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Tokify vs Toggl
Looking for a free, open-source alternative to Toggl on your Mac? Here’s an honest look at how Tokify differs.
| Tokify | Toggl | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free plan + paid tiers |
| Account | None required | Account required |
| Works offline | Yes, fully | Apps cache data; syncs to cloud |
| Your data | Plain-text ~/.tock.txt | Cloud account (exportable) |
| Open source | Yes (GPL-3.0) | Proprietary |
| Platform | macOS menu bar | Cross-platform (web, iOS, Android, Mac, Windows) |
What Toggl is good at
Toggl Track is one of the most polished time trackers available. It has a generous free plan, well-designed apps on every platform (web, iOS, Android, Mac, Windows), and strong team features like shared projects, dashboards, and reporting. Its cross-platform availability is a real advantage if you switch between devices or work with a team — and it has been refined over many years. If those things matter to you, Toggl is a genuinely excellent choice.
Where Tokify is different
Tokify is a native macOS menu bar app, free and open source under GPL-3.0. It does not require an account — you install it, click the icon, type what you’re working on, and press Start.
The other main difference is where data lives. Toggl stores your time entries in the cloud (and lets you export them). With Tokify, your history is always a plain-text file at ~/.tock.txt on your own Mac — no database, no lock-in. Sync is optional, and when you turn it on, activities are end-to-end encrypted before they leave your machine.
Which should you pick?
If you want a well-established, cross-platform service with great team features and apps everywhere, Toggl is a strong fit. If you’re a Mac user who prefers a calm, offline-first tracker with no account and data you fully own, that’s where Tokify is different.
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/relegate-to/tokify/main/install.sh | shFree · Open source (GPL-3.0) · macOS 11+ · No account required