10 Hidden TickTick Features You Didn’t Know Existed

Intro

TickTick is already a favorite for people who want a fast, flexible task manager. But beyond the basics-lists, reminders, and recurring tasks-TickTick hides a set of powerful tools that many users never discover. This post walks through 10 of those features, with practical how-to steps and pro tips so you can start using them today.

1) Natural-language Quick Add & Smart Date Parsing

Why it’s useful

Add tasks quickly using plain English (or other languages). TickTick extracts dates, times, recurrence and tags from the text.

How to use it

Open Quick Add (desktop - press the global hotkey or the + button; mobile: tap +).
Type something like - “Prepare budget report tomorrow 3pm #finance every month”.
TickTick will create the task with due date, tag and recurrence parsed automatically.

Pro tips

Use hashtags for tags and @ for people (when sharing lists).
Combine natural language with priority (e.g., “!1”) to set priority fast.

2) Smart Lists (custom filtered lists)

Why it’s useful

Create dynamic views that surface exactly the tasks you care about (e.g., all high-priority tasks due this week across projects).

How to use it

Open the sidebar and choose “Smart List” (or New Smart List).
Build filter criteria - list(s), tag(s), priority, due date range, status, assigned person, etc.
Save the view - it updates automatically.

Pro tips

Create a Daily Focus Smart List that shows only today’s high-impact tasks.
Use Smart Lists to power your weekly review (e.g., tasks completed this week + overdue tasks).

3) Board (Kanban) View

Why it’s useful

Visualize workflows with drag-and-drop columns for To Do / Doing / Done, sprint boards, content pipelines, and more.

How to use it

Open a list and switch the view to “Board.”
Add columns (statuses), drag tasks between columns to update their state.
Use card details to add subtasks, due dates, labels.

Pro tips

Use one board per project or create cross-list boards using Smart Lists + Board view (Premium may be required).
Add quick filters to show only tasks owned by you or tasks with deadlines this week.

4) Built-in Focus Timer (Pomodoro) with History

Why it’s useful

The Focus Timer is TickTick’s built-in Pomodoro tool. It helps you work in focused intervals and tracks statistics so you can measure productivity.

How to use it

Open the task and tap the Focus Timer icon (or use the Timer section in the app).
Start a Pomodoro session (default 25 minutes).
After the session, mark the break and log your progress.

Pro tips

Customize durations in Settings to match your preferred rhythm (e.g., 52/17).
Review Focus History to detect when you’re most productive and which tasks take the most sessions.

5) Habit Tracker (built-in habits with streaks)

Why it’s useful

Track repeating behaviors (exercise, reading, journaling) separately from your task lists to build consistency and visible streaks.

How to use it

Tap the Habit tab (or “+” > New Habit).
Define frequency, target (e.g., daily, 3x/week), and reminders.
Check off habit completions; view streaks on the habit screen.

Pro tips

Combine habits with tasks - link a habit to a checklist item inside a task for context (e.g., a workout habit and a weekly planning task).
Use streaks as intrinsic motivation and set realistic frequencies you can maintain.

6) Calendar & Timeline Integration (Two-way sync)

Why it’s useful

Seeing tasks on a calendar reduces context switching and lets you plan your day visually. Two-way sync means changes in your calendar reflect in TickTick and vice versa.

How to use it

In Settings > Calendar, connect Google Calendar / Outlook / Apple Calendar.
Choose which calendars to display and whether to enable two-way sync.
Use the Calendar or Timeline view to schedule tasks and blocks of focus time.

Pro tips

Turn tasks with due dates into calendar events to block time for doing them (drag a task onto a time slot).
Use color-coding to separate calendar events from task blocks.

7) Subtasks, Checklists & Batch Edit

Why it’s useful

Break big tasks into actionable subtasks or checklists. Batch edit lets you change due dates, tags, priority or assignees on multiple tasks at once.

How to use it

Open a task, add subtasks or a checklist in the task detail panel.
To batch edit - select multiple tasks (desktop: shift/ctrl+click) and use the Edit menu to change attributes.

Pro tips

Use subtasks for step-by-step how-tos and checklists for repeatable procedures.
Batch-edit deadlines to quickly re-plan a project when timelines shift.

8) Templates and Task Duplication

Why it’s useful

Save recurring project setups (e.g., onboarding checklist, launch plan) as templates to avoid rebuilding structure each time.

How to use it

Create a list or task group you want to reuse.
Use the Export/Save as Template option (or Duplicate) to create a template.
Import or apply the template when starting a new project.

Pro tips

Keep a “templates” list with common workflows for marketing, engineering sprints, meeting agendas and more.
Include subtasks and default tags in your templates so new projects are ready to run.

9) Keyboard Shortcuts & Global Quick Add

Why it’s useful

Speed up task capture and navigation without touching the mouse. The global hotkey lets you add tasks from anywhere on your computer.

How to use it

View shortcuts in Settings > Shortcuts (desktop apps).
Use the global quick-add hotkey to open the add-task modal while in any other app.
Learn navigation shortcuts (e.g., jump between lists, open search).

Pro tips

Set the global hotkey to something comfortable (e.g., Alt+Space) and practice capturing tasks immediately when they pop up.
Combine with text snippets or clipboard managers for faster templated entries.

10) Integrations, Web Clipper & Automation

Why it’s useful

Connect TickTick to other apps (calendar, Slack, email, Zapier) and use the web clipper to save research, articles and quick notes as tasks.

How to use it

Install the TickTick browser extension (Clipper) to save a webpage as a task or note.
Visit Integrations or API/Automation settings to connect Zapier, Google Calendar, Siri Shortcuts, Alexa, etc.
Create automations like - “New starred email → TickTick task in Inbox” via Zapier.

Pro tips

Use the web clipper to capture links and highlight important text; attach context to the task so you can jump straight into work.
Automate recurring imports (e.g., starred emails, form responses) to reduce manual data entry.

Bonus hidden gems

Location-based reminders - set tasks to alert you when you arrive/leave a place (handy for errands).
Advanced recurring rules - set complex recurrences like “every 2nd Tuesday” or “last weekday of the month.”
Task sharing and comments - collaborate inside a task with assignees and threaded comments.

Wrap-up

TickTick packs a lot more than basic to-do features: when you learn how to combine Smart Lists, Boards, the Focus Timer and templates, you can reduce friction, automate boring work and spend more time doing high-value tasks. Start by picking two features from this list, try them for a week, and you’ll likely find your workflow becomes measurably smoother.

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