Researchers managing papers, citations, and literature reviewneed tools that keep up with their workflow. Here's how Melo and Todoist compare for this specific use case.
What researchers need from a productivity tool
Researchers deal with papers, citations, and literature review daily. The ideal tool for this workflow needs to be fast (no waiting for pages to load), flexible (different projects require different layouts), and smart (AI that understands your specific context). Privacy matters too — researchers often handle sensitive information.
Dozens of browser tabs open with journal articles and no way to organize them
Literature review notes disconnected from the papers they reference
AI tools that summarize without understanding your research context
Collaborative tools that put sensitive unpublished research on someone else's server
Todoist for researchers
Cross-platform task management with natural language input. While Todoist is a capable tool, researchers often find it limiting when they need to work with multiple content types simultaneously. Todoist's approach works for generic use cases, but the specific demands of papers, citations, and literature review require more flexibility.
Melo
Todoist
Scope
Spatial workspace — tasks in context with notes, AI, and web
Task management with basic project organization
AI
Full AI assistant with workspace context
AI-assisted task suggestions (limited)
Workspace
Spatial canvas — arrange everything visually
List-based task views with boards option
Platform
Mac-native with deep macOS integration
Cross-platform web app
Pricing
One-time purchase
Free tier + subscription for Pro features
Why researchers pick Melo
Open a journal article in one tile, your notes in another, and AI chat to help you synthesize findings. Melo's spatial layout lets you visually map relationships between papers. All data stays local — your unpublished research never touches a cloud server.
For researchersspecifically, Melo's spatial canvas means you can design a workspace that mirrors how you think about papers, citations, and literature review. Tile your key documents, tasks, web references, and AI chat on one board. Switch between project contexts by switching boards. Everything stays local, fast, and private.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I import my data from Todoist?
Melo supports common import formats. While there's no one-click migration from Todoist, you can export your data and bring it into Melo's workspace. The spatial canvas also makes it easy to start fresh — many users prefer building a new spatial workflow from scratch.
How do researchers use Melo differently?
Researchers typically create boards organized around their papers, citations, and literature review. They tile relevant documents, tasks, web references, and AI chat specific to their workflow. The spatial layout lets them design a workspace that matches how they naturally think about their work.
What does Melo do that Todoist doesn't?
Melo's key differentiators are the spatial canvas (tile any content type side by side), workspace-aware AI (sees your entire board, not just one document), and local-first architecture (instant performance, true privacy). Most traditional tools focus on one paradigm — Melo combines notes, tasks, AI, web, and calendar in one spatial environment.
Is Melo free?
Melo is a one-time purchase — no subscriptions, no recurring fees. Pay once and own it forever. There's no free tier, but you get the full product with a single purchase.
Is my data private with Melo?
Yes. Melo is local-first, meaning your data lives on your Mac by default. Nothing is uploaded to external servers unless you explicitly use AI features, which send only the necessary context and don't persist your data.