Things for Windows and Android
Things 3 runs on Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Vision Pro, and nowhere else. Cultured Code says plainly that it does not work on Windows, Android, Linux or in a web browser.
So when a Windows laptop arrives at work, or your next phone is an Android, Things cannot come with you. This page is about what to do then.
What you are looking for
Most people who leave Things are not unhappy with it. They need the same calm system on a device Things does not support. The app they move to has to run there properly, not as a cut-down companion, and it has to keep the parts of Things that made it work: a clear Today, projects inside areas, and somewhere for the things you might do one day.
Relay runs as a native app on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android and Windows, and as a web app in any browser, Linux included. In Chrome or Edge you can install it as an app with its own window. It is built on Getting Things Done, and much of it will look familiar: an Inbox, projects inside areas, and a place for someday.
Where your Things lists go
| In Things | In Relay |
|---|---|
| Inbox | Inbox |
| Today and This Evening | Engage: today's calendar, what you earmarked for today, and what you could do next |
| Upcoming | Scheduled, for things that cannot start before a particular day |
| Anytime | Next Actions, filtered by context |
| Someday | Someday/Maybe |
| Logbook | Completed |
| Areas | Areas of focus, with goals, vision and purpose above them if you want them |
| Projects | Projects, each with the outcome you want, parallel or sequential |
| Tags for places and people | Contexts for places and tools, Agenda lists for people |
| Deadlines | Due dates |
Moving your to-dos across
Relay imports from Things. It reads the database Things keeps on your Mac, and keeps your projects, areas, headings, tags, dates, checklists and notes. You need the Mac to copy the file out; the import itself works in Relay on any device.
- Quit Things on your Mac So everything is saved to the database.
- Copy the database to your Desktop In Finder, choose Go > Go to Folder and paste ~/Library/Group Containers/JLMPQHK86H.com.culturedcode.ThingsMac/. Open the ThingsData folder, right-click Things Database.thingsdatabase, choose Show Package Contents and copy main.sqlite to your Desktop. Relay shows these steps too, with the folder path ready to copy.
- Choose the copy in Relay In Relay, open Settings, then Integrations, and under Import choose Import from Things. Choose the main.sqlite you copied.
- Say what each tag is Things uses tags for places, tools, people and anything else, and Relay files each kind differently. Mark each tag as a context, a person or a workspace. A tag you skip or leave unsorted is left behind.
- Check, then import Areas become Areas of Focus in Horizons and headings become sub-projects. Today and This Evening are scheduled for the day, Someday goes to Someday/Maybe, and a deadline becomes the due date. Completed and cancelled to-dos stay behind, and a repeating to-do comes across once. Nothing is written until you press Import, and Undo that import on the same screen takes it all back out.
Things on an iPhone or iPad keeps its database out of reach. Without a Mac, retype the projects that are still live into quick add in Relay. A fresh start with only live projects is no bad thing.
At a glance
| Things | Relay | |
|---|---|---|
| Runs on | ||
| iPhone and iPad | Yes | Yes |
| Android | No | Yes |
| Mac | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | No | Yes |
| Web browser | No | Yes |
| Built for GTD | ||
| Inbox, Next Actions, Waiting For and Someday built inPartly: some are, the rest you set up yourself | Partly | Yes |
| Contexts | Yes | Yes |
| Agenda lists for people | No | Yes |
| Sequential projects | No | Yes |
| Sub-projects | No | YesOne level |
| Areas, goals, vision and purposePartly: one level above projects | Partly | Yes |
| Reference material kept with its projectPartly: a separate reference list, or notes on the project itself | Partly | Yes |
| Trigger lists you can edit, for the mind sweep | No | Yes |
| Reviews and planning | ||
| Guided weekly review | No | Yes |
| Guided daily reviewPartly: a daily list or reminder, without guided steps | Partly | Yes |
| Guided reviews in the phone app | No | Yes |
| Next Actions cut to the time you have | No | YesHours, calendar and daily review |
| Actions | ||
| Repeating actions | Yes | Yes |
| Checklists inside an action | Yes | Yes |
| Snooze an Inbox itemPartly: a later date, but not one that returns it to the Inbox | Partly | Yes |
| AI help clarifying the next action | No | Yes |
| Around the lists | ||
| Google or Outlook calendar in the appPartly: only calendars already on the device | Partly | Yes |
| Two-way sync with other task appsPartly: a one-way import from another app | Partly | YesItems brought in from them |
| Home-screen widgets with your lists | Yes | YesNot on Windows or web |
| Workspaces that filter your listsPartly: a filter on some views only | Partly | Yes |
| Saved custom views | No | NoEach list keeps its own sort and grouping |
| Shared projects | No | No |
| Look | ||
| Dark theme | Yes | Yes |
| Choose your own coloursPartly: light and dark only | Partly | Yes |
| Price | ||
| Free plan | No | No |
| Buy once, no subscription | YesSold per platform | No |
Sources, checked 10 October 2026
Every cell was checked against Things's own site, help pages, release notes or store listing.
Things: Things devices, Things purchases, Things and calendars, Things and sharing, Things widgets, Things projects and headings, Things and Reminders, Things release notes.
Also in Relay
- Pin an item for today, tomorrow or this week, and it shows in Engage and the daily review.
- Your own sections in Someday/Maybe.
- Choose which sections each task, project and reference item shows, for one item or as the default.
- A default workspace for new items on each device.
- On a phone, choose the screens in the bottom bar.
- Reminders to process your Inbox at the times you choose. In the web app they show as a banner while Relay is open.
What you give up
- The design
- Things is one of the best-designed apps on any platform, and its calm is a big part of why people use it. Relay is built to be clear and quick, and it is not trying to be Things.
- Headings inside projects
- Things lets you divide a project with headings. In Relay, a part of a project that needs its own steps becomes a sub-project.
- A one-time price
- Things is bought once per platform. Relay is a subscription: €8 a month, or €5 a month billed yearly, on every device.
What you gain
- Every device
- iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android, Windows and any browser, on one account, with the full system on each.
- A weekly review
- Things has no review mode. Relay walks you through a full weekly review one step at a time, and a five-minute daily one.
- Energy and time
- Every action can carry how much energy and time it needs, so you can ask for something quick, or something easy at the end of the day.
Sources, checked 3 October 2026: Things platform support, Exporting your Things data, Things 3.5 copy and paste, Things features. Things is a trademark of Cultured Code, which is not affiliated with Relay.
Try Relay with your Things lists
Import your Things lists and run one weekly review in Relay. That will tell you whether it suits you.
30 days free, no card needed. Start in your browser or install the app.