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Productivity · head to head

Reflect vs Things 3

Reflect logo

Reflect

Productivity

Fast networked note-taking with AI

From
$10/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Things 3 logo

Things 3

Productivity

The award-winning personal task manager

From
$9.99/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Reflect no free tier or free plan option; Things 3 no team collaboration, task sharing, or task assignment features
  • They diverge on capability: Reflect covers Bidirectional links, Things 3 covers Today view.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Reflect and Things 3 actually diverge.

Attributes where Reflect and Things 3 differ
AttributeReflectThings 3
Starting price$10/month$9.99/one-time
PlatformsWeb, macOS, Windows, iOSmacOS, iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, visionOS
Founded20202004

Identical on both: pricing model (Unknown), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Productivity).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Reflect

  • Bidirectional links
  • End-to-end encryption
  • AI assistant
  • Instant sync
  • Daily notes
  • Chrome extension
  • Calendar sync
  • Kindle highlights

Only in Things 3

  • Today view
  • Projects and areas
  • Quick entry
  • Tags
  • Calendar integration
  • Apple Calendar
  • Siri
  • Shortcuts

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Reflect

  • Productivitynot Things 3
  • Collaborationnot Things 3
  • Task managementnot Things 3
  • Organizationnot Things 3

Things 3

  • Schedulingnot Reflect
  • Appointment bookingnot Reflect
  • Time trackingnot Reflect
  • Resource managementnot Reflect
  • Team coordinationnot Reflect

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Reflect

  • No free tier or free plan option
  • Losing your password means permanent data loss with no recovery option
  • Shared notes are not end-to-end encrypted despite platform marketing encryption
  • AI features send your content to OpenAI servers (30-day retention)
  • Mobile apps have limited offline functionality compared to desktop

Things 3

  • No team collaboration, task sharing, or task assignment features
  • Apple ecosystem only, with no Windows, Android, or web version
  • No third-party app integrations beyond Apple's ecosystem
  • Cannot attach files or images to tasks, only text notes
  • No time blocking or calendar integration for scheduling tasks into specific time slots

Pricing, plan by plan

Reflect

$10/month

No published plan breakdown. See the Reflect review.

Things 3

$9.99/one-time
  • iPhone/Watch$9.99/one-time
  • iPad$19.99/one-time
  • Mac$49.99/one-time

Which should you pick?

Choose Reflect if

  • You need bidirectional links.
  • You work on Web, macOS, Windows, iOS.
  • You also want end-to-end encryption.
Reflect review

Choose Things 3 if

  • You need today view.
  • You work on macOS, iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, visionOS.
  • You also want projects and areas.
Things 3 review

Questions people ask

Is Reflect or Things 3 better?
Neither clearly leads. Reflect starts at $10/month and Things 3 at $9.99/one-time, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Reflect or Things 3?
Reflect starts at $10/month and Things 3 at $9.99/one-time.
Does Reflect or Things 3 run on more platforms?
Reflect runs on Web, macOS, Windows, iOS. Things 3 runs on macOS, iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, visionOS.
What is Reflect best used for?
Reflect is most often used for productivity, collaboration, task management, organization. Of those, productivity and collaboration are not what Things 3 is typically brought in for.
What can Reflect do that Things 3 cannot?
Reflect covers Bidirectional links, End-to-end encryption, AI assistant, Instant sync. Things 3 covers Today view, Projects and areas, Quick entry, Tags.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Reflect: Is there a free tier?

No. Reflect offers only a 14-day free trial before requiring $10/month (billed annually). There is no free plan.

Source
Things 3: Does Things 3 support team collaboration?

No. Things 3 is designed for individual use only with no task sharing, team workspaces, task assignment, or commenting features.

Source
Reflect: Does Reflect work offline?

Yes, editing and note-taking work offline on desktop. Mobile apps have offline limitations compared to the desktop experience.

Source
Things 3: What platforms does Things 3 run on?

Things 3 is exclusive to Apple devices: macOS, iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, and visionOS. There is no Windows, Android, or web version.

Source
Reflect: How secure is my data?

Reflect uses end-to-end encryption with XChaCha20-Poly1305. An independent audit by Doyensec found no vulnerabilities. However, audio for transcription and text sent to AI features are processed by OpenAI servers (retained 30 days per OpenAI policy).

Source
Things 3: How much does Things 3 cost?

Things 3 uses a one-time purchase model: $9.99 for iPhone/Watch, $19.99 for iPad, and $49.99 for Mac. Total cost for all platforms is approximately $80 with no subscription required.

Source
Reflect: Can I export my notes?

Yes. Reflect allows export of your notes, though the primary export method involves using their web and iOS apps with standard export capabilities.

Source
Things 3: Does Things 3 sync across devices?

Yes. Things Cloud keeps your to-dos in sync across all your Apple devices automatically. There is no extra cost for cloud synchronization.

Source
Things 3: Can you attach files or images to tasks in Things 3?

No. Things 3 does not support attachments. You can only add notes (text) to tasks.

Source
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