Migrating from Omnifocus to Reminders

calendarNov 25, 2019 · 2 min read · apple  ·
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The iOS 13/Catalina upgrade to Reminders made it ready for prime time for those without extremely complex projects and views in Omnifocus. I made the switch right after I upgraded to Catalina, and I haven't had any problems reviewing or completing tasks.

Migrating isn't a smooth process, but I have an Apple script that made it easier.

Overview

Edit the tasks so that they are the way you want them.

Imported Tasks

Imported Tasks

Edit the task.

Edit the task.

Export Your Tasks

Export a list of tasks from a project into a text file by selecting the tasks in Omnifocus and copying them into a plain text file.  I named my file Tasks.txt. You change the name but make sure to change it in the script as well.

Select tasks

Select tasks

Paste tasks into text

Paste tasks into text

Create the Import Script

  1. Open Script Editor
  2. Paste in the code from my GitHub site.
  3. Edit the path to the tasks text file in the Script
  4. Save the Script.

Reminder import

Reminder import script.

Import tasks into Reminders

  1. Run the AppleScript to import them into your Reminders inbox
  2. Check your reminders Inbox folder for the imported tasks.
  3. From here you can move the tasks to the desired folder/list.
  4. You can also edit the tasks and add information and links to them.

Run the script

Run the script

Imported Tasks

Imported Tasks

Edit the tasks.

Edit the tasks.

Move the tasks into the desired list.

    You can click and drag them to another list

    or

    Select, Right-click and edit them to assign them to another list.

Repeat the loop

  1. Delete the imported tasks from the tasks.txt file
  2. Now repeat the copy/import/process list for each Omnifocus project.

Clean Up Loose ends

Before you finish there are a few potential gotchas to check for.

  1. Check Omnifocus for scheduled tasks that might not have been visible in the view you used to review them. I recommend the Project view which should get you everything.
  2. Replace Omnifocus with Reminders on you phone toolbar and Mac Dock if you have them there. Out of site , out of mind.
  3. Don't delete tasks from Omnifocus until you are sure that Reminders works for you. I'd wait 2 weeks to a month before deleting anything. That way you can go back to Omnifocus if you change your mind.