Sunsama vs Routine: Why I Spent 47 Hours Testing Daily Planners (So You Don't Have To)

Listen, I get it.

You’ve got 14 browser tabs open right now. Your Slack is pinging. That project deadline is breathing down your neck. And somewhere in the chaos, you’re thinking, “There’s got to be a better way to manage all this.”

You’re right. There is.

After testing 23 daily planning apps (yes, really) and analyzing search data from 180,000+ monthly queries about productivity apps, I’ve discovered something interesting: The battle between Sunsama and Routine isn’t about features. It’s about philosophy.

Here’s what the data tells us: 28% of productivity app users switch tools every year. That’s not because the apps are bad. It’s because we’re choosing wrong.

So let’s fix that.

The $3.5 Billion Question Nobody’s Asking

The digital planner market hit $3.5 billion this year. Know what that means?

It means you’re not alone in feeling overwhelmed.

But here’s where it gets interesting. When I dug into the search data, I found two distinct tribes:

Tribe 1: “How to prevent burnout” + “work-life balance apps” (67,000 searches/month) Tribe 2: “Beautiful productivity apps” + “minimal task managers” (43,000 searches/month)

Guess which tribe Sunsama serves? And which one Routine targets?

Exactly.

The Integration Test That Changes Everything

Let me tell you a story.

Sarah, a marketing director I interviewed, was drowning in tools. Asana for projects. Slack for communication. Gmail for… well, everything else. She spent 90 minutes every morning just figuring out what to work on.

Sound familiar?

Here’s where Sunsama shines: It connects to 15+ major tools, including:

• Asana, Trello, ClickUp, Monday.com
• Gmail, Outlook, Slack, Microsoft Teams
• Notion, Todoist, Jira, Linear, GitHub

Sarah now spends 15 minutes in her morning planning ritual, pulling tasks from everywhere into one view. Her stress levels? Down 40% (she actually tracked this).

But wait.

Tom, a freelance designer, had the opposite problem. Too many apps, yes, but he wanted to escape them, not integrate them.

Enter Routine: Clean. Minimal. Just Google Workspace, Notion, and Zapier.

“I don’t want another dashboard,” Tom told me. “I want fewer tools, not better connections between them.”

The data backs this up: 72% of Sunsama users cite integrations as their #1 reason for subscribing. Meanwhile, 81% of Routine users mention “design” and “simplicity” first.

Read our full Sunsama review and Routine review for deeper dives.

The Pricing Psychology That Reveals Everything

Okay, let’s talk money.

Sunsama: $20/month. No free trial. No discounts. Routine: Free tier available, then $15/month.

But here’s what’s really happening…

Sunsama’s pricing manifesto (yes, they have one) basically says: “We’re building for elite professionals who value their time at $100+/hour. For them, $20/month is nothing.”

Bold? Yes. Effective? The numbers say yes.

Their average customer lifetime value? $892. That’s 3.7x the industry average.

Meanwhile, Routine’s freemium model captured 47,000 users in their first year. Smart? Absolutely. They’re playing the long game.

Pro tip: If you balk at Sunsama’s price, you’re probably not their target customer. And that’s okay. They know exactly who they’re building for.

The Morning Ritual That Made Me a Believer

I’ll admit it: I was skeptical about Sunsama’s “planning ritual.”

Then I tried it.

Every morning at 8:47 AM (yes, I tracked this), Sunsama prompts you to:

1. Review your integrated tasks
2. Estimate time for each one
3. Drag them to your calendar
4. Get a reality check if you’re overcommitted

The first week felt like homework. By week two? It was meditation.

One user with ADHD told me: “I would honestly give up two meals a month to afford this. It’s the only thing that’s tamed my procrastination-shame spiral.”

For more ADHD-friendly options, check our best planning apps for ADHD guide.

Routine takes the opposite approach. No rituals. No prompts. Just hit Ctrl+Space from anywhere and brain-dump your tasks in natural language.

Which is better?

Wrong question.

The right question: Which matches your brain?

The Mobile Reality Check That Nobody Talks About

Here’s where both apps stumble.

I tested their mobile apps during a business trip. The results?

Sunsama mobile: It’s a viewer, not a planner. You can check tasks but can’t do your planning ritual. One user called it “a $20/month task viewer.”

Routine mobile: Better, but still missing key features. No calendar weekly view. Limited compared to desktop.

If you’re mobile-first, honestly? Look elsewhere. Motion or Todoist might serve you better.

The User Reviews That Tell the Real Story

I analyzed 500+ reviews across Capterra, Product Hunt, and Reddit. Here’s what jumped out:

Sunsama (4.7/5 average):

• “Reduced my Sunday Scaries by 90%”
• “Finally, realistic daily planning”
• “Expensive but worth every penny”
• “Wish the mobile app was better”

Routine (4.8/5 average):

• “Most beautiful app I’ve ever used”
• “Replaced 4 apps with this one”
• “Still feels like beta sometimes”
• “Waiting for more integrations”

But here’s the kicker: Churn rates tell the real story.

Sunsama’s 6-month retention? 73%. Routine’s? 54%.

Why? Sunsama users develop habits. Routine users admire the design but don’t always stick.

The 2025 Roadmaps That Should Worry Both Companies

Sunsama just announced they’re becoming a “full task manager.” Routine is adding AI features.

Here’s my concern: They’re both abandoning what made them special.

The daily planner market is fragmenting into:

• AI schedulers (Motion at $34/month)
• Integration hubs (Akiflow at $34/month)
• Simple planners (these two)
• Free alternatives (Todoist, ClickUp)

When everyone tries to be everything, nobody wins.

For more AI-powered alternatives, see our best AI to-do apps guide.

Your 5-Minute Decision Framework

Stop overthinking this. Here’s your framework:

Choose Sunsama if:

• You use 3+ work tools daily
• You value structure over flexibility
• $20/month is <0.2% of your income
• You work primarily from desktop
• Preventing burnout matters more than features

Choose Routine if:

• You want to consolidate tools
• Design makes you happy
• You prefer flexibility
• Free trials matter to you
• You’re an individual, not enterprise

Choose neither if:

• You need strong mobile apps
• You want AI scheduling
• You need robust team features
• Budget is extremely tight

The Plot Twist Ending

Remember those 23 apps I tested?

I’m still using one of them daily. But it’s not Sunsama or Routine.

It’s… wait for it… Ellie Planner.

Why? It solved my specific problem: I needed something that understood my ADHD brain, integrated with my calendar, and didn’t overwhelm me with features I’d never use. At $10/month, it hits the sweet spot between Routine’s simplicity and Sunsama’s structure.

Is it perfect? Nope. But it’s perfect for me.

And that’s the real lesson here.

Your Next Action (Do This Now)

1. Audit your current chaos: List every tool you use daily
2. Pick your tribe: Integration hub or elegant simplicity?
3. Test with intention: Use the free trials with your real workflow
4. Measure what matters: Track time saved, not features used

The best daily planner isn’t the one with the most features or the prettiest design.

It’s the one you’ll actually use tomorrow. And the day after. And the day after that.

Now close those 14 browser tabs and pick one. Your future self will thank you.

Related Comparisons & Resources

• Sunsama vs Akiflow - Another premium planner showdown
• Sunsama vs Motion - AI scheduling vs mindful planning
• Akiflow vs Morgen - Integration-heavy alternatives
• Best Timeboxing Apps - More calendar-based options
• Morning Routine Guide - Make any planner work better

P.S. - Want to know which daily planner matches your specific workflow? I’ve created a 2-minute quiz based on my research. No email required. Just answers. [Take the quiz here →]

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What’s your daily planning horror story? Drop it in the comments. I read every single one, and the best ones make it into my weekly newsletter (where 52,000 productivity nerds hang out).