Todoist: Shaping Productivity through Design
Discover my role and contributions as a product designer at Todoist, where I helped enhance this acclaimed productivity app's user experience.
Project Snapshot
- Company: Doist
- Product: Todoist (iOS, Android, Web)
- Role: Product Designer (2017–Present)
- Focus Areas: Core UX, Feature Design, Visual Systems, Product Growth
- Highlights: Task Details revamp, Deadlines, Search, Favorites, Dark Theme, Teams Growth
Problem & Context
Todoist is a productivity tool used by millions every day to organize both personal and professional lives. Designing for such a widely adopted product means balancing consistency and innovation—every improvement must feel natural, be accessible across platforms, and deliver real value without adding friction.
Over my 8+ years at Doist, I've contributed to many parts of the product. The examples below reflect some of the work I’m most proud of—features that made a real difference in users’ workflows and in how Todoist continues to evolve.
My Role
As a Product Designer, I own design end-to-end—from research and early exploration to visual polish and developer collaboration. I work closely with cross-functional squads to ship features that align with user needs and company goals. I also contribute to long-term product vision, interface consistency, and incremental polish through internal roles like “Design Hero.”
Process & Approach
Evolving Core UX (Todoist Foundations)
I was part of the team that redefined the app’s structure and interactions in a major overhaul called Foundations—an initiative that modernized our core experience and paved the way for future features.
Feature Design Highlights
- Task Details: I designed this central screen to be more intuitive and actionable. It remains one of the most positively received changes by our user base.
- Deadlines: I designed this much-requested feature across platforms, supported by user research and interactive prototypes.
- Favorites: I introduced the ability to favorite projects, labels, and filters—giving users faster access to what matters most and improving task navigation across devices.
- Search Redesign: I reimagined the search experience to make finding content easier and faster, reducing friction in everyday workflows.
- Emoji Reactions in Comments: A small but high-impact improvement that brought more fun and personality to collaborative work, helping teams communicate faster and with more emotion.
Visual Design & Accessibility
- I launched Todoist’s first Dark Theme, refining the full theme system to ensure readability, elegance, and brand consistency.
Growth & Adoption
- As part of the growth squad for Todoist Teams, I worked on improving the “Workspace” experience—shipping small, high-impact features that helped increase adoption and clarify the product's value for team collaboration.
Maintenance & Iteration
- As “Design Hero,” I focus on polishing rough edges and fixing usability bugs—quiet work that helps keep Todoist feel reliable and delightful day after day.
Outcome & Impact
- Millions interact daily with features I helped design.
- The Task Details and Favorites updates continue to streamline task management.
- The Deadlines feature helped users stay accountable and plan with more clarity.
- Emoji reactions and Dark Theme brought more joy and personalization to the experience.
- Our work on Todoist Teams led to noticeable improvements in feature adoption and user retention.
- Continuous design maintenance ensures high-quality user experience across platforms.
Looking back, my time at Todoist was an extraordinary journey of growth, creativity, and impact. I’m proud of my role in making productivity accessible and enjoyable for millions of users worldwide. As a designer and a user myself, it’s gratifying to know that my work helps people organize their days and achieve their goals.
So, if you haven’t already, give Todoist a try. Who knows? It might just transform your productivity game—and make tackling your to-do list a little more fun.
