A Free Productivity App
With Nothing Held Back
Most "free" productivity tools are demos with a paywall around the good parts. Onyx is the whole product — free tasks, free notes, free kanban boards, free goal tracking — with no credit card and no locked features while we're in early access.
Start Free — No Card RequiredWhat's included for free
- Unlimited tasks and unlimited notes — no caps
- Personal kanban boards and the Eisenhower priority matrix
- Rich text editor, knowledge graph, and file attachments
- Life goals with milestones and time horizons
- Atrium spaced-repetition memory system
- Mindset Playbook and Pomodoro focus timer
- No credit card required, no trial countdown, no locked features
How free tiers actually compare
Free plans differ mostly in what they hold back. Here's the honest landscape for individual users.
| App | What's free | What's not |
|---|---|---|
| Onyx | Everything — the entire product, unlimited | Nothing is paywalled during early access |
| Notion | Generous personal free plan | AI features, larger uploads, and team functionality sit on paid plans |
| Todoist | Core to-do lists | Reminders, calendar layout, and higher project limits require Pro |
| Trello | Basic boards | Board limits and most power-ups push active users toward paid plans |
| TickTick | Tasks and basic lists | Calendar view, habit features, and filters largely live behind Premium |
Competitor free plans change over time — check their sites for current limits. Full comparisons: Onyx vs Notion · Onyx vs Todoist
Why it's free — the straight answer
Onyx is in early access. We're a small product focused on one thing — making individuals their most productive selves — and right now feedback from real daily users is worth more to us than revenue. So the entire product is free: not a stripped tier, not a 14-day trial, the whole thing.
When early access ends, Onyx will cost $5/month or $40/year, everything still included, and you'll get clear notice before anything changes. If a tool you rely on should cost less than a coffee a month, we think that's a fair deal — and until then, it costs nothing at all. See pricing for details.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Onyx really completely free?
Yes. During early access, every feature in Onyx is free for everyone: unlimited tasks and notes, kanban boards, the Eisenhower matrix, goal tracking, the knowledge graph, and the memory system. There is no credit card required, no trial countdown, and no locked tier.
What's the catch?
The honest answer: Onyx is in early access, and free users are how we find rough edges and decide what to build next. After early access ends, planned pricing is $5/month or $40/year — and existing users will get plenty of notice before any billing starts.
Will Onyx stay free forever?
No, and we'd rather tell you that upfront than surprise you. Onyx is free during early access; afterward it will cost $5/month or $40/year with everything included. What we don't plan to do is retroactively lock away your data — your workspace stays yours.
Do free users get fewer features than paying users will?
No. During early access there is exactly one tier: everything, free. Unlike most free plans, nothing is held back to upsell you.
Is there a free kanban board in Onyx?
Yes — personal kanban boards are part of the free product, along with list views and the Eisenhower priority matrix, all showing the same tasks.
Free means free — go see for yourself
Sign up in under a minute. Unlimited tasks, notes, kanban boards, and goals.