The core difference
Todoist is a general-purpose task manager built around consistent, gamified productivity — karma points, priority flags, filters, integrations, and a cross-platform sync that's genuinely best-in-class. Lunar is a cycle-aware ADHD planner that filters your list to what you can do today, no karma attached.
The friction point for ADHD women: Todoist surfaces everything you haven't done. On a luteal-phase low-dopamine day, a backlog of red overdue tasks is its own shame spiral. Lunar hides what doesn't fit today. Same tasks, completely different psychological experience.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Todoist | Lunar |
|---|---|---|
| Built for ADHD women | General audience | Yes — specifically |
| Menstrual cycle awareness | No | Yes — phase filter |
| Energy-based task filter | No | Yes — 4 levels |
| Karma / streak pressure | Core mechanic | None by design |
| Overdue task handling | Visible, accumulates | Filtered gracefully |
| AI task breakdown | Limited (AI assistant) | Yes (Pro) |
| Body doubling | No | Yes |
| Natural language input | Best in class | Standard |
| Cross-platform sync | iOS, Android, web, everywhere | iOS (Android in progress) |
| Free tier | Limited | Free, no card required |
Who should choose Todoist
- Your productivity is consistent week-to-week
- You work in teams and need shared projects and comments
- Calendar and Slack integrations are important to you
- Natural language task entry is a daily requirement
- Karma and streaks actually motivate you rather than shame you
Who should choose Lunar
- Your energy and focus shift significantly with your menstrual cycle
- Overdue task lists cause shame spirals that make you avoid the app
- You need the list to shrink on bad days, not grow
- Body doubling sessions would help you start tasks
- You're on iOS and want a mobile-first ADHD-specific experience
Why the Karma system is a problem for ADHD
Todoist's Karma gives you points for completing tasks on time and removes them for overdue items. For neurotypical users with consistent output, this is a gentle motivator. For ADHD women on a cycle, it's a shame engine with a predictable monthly schedule — every luteal phase, your karma drops. Every period week, the overdue count climbs. Then your follicular phase arrives and you spend half of it reorganising instead of producing.
Lunar has no karma, no streaks, and no overdue count. Tasks that don't fit today simply don't appear. Tomorrow is its own day.
Verdict
Choose Todoist if consistent productivity, team collaboration, and deep integrations are your priority — and gamification motivates rather than shames you. Choose Lunar if your ADHD symptoms intensify during your luteal phase and you need a planner that responds to that with a smaller list, not a bigger shame signal.
The most common stack: Todoist for hard-deadline work projects, Lunar for daily personal planning and the "what am I actually doing right now" question.