great. People don't usually leave because they're unhappy with it. They leave because of one of these.

You got an Android phone, or a Windows PC

Things runs on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and Vision Pro. That's the whole list. There is no Android app, no Windows app, no web version, and Cultured Code has been clear for years that none are coming. The moment one device in your life isn't an Apple device, Things stops being an option on it.
Your tasks are stuck in a database you can't read

Things keeps everything in a private SQLite database synced through its own Things Cloud. You can't open your task list in a text editor, you can't grep it, and you can't point another tool at it. When you decide to leave, that closed format is what makes leaving annoying.
You want tasks next to your notes

If you already write in Obsidian, your projects, meeting notes, and reference material are markdown files in a folder. Things lives in a separate silo with no link back to any of that. Keeping a task in Things and the note it relates to in Obsidian means tending two systems that never talk.

What to expect before you start

This is not a one-tap import. Set the expectation right and the rest goes smoothly.

There's no import button to press

TaskForge reads markdown task files. It doesn't connect to Things Cloud, because nothing can, the format is private. So the work is on the Things side: turning your tasks into text first. Once they're text, TaskForge picks them up the second they land in your vault folder.

Some of it will be by hand, and that's fine

Community scripts can dump most of your tasks to text, but headings, areas, and the odd checklist often need a tidy-up. A lot of switchers treat this as a clear-out: copy the projects you actually still care about, leave the dead ones in Things, and start clean. You rarely miss the ones you don't carry over.

You can run both for a week

Nothing forces a clean cut. Keep Things installed, build your vault alongside it, and live in TaskForge for a week before you delete anything. Your tasks are plain files the whole time, so there's no risk in keeping a backup of the Things data too.

The migration, step by step

Five steps. The first one is the only fiddly part.

Get your tasks out of Things

Things has no built-in export, so pick the route that matches how many tasks you have. For a handful, open Things on your Mac, select the tasks in a project, and copy them. They paste out as indented text you can clean up by hand. For a whole database, the community has built exporters: an Apple Shortcut that writes a project or area to a single markdown file, and a small Mac tool (things3-export on GitHub) that dumps your database to TaskPaper, which is itself plain text. Either way, you end up with text files instead of a locked database.

Whichever route you take, copy the projects you're still working on. Archived clutter from three years ago is not worth migrating.
Set up an Obsidian vault

A vault is just a folder. If you already use Obsidian, you have one. If not, install Obsidian (it's free), pick a folder, and that's your vault. Inside it, make a file like tasks/inbox.md. This folder is where your tasks will live as plain markdown from now on, readable by you, by Obsidian, and by TaskForge.

Put the vault somewhere that syncs: an iCloud Drive folder if you're staying partly on Apple, or a folder you sync with Syncthing, OneDrive, or your cloud provider of choice if Android or Windows is in the picture.
Write your tasks in the Obsidian Tasks format

TaskForge uses the Obsidian Tasks plugin syntax, which carries everything a Things task held. A to-do is a checkbox line; the due date, priority, and recurrence ride along after the title as [key:: value] fields. So a Things task due Friday becomes one line. Paste your exported tasks into your inbox file and adjust them to this shape. It reads cleanly, which is half the point.

- [ ] file the Q3 expenses [priority:: high] [due:: 2026-06-26]

A high-priority task due June 26. [priority:: high] is the level, [due:: 2026-06-26] is the date.
Install TaskForge and point it at the vault

Download TaskForge on whatever you carry: iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android, or Windows. On first launch it asks for your vault folder. Pick the folder from step 2. TaskForge reads every task file in it and shows your tasks, with their dates and priorities, right away. No account, no sign-in.

On Android or Windows, point it at your synced vault folder. On Apple devices, point it at the same folder you put in iCloud Drive.
Set up the views you missed from Things

Things had a Today list and project organization. Rebuild those as custom spaces in TaskForge: a list filtered to tasks due today, a list per project tag. Add a home screen widget so your due tasks sit on your phone the way the Things widget did, and turn on notifications so you still get reminded. Custom spaces, widgets, notifications, and custom kanban boards are all Premium features, as is creating calendar events (the calendar view and the built-in Kanban board are free). The App Store build includes a one-week free trial so you can set everything up and decide before paying. After that it is a one-time $49.99, $19.99 a year, or $1.99 a month.

Things never had a kanban board. TaskForge's built-in one is free, and boards of your own are Premium. The calendar view is free, but creating events in it is Premium too. Worth trying during the trial once you are settled in.

What's different once you've moved

A few things change for the better, and one or two things you'll have to do differently. Honesty matters more than a sales pitch here.

What gets better

Your tasks open on Android, on a Windows file browser, in any text editor, and in Obsidian, because they're plain markdown, not a private database.
The same tasks show up on every device you own, regardless of whether it runs Apple's software.
Tasks sit in the same vault as your notes, so a project task and its meeting note finally live in one place.
TaskForge adds kanban boards, a calendar view with your actual calendar events alongside tasks, and widgets you can complete tasks from, none of which Things has.
The views you rebuild in step 5 (custom spaces, Spaces and calendar widgets, notifications, and custom kanban boards) are Premium, along with creating calendar events. The download is free, and on the App Store and Google Play it includes a one-week trial, so you can run through the whole setup before committing. After that, Premium is a one-time purchase or a monthly or yearly subscription.

What you'll do differently

Things' fast keyboard quick-entry on Mac is hard to beat. TaskForge has quick entry, but if magic-keyboard task capture is your whole workflow, you'll notice the change.
You manage sync yourself by choosing where the vault folder lives, instead of Things Cloud handling it invisibly. That's the price of owning your files.
The migration itself takes an hour or two for a busy database. After that it's done once and never again.

Who should stay on Things 3

If every device you own and plan to own is an Apple device, and you don't care whether your tasks live in markdown, Things is still a lovely app and there's no strong reason to switch. The case for moving is concrete: an Android or Windows machine in your life, or wanting your tasks as plain text you control. If neither of those is true for you, keep what works. TaskForge is free to download, with a one-week Premium trial on the App Store, so you can test the migration on a few projects before deciding. The views you rebuild in step 5 (custom spaces, widgets, notifications, custom kanban boards, and creating calendar events) are Premium: a one-time $49.99, $19.99 a year, or $1.99 a month once the trial ends.

Questions about switching from Things 3

Can I import my Things 3 tasks directly into TaskForge?

Not in one click, because Things stores tasks in a private database with no export feature and no public format another app can read. You first turn your Things tasks into plain text, using copy-paste on Mac for a few tasks or a community exporter for a whole database, then save them as markdown in your vault. TaskForge reads them the moment the file lands in your vault folder.

Is there a Things 3 for Android?

No. Things runs only on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and Vision Pro, and Cultured Code has said for years it has no plans for an Android, Windows, or web version. That is the most common reason people switch to TaskForge, which runs natively on Android and Windows in addition to iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

How do I get my tasks out of Things 3?

Things has no Export button. For a small number of tasks, select them in a project on Mac and copy them out as indented text. For your whole database, the community has built tools: an Apple Shortcut that writes a project or area to a markdown file, and the things3-export tool on GitHub that dumps your database to TaskPaper plain text. From there you reshape the tasks into the Obsidian Tasks markdown format and drop them in your vault.

Will I lose my due dates and priorities when I switch?

No, but you do re-attach them in markdown. A due date becomes a [due:: 2026-06-26] field on the task line, and a priority becomes [priority:: high]. The information carries over; it just changes shape. Tasks you copy out of Things keep their text, and you add the date and priority fields as you paste them into your vault.

Do I have to use Obsidian to use TaskForge?

You need a folder of markdown files, which is what an Obsidian vault is, but you don't have to open Obsidian itself. TaskForge reads and writes the files directly. Most switchers do use Obsidian, since the whole appeal of moving off Things is having tasks next to notes, but TaskForge works on any folder of markdown task files.

Can I keep Things 3 while I try TaskForge?

Yes, and it's the sensible way to do it. Your tasks are plain files, so there's nothing to corrupt. Build your vault alongside Things, copy over a few active projects, live in TaskForge for a week, and only delete Things once you're sure. Keep a backup of the Things data either way.

Try the move on a few projects first

TaskForge is free to download on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android, and Windows, with a one-week Premium trial on the App Store and Google Play. Copy a couple of active Things projects into a vault, open them in TaskForge, and see how it feels before you commit. Premium (custom spaces, Spaces and calendar widgets, notifications, custom kanban boards, creating calendar events) is a one-time $49.99, $19.99 a year, or $1.99 a month after the trial.