Best Productivity Apps for Mac in 2026

A task manager, like Things 3 or Todoist, is primarily for individual to-dos, reminders, and personal habit tracking. They focus on what you need to do, when, and often integrate with your calendar. A project manager, such as Asana or Linear (or even Notion for smaller teams), is designed for more complex, multi-step endeavors, often involving multiple people, dependencies, milestones, and resource allocation. If you primarily manage your own daily tasks and don't regularly coordinate large team projects, a dedicated task manager is likely sufficient. If you're handling complex initiatives with multiple stakeholders, a project manager is essential for visibility and collaboration. Many modern solutions, like Notion, can span both roles with custom setups. [cite:bundl-trend-2026-1]