How to switch from TickTick to TaskForge.
You can get your TickTick tasks out, into an Obsidian vault, and showing up in TaskForge in an afternoon. There is no one-click importer. What there is: a clear path from a TickTick CSV to plain markdown task lines that TaskForge reads the moment you point it at the folder.
This is a migration guide, not a feature pitch. If you are still deciding whether to leave, read the side-by-side comparison first. If you have already decided, start at step one.
Get Free - iOS & Mac 
Get Free - Android "Renew passport","Personal","2026-07-10","High"
- [ ] Renew passport ⏫ 📅 2026-07-10 #Personal
Why people leave TickTick
Three reasons come up again and again from people who write in after switching.
-
Your tasks live in TickTick's cloud, not in a file you control
Every task you have ever made in TickTick sits behind an account on their servers. You can read it through their apps and pull a backup, but you cannot open the raw task in a text editor or keep it in the same folder as your notes. After the move, every task is a line in a markdown file you own.
-
TickTick and Obsidian were never meant to share data
If you keep notes in Obsidian, TickTick is a second silo. There is no official bridge, and the community plugins that try to sync TickTick into a vault lean on an unofficial API that has broken when TickTick changed its sign-in flow. People get tired of maintaining two task systems that drift apart.
-
The subscription never ends
TickTick Premium runs around $35.99 a year with no lifetime option, so you pay again every year you keep using the paid features. TaskForge has a $39.99 one-time purchase as an alternative to the $1.99 monthly plan. Whether that math favors you depends on how long you plan to stick around.
The migration, step by step
Four steps. The only fiddly part is turning the CSV into markdown lines, and you can do that by hand for a small list or with a script for a big one.
-
Export your tasks from TickTick
Open TickTick in a web browser (the mobile apps cannot do this). Click your avatar in the top left, then go to Settings, Account, Backup & Import. Click Generate Backup. TickTick writes a .csv file to your Downloads folder containing your tasks, their lists, due dates, priorities, and completion state.
TickTick only exports as CSV. There is no markdown or JSON option, so the CSV is your starting point.
-
Set up an Obsidian vault (or use the one you have)
A vault is just a folder of markdown files. If you already use Obsidian, you have one. If not, make a new folder anywhere your devices can reach it, for example an iCloud Drive folder, and that is your vault. You do not need the Obsidian app installed to use TaskForge, but most people who switch already have it.
Put the vault somewhere your phone and computer both see, since that is how your tasks reach every device.
-
Turn the CSV rows into markdown task lines
Each TickTick task becomes one line of Obsidian Tasks syntax in a markdown file. A task with a title, a due date, and high priority becomes a single line. For a short list you can type these out while reading the CSV. For hundreds of tasks, a small script (or an AI agent given the CSV and the format below) maps each row to a line and writes them into a file like tasks/inbox.md.
TickTick CSV row"Renew passport","Personal","2026-07-10","High"
Markdown line TaskForge reads- [ ] Renew passport ⏫ 📅 2026-07-10 #Personal
Due date is 📅 and a list becomes a #tag. TickTick's four priority levels each have a marker: high is ⏫, medium is 🔼, low is 🔽, and if you treat anything urgent as top priority you can use 🔺 for highest. Completed tasks use - [x] with a ✅ date. That is the whole vocabulary you need for most lists.
-
Point TaskForge at the vault
Install TaskForge on your iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Android device, and choose the vault folder when it asks. It reads the markdown files and your tasks appear, with their dates, priorities, and tags intact. Edit one in TaskForge and the change writes straight back to the file. No account, no sign-in, no upload.
On every device that sees the same vault folder, the same tasks show up. The folder is the sync, using iCloud, Obsidian Sync, Dropbox, or whatever you already run.
What carries over, and what does not
Be honest with yourself about this before you start, so nothing surprises you halfway through.
Carries over cleanly
- Task titles, due dates, and priorities map directly to markdown task syntax.
- Your TickTick lists and folders become tags or separate files, your choice.
- The tags you already put on TickTick tasks sit in the CSV's Tags column, so they carry across as #tags too, not just the list name.
- Subtasks are recoverable. The CSV's parentId column tells you which task each subtask belongs under, so you can nest them in the markdown.
- Completed tasks keep their done state and completion date.
- Recurring tasks can be rebuilt with the 🔁 recurrence syntax. The CSV's Repeat column tells you the exact pattern, for example 🔁 every week.
Does not come along
- TickTick's habit tracker and built-in Pomodoro timer have no equivalent in TaskForge. If you live in those, keep TickTick for them or find a dedicated tool.
- Shared lists and team assignments do not transfer. TaskForge is single-user and vault-first.
- Comments and attachments inside TickTick tasks are not part of the CSV export, so they do not survive the move.
- TickTick's smart date parsing history and saved smart lists are not portable; you rebuild views as TaskForge custom lists.
What you get once the tasks are in the vault
These are the parts that made the move worth the afternoon for most people who did it.
-
Home and lock screen widgets
See today's tasks and check them off from your phone's home screen or lock screen. The widgets read the vault files directly, so they work offline and fire a notification when a due date arrives.
-
Your real calendar events next to your tasks
TaskForge pulls Apple Calendar, Google Calendar, and Outlook events into the same Day, Week, and Month views as your tasks. Drag a task to reschedule it and the new date writes back to the markdown file.
-
Natural language capture in 18 languages
Type "call the dentist tuesday 2-4pm" and TaskForge turns it into a properly formatted task line with the date and time range filled in. It reads time ranges and recurrence patterns in 18 languages.
-
Two task formats, your pick
TaskForge reads the Obsidian Tasks checkbox format and the TaskNotes format, where each task is its own file with YAML frontmatter. You can mix both in one vault, so however you decide to land your imported tasks, TaskForge handles it.
Who should not switch
TaskForge is not a drop-in replacement for everything TickTick does. If your team shares task lists in TickTick, if you rely on its habit tracker or Pomodoro timer daily, or if you need a web app to manage tasks from a borrowed computer, TickTick still does those things and TaskForge does not. TaskForge is built for one person who wants their tasks as plain files in their own vault, with native apps and widgets on top. If that is not you, the move is not worth it, and there is no shame in staying.
Questions about moving from TickTick
Is there a one-click import from TickTick to TaskForge?
No. TickTick exports a CSV from its web app, and TaskForge reads markdown task files, so there is a conversion step in between. For a small list you type the tasks into a markdown file while reading the CSV. For a large list, a short script or an AI agent given the CSV can map each row to a markdown task line in seconds. Once the lines are in your vault, TaskForge picks them up automatically.
How do I export my tasks out of TickTick?
Open TickTick in a web browser, since the mobile apps cannot export. Click your avatar in the top left, go to Settings, then Account, then Backup & Import, and click Generate Backup. A .csv file with your tasks, lists, due dates, priorities, and completion state lands in your Downloads folder.
Will I lose my data if I leave TickTick?
Your TickTick account stays intact until you delete it, so nothing is destroyed by trying TaskForge. The CSV backup is a full snapshot you keep. Once your tasks are markdown files in your vault, they are plain text you own outright, readable by Obsidian or any text editor, with no account holding them hostage.
Do I need to buy Obsidian to use TaskForge?
No. Obsidian is free, and you do not even need it installed. A vault is just a folder of markdown files. TaskForge reads that folder on its own. Most people switching from TickTick already use Obsidian for notes, which is why their tasks and notes ending up in the same vault is the appeal.
What happens to my recurring tasks from TickTick?
Recurring tasks rebuild with the 🔁 syntax, for example - [ ] pay rent 🔁 every month 📅 2026-07-01. The CSV will tell you which tasks repeat and how often, and you set the same pattern in the markdown line. TaskForge then handles the recurrence the same way the Obsidian Tasks plugin does, generating the next occurrence when you complete one.
Can I run TickTick and TaskForge side by side while I migrate?
Yes, and it is the calmest way to do it. Keep TickTick as is, point TaskForge at a fresh vault, and move your tasks over in batches. Live in TaskForge for a week or two, and when nothing in TickTick is pulling you back, close the account. There is no rush, because both keep their own copy.
Start the move today.
TaskForge is free to download on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Android, with a one-week trial of Premium. Pull your TickTick CSV, point TaskForge at a vault, and see your tasks as files you own.
After the trial: $39.99 one-time, or $1.99 a month.