PRODUCTIVITY APP PRICING GUIDE

General Task Pricing (2026): $5 a Month and a 30-Day Free Trial

General Task is now a hosted app that costs $5 a month, with a 30-day free trial and no card required at signup.

Chris Raroque

Verified

General Task pricing at a glance

As of October 26, 2026, General Task is a hosted subscription at $5 a month. New users get a 30-day free trial with no card at signup.

General Task costs $5 a month with a 30-day free trial and no card at signup; it links tasks and goals to Google Calendar.

General Task costs $5 a month after a 30-day free trial, with no card needed to sign up.

Plan

Current price

Best for

General Task (hosted)

$5 per month

Planning tasks and goals around Google Calendar

Free trial

30 days, no card at signup

Trying the full app before paying

Free software is not the same as a free hosted service. General Task removes the subscription fee but shifts operational responsibility to you.

What changed in 2026

Earlier in 2026, General Task was only available as free, open-source software you had to host yourself. The current site sells a hosted version for $5 a month with a 30-day free trial, built around goals, recurring tasks, notes and Google Calendar. If you read an older guide that says General Task is free and self-hosted, it is out of date.

What does ‘free’ mean for General Task?

You can use and modify the open-source project without a subscription. You still need the technical ability and infrastructure to run it, connect accounts, keep it updated, and recover it if something breaks.

Is General Task worth the price?

General Task is compelling when control and inspectable code matter more than convenience. It is a poor fit when you want to create an account and immediately trust someone else to run the service.

Ellie the hamster at a desk with a lamp, laptop and mug

General Task is probably worth it if…

  • You are comfortable self-hosting and maintaining developer tools

  • You want GitHub, Linear or Jira, Slack, and Google Calendar in one planning view

  • Open source and local control matter more than polished consumer onboarding

General Task may not be worth it if…

  • You want a managed app with support, backups, and automatic updates

  • You rely on an integration General Task does not provide

  • Mobile and tablet polish are central to your workflow

The planning model earned fans. Losing the hosted app changed the audience.

Early Product Hunt reviewers liked the four-column planning flow and calendar time blocks. The main criticism is practical: missing integrations and a shift to self-hosting make the product inaccessible to many nontechnical users.

Review snapshot checked July 23, 2026: General Task’s Product Hunt page showed 4.2/5 from five reviews. Quotes link to the public launch page. Illustrated avatars are generated from reviewer names and are not claimed likenesses.

Alternatives if General Task is not the right fit

The closest alternative depends on whether you valued open source, integrations, or the planning layout.

Your real need

Try

Why it may fit better

A managed visual daily planner

Ellie

No server maintenance, with a 7-day free trial

A low-cost all-in-one planner

Routine

Calendar, tasks, notes, and AI without self-hosting

A mature task manager

Todoist

Broad platform support and reliable hosted sync

Ellie is our product. It is the practical choice when you liked General Task’s visual day but do not want to operate the software. General Task is the more flexible choice for developers who specifically want open source and self-hosting.

What General Task includes

General Task homepage: "Tasks are cheap. Time is not." with goals linked to Google Calendar

generaltask.com, captured October 26, 2026.

  • Four-column daily planning workflow

  • Calendar time blocking and focus mode

  • GitHub pull request visibility

  • Linear, Jira, Slack, and Google Calendar integrations

  • Open-source code that can be inspected and modified

The hidden cost is operations

Hosting

A local install may be nearly free, while an always-on server has its own monthly cost. Add the infrastructure cost to your comparison.

Maintenance

Self-hosting means you own upgrades, secrets, backups, uptime, and integration breakage. That time is part of the real price.

No student plan needed

There is no paid subscription to discount. Students can use the open-source project if they can meet the setup requirements.

Frequently asked questions

Is General Task free?

Not anymore. General Task costs $5 a month after a 30-day free trial.

Does General Task have a hosted plan?

Yes. General Task is now a hosted app at $5 a month; you sign up and log in rather than run it yourself.

What does self-hosted mean?

You run the software yourself and handle setup, updates, backups, integrations, security, and uptime.

Is General Task still a good consumer to-do app?

Only for technically comfortable users. People who want an app-store download and managed sync should consider a hosted alternative.

What is the closest General Task alternative?

For a visual managed day planner, Ellie or Routine are closer. For a mature task system, Todoist is the safer hosted option.

Does General Task have a free trial?

Yes. General Task offers 30 days free with no card at signup, then costs $5 a month.

Sources and methodology

Product status and pricing were checked October 26, 2026 against General Task’s official site and public Product Hunt launch. The guide treats self-hosting labor as a real cost without assigning it an invented dollar amount.

General Task pricing at a glance

As of October 26, 2026, General Task is a hosted subscription at $5 a month. New users get a 30-day free trial with no card at signup.

General Task costs $5 a month with a 30-day free trial and no card at signup; it links tasks and goals to Google Calendar.

General Task costs $5 a month after a 30-day free trial, with no card needed to sign up.

Plan

Current price

Best for

General Task (hosted)

$5 per month

Planning tasks and goals around Google Calendar

Free trial

30 days, no card at signup

Trying the full app before paying

Free software is not the same as a free hosted service. General Task removes the subscription fee but shifts operational responsibility to you.

What changed in 2026

Earlier in 2026, General Task was only available as free, open-source software you had to host yourself. The current site sells a hosted version for $5 a month with a 30-day free trial, built around goals, recurring tasks, notes and Google Calendar. If you read an older guide that says General Task is free and self-hosted, it is out of date.

What does ‘free’ mean for General Task?

You can use and modify the open-source project without a subscription. You still need the technical ability and infrastructure to run it, connect accounts, keep it updated, and recover it if something breaks.

Is General Task worth the price?

General Task is compelling when control and inspectable code matter more than convenience. It is a poor fit when you want to create an account and immediately trust someone else to run the service.

Ellie the hamster at a desk with a lamp, laptop and mug

General Task is probably worth it if…

  • You are comfortable self-hosting and maintaining developer tools

  • You want GitHub, Linear or Jira, Slack, and Google Calendar in one planning view

  • Open source and local control matter more than polished consumer onboarding

General Task may not be worth it if…

  • You want a managed app with support, backups, and automatic updates

  • You rely on an integration General Task does not provide

  • Mobile and tablet polish are central to your workflow

The planning model earned fans. Losing the hosted app changed the audience.

Early Product Hunt reviewers liked the four-column planning flow and calendar time blocks. The main criticism is practical: missing integrations and a shift to self-hosting make the product inaccessible to many nontechnical users.

Review snapshot checked July 23, 2026: General Task’s Product Hunt page showed 4.2/5 from five reviews. Quotes link to the public launch page. Illustrated avatars are generated from reviewer names and are not claimed likenesses.

Alternatives if General Task is not the right fit

The closest alternative depends on whether you valued open source, integrations, or the planning layout.

Your real need

Try

Why it may fit better

A managed visual daily planner

Ellie

No server maintenance, with a 7-day free trial

A low-cost all-in-one planner

Routine

Calendar, tasks, notes, and AI without self-hosting

A mature task manager

Todoist

Broad platform support and reliable hosted sync

Ellie is our product. It is the practical choice when you liked General Task’s visual day but do not want to operate the software. General Task is the more flexible choice for developers who specifically want open source and self-hosting.

What General Task includes

General Task homepage: "Tasks are cheap. Time is not." with goals linked to Google Calendar

generaltask.com, captured October 26, 2026.

  • Four-column daily planning workflow

  • Calendar time blocking and focus mode

  • GitHub pull request visibility

  • Linear, Jira, Slack, and Google Calendar integrations

  • Open-source code that can be inspected and modified

The hidden cost is operations

Hosting

A local install may be nearly free, while an always-on server has its own monthly cost. Add the infrastructure cost to your comparison.

Maintenance

Self-hosting means you own upgrades, secrets, backups, uptime, and integration breakage. That time is part of the real price.

No student plan needed

There is no paid subscription to discount. Students can use the open-source project if they can meet the setup requirements.

Frequently asked questions

Is General Task free?

Not anymore. General Task costs $5 a month after a 30-day free trial.

Does General Task have a hosted plan?

Yes. General Task is now a hosted app at $5 a month; you sign up and log in rather than run it yourself.

What does self-hosted mean?

You run the software yourself and handle setup, updates, backups, integrations, security, and uptime.

Is General Task still a good consumer to-do app?

Only for technically comfortable users. People who want an app-store download and managed sync should consider a hosted alternative.

What is the closest General Task alternative?

For a visual managed day planner, Ellie or Routine are closer. For a mature task system, Todoist is the safer hosted option.

Does General Task have a free trial?

Yes. General Task offers 30 days free with no card at signup, then costs $5 a month.

Sources and methodology

Product status and pricing were checked October 26, 2026 against General Task’s official site and public Product Hunt launch. The guide treats self-hosting labor as a real cost without assigning it an invented dollar amount.

Plan a day that can breathe

Ellie keeps tasks beside your calendar, so you can see your real capacity before the day fills up.

Ellie web app with Brain Dump, a three-day task board and Timebox
Ellie the hamster holding a flag with a check mark