Microsoft To-Do vs Trello

September 10, 2023 | Author: Adam Levine
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Microsoft To-Do
Managing your to-dos and lists can sometimes take as much effort as completing them. To-Do helps you focus and plan your day from the moment you open the app. To-Do is built on Office 365. Integration with Outlook makes it easy to stay on top of your Outlook Tasks from anywhere.
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Trello
Get organized as fast as you can think. The easy-to-use interface takes no time to learn, and every action is instantaneous, so there’s nothing standing between you and your sweet productive flow. Trello is great alone, but even better with others. Get the whole group onboard in seconds. See their updates in real time.
Microsoft To-Do and Trello are both popular task management tools, but they differ in terms of their features and approach to task organization.

Microsoft To-Do is a task management app developed by Microsoft, designed to help individuals and teams stay organized and focused on their tasks. It offers features such as task creation, due dates, reminders, and list organization. Microsoft To-Do seamlessly integrates with other Microsoft tools like Outlook and Microsoft 365, allowing users to sync their tasks across devices and collaborate with others.

Trello, on the other hand, is a visual project management tool that uses a board and card system to organize tasks and workflows. It allows users to create boards for different projects, add cards for individual tasks, and move them across different stages or categories. Trello offers features such as checklists, due dates, attachments, comments, and team collaboration, making it suitable for both personal and team-based task management.

See also: Top 10 Productivity software
Microsoft To-Do vs Trello in our news:

2021. Trello is redesigning its project management platform for a remote work future



Productivity app Trello, known for its virtual whiteboard-style platform designed for project organization and management, has unveiled a significant redesign and introduced new features to assist businesses in managing third-party integrations. The platform's visual elements, including the logo and illustrations displayed on its website and apps, have undergone a revamp. Moreover, Trello now offers enhanced customization options for cards and alternative ways to view workloads, expanding beyond the traditional whiteboard column view. The introduction of mirror cards and link cards aims to simplify the management of other applications and services within Trello. Additionally, Trello has introduced five new board views, deviating from its iconic column layout that has gained widespread popularity.


2019. Microsoft is finally shutting down to-do list app Wunderlist


For years, Microsoft has assured users that it would eventually discontinue the Wunderlist to-do list app, which it acquired in 2015, in favor of its own app, To Do. Microsoft aimed to offer a competitive experience that encompassed the best features of Wunderlist. Finally, Microsoft has announced that Wunderlist will be officially shut down on May 6, 2020. Following this date, Wunderlist to-dos will no longer synchronize, but users will still have the option to import their content into Microsoft's own To Do app.


2019. Microsoft integrated its personal organizer app To-Do with Outlook


Microsoft has recently unveiled an updated version of its Microsoft To-Do personal organizer. This new release introduces a range of exciting features, including the ability to fully customize the color scheme and background. Additionally, users now have the option to enable 2-factor authorization for enhanced security. The updated Microsoft To-Do also offers smart recommendations to help users create their task lists for the day efficiently. Furthermore, the integration with Outlook has been seamlessly implemented, allowing the Flagged Email list in the app to display flagged messages from Outlook.com. The integration extends further to include Microsoft Planner, a project management service, as well as voice assistants Alexa and Cortana. Notably, Microsoft hinted at the potential closure of Wunderlist, a service acquired by Microsoft four years ago, which served as the foundation for the development of Microsoft To-Do. Following this, the founder of Wunderlist, Christian Reber, publicly expressed his desire for Microsoft to repurchase the service and transform it into an open-source product via a tweet.


2019. Microsoft brought its To-Do app to Mac



Microsoft has expanded the availability of its To-Do app to include the Mac platform. The Mac version will provide immediate support for most core features, enabling users to create and manage tasks, work offline, share lists, utilize tags, and more. Additionally, the app will integrate with Microsoft Outlook, allowing users to import their "Flagged" email list. Integration with Planner is also on the horizon, enabling users to access items assigned to them. Taking advantage of the Mac platform, the To-Do app offers a range of convenient keyboard shortcuts, such as ⌘2 to minimize the app for a list view and ⌘1 to return to the complete list display. Users can even edit task text directly from the list view by clicking on it.


2018. Trello acquired business process automation tool Butler



Trello, the collaborative tool under the ownership of Atlassian, has recently made an acquisition of Butler, a lightweight business process automation tool. With the integration of Butler, Trello gains the capability of automation, enabling users to streamline complex tasks through a series of automated commands. Over time, teams have recognized the value of automating processes on Trello boards using the Butler Power-Up, allowing them to allocate more time to essential responsibilities and enhance overall productivity. Butler empowers teams to systematize business rules and procedures, transforming a ten-step process into a single-click automation. This signifies that Trello transcends its static organizational role and ventures into the realm of agile business process automation.


2018. Trello gets a newsfeed and improved notifications



The project management service Trello, which is owned by Atlassian, is undergoing a makeover. Trello is renowned for its cards and boards, but this simplicity often led power users to sift through numerous boards to determine their next focus. To address this, Trello is introducing a personalized newsfeed that will showcase activity from your Trello teams. The newsfeed will include sections like "Up Next" and "Highlights," providing a comprehensive overview of the ongoing developments within your projects. Furthermore, Trello is introducing enhanced notifications. Users will now have the ability to modify due dates and disable notifications for specific cards directly from the notifications interface. Additionally, users can mark alerts as "read" or "unread" to manage their notification status effectively.


2017. Trello comes to the desktop, gets Stride integration



Popular project management tool Trello, which was recently acquired by Atlassian, has introduced desktop applications for both Mac and Windows operating systems. Previously, Trello was exclusively available as a web-based platform. With the new desktop apps, Trello users can enjoy all the familiar features they are accustomed to using in the browser, along with the added convenience of native desktop notifications. Furthermore, the desktop apps offer the flexibility to add cards from any application using a variety of keyboard shortcuts, allowing users to stay focused without the distraction of navigating to other websites like Facebook. If you are using an Apple laptop equipped with the Touch Bar, you can also take advantage of its capabilities to effortlessly create new cards and open boards in separate windows with a single tap. In line with Atlassian's recent launch of Stride, a competitor to Slack, it is unsurprising that Trello now integrates with Stride as well. This integration enables users to initiate Stride audio and video conferences directly from within Trello, facilitating instant conference calls with all Trello board members without the need to switch between different applications.


2017. Microsoft unveiled productivity app To-Do that will replace Wunderlist


In 2015, Microsoft acquired the well-liked mobile to-do list app Wunderlist. Now, the company is preparing users for the app's eventual discontinuation by introducing a new application called To-Do. Developed by the same team responsible for Wunderlist, this new app will gradually incorporate the beloved features of its predecessor in the coming months. Microsoft has assured users that it will not shut down Wunderlist until it has successfully integrated the best aspects of the app into To-Do. During this transition period, Microsoft is encouraging Wunderlist users to switch to To-Do by providing an importer tool. This tool allows users to seamlessly transfer their lists and to-dos from Wunderlist to To-Do. Once transferred, these items will be accessible in other Microsoft products such as Exchange and Outlook. However, it's important to note that the To-Do app is not yet fully equipped to cater to all Wunderlist users. Currently, platforms like Mac, iPad, and Android tablet do not support To-Do, and task list sharing is also unavailable.


2017. Atlassian acquired Trello



Atlassian, the renowned software company, has made a significant acquisition by purchasing the project management service Trello for a whopping $425 million. Similar to its approach with previous acquisitions, Atlassian intends to maintain the Trello service and brand, ensuring that existing users will not experience immediate changes. By acquiring Trello, Atlassian gains access to one of the rapidly growing project management services, boasting approximately 19 million users. Trello enhances productivity for both individuals and teams by providing a comprehensive view of all projects within a single glance. Assigning projects is simple—just place them in the respective person's or team's list, and upon completion, drag them to the "completed" list. Each task, referred to as a "card," allows for comments and the addition of links. Trello is compatible with multiple devices and facilitates file uploads from platforms such as Dropbox or Google Drive.


2016. Trello makes its Power-Ups available to free users



The project management service Trello has expanded access to its Power-Ups feature, making it available to all users, including those on the free tier. Previously, only paying users had access to this functionality, which includes integrations with various products such as SurveyMonkey, join.me, Github, and Slack, among others. Free users were limited to three basic Power-Ups: Calendar for viewing Trello's calendar, Card Aging for gradually fading out cards as they age, and Voting for adding voting options to cards. Additionally, Trello is introducing integrations with Intercom, Github Enterprise, and Screenful. Moreover, Trello is launching two new Power-Ups of its own. The first is custom fields, enabling users to create new data fields and visual cues for their cards. The second is Card Repeater, allowing users to set intervals for recurring tasks. For instance, with Card Repeater, users can automatically generate copies of specific cards for tasks that repeat periodically, such as expense report due dates. Currently, this feature is in public beta, and admins need to request access to it.

Author: Adam Levine
Adam is an expert in project management, collaboration and productivity technologies, team management, and motivation. With an extensive background working at prestigious companies such as Microsoft and Accenture, Adam's in-depth knowledge and experience in the field make him a sought-after professional. Currently, he has ventured into entrepreneurship, owning a thriving consulting and training agency where he imparts invaluable insights and practical strategies to individuals and organizations, empowering them to achieve their goals and maximize their potential. You can contact Adam via email adam@liventerprise.com