Feb 24, 2026
Aftertone vs OmniFocus (2026) – Productivity System vs GTD Power Tool
TL;DR
Aftertone: £20/mo or £100 lifetime. macOS productivity system — tasks, time blocking, Focus Screen, behavioural AI, weekly reports.
OmniFocus: $10/mo or $150/yr (web + all platforms). The definitive GTD app — projects, contexts, perspectives, review, defer dates, custom views. macOS, iOS, iPadOS, Apple Watch, web.
Key difference: OmniFocus is the most powerful GTD system. Aftertone is a simpler system focused on daily execution and weekly improvement.
OmniFocus is the gold standard for Getting Things Done (GTD). Projects with sequential or parallel actions, contexts (tags for location/energy/tool), custom perspectives (saved filtered views), defer dates, and a built-in weekly review. If David Allen's methodology is your religion, OmniFocus is the temple.
The power is real — but so is the complexity. OmniFocus requires significant setup and ongoing maintenance. It's Apple-only (with a recent web addition) and the $10/month subscription or $150/year for full access across devices makes it one of the pricier options.
Aftertone is simpler: time blocks, Focus Screen, AI that does the analysis for you, weekly reports generated automatically. Less methodology, more automation.
Side-by-Side
Feature | Aftertone | OmniFocus |
|---|---|---|
Pricing | £20/mo or £100 lifetime | $10/mo or $150/yr (all platforms). Single platform cheaper. |
Platform | macOS (iOS/Android coming) | macOS, iOS, iPadOS, Apple Watch, web |
Methodology | Time blocking with behavioural AI | Full GTD: projects, contexts, perspectives, sequential/parallel actions, weekly review |
Task management | Native — keyboard shortcut capture, project tags, filtering | Deep GTD: projects, actions, contexts, perspectives, defer dates, flags, custom views |
Time blocking | Visual time blocks with daily structure | Not a core feature (forecast view shows date-based items) |
AI | Silent behavioural AI — tracks patterns, weekly insight reports | None (relies on manual review process) |
Focus mode | Focus Screen — context-aware, current task, overdue flags, 1-2-3 shortcuts | Focus mode filters to specific perspectives |
Weekly reports | Automated, AI-generated, personalised | Built-in Review feature (manual process, user-driven) |
Where Aftertone pulls ahead
Automated intelligence. OmniFocus relies on you doing the weekly review manually. Aftertone's AI generates insights automatically.
The Focus Screen. OmniFocus' Focus shows filtered views. Aftertone's Focus Screen is an execution environment — current task, overdue flags, adaptive shortcuts.
Simplicity. OmniFocus requires learning GTD methodology. Aftertone works in five minutes.
£100 lifetime vs $150/year. Significant cost difference over time.
Where OmniFocus is the better fit
For committed GTD practitioners, OmniFocus is unmatched. The depth of implementation — sequential actions, defer dates, perspectives — supports the full methodology.
Custom perspectives let you create any view of your task system.
Apple ecosystem coverage is comprehensive: Mac, iPhone, iPad, Watch, web.
The Review feature provides structured weekly maintenance.
Bottom line
OmniFocus is the most powerful GTD implementation available. Aftertone is a simpler system that automates much of what OmniFocus asks you to do manually — AI instead of review sessions, Focus Screen instead of perspectives, weekly reports instead of manual reflection. Choose OmniFocus if you love GTD. Choose Aftertone if you want the benefits without the methodology overhead.