The Reminders app from Apple has evolved from a simple checklist into a comprehensive task management tool, especially with the enhancements brought by the latest iOS 18 updates. Here are seven advanced features that every power user should explore.
#1: Sections within lists
While lists benefit from titles, they can be even more effective with subheadings.
Thankfully, you can create these subheadings through a feature called ‘Sections’ in Apple’s Reminders app.
To add a section, open your list and tap the three dots located in the upper-right corner, then select ‘New Section’ from the menu.
Sections allow you to arrange tasks into distinct categories. Although the actual task metadata remains unchanged, sections help visually separate different reminders.
Once you’ve established your sections, you can easily drag and drop tasks into the appropriate subheadings.
#2: Column view
Speaking of organization, the Reminders app also provides a Trello-like column view for your tasks.
If you find that a long, continuous list can become cumbersome, simply tap the three-dot icon and select ‘View as List.’
Even if you do not have any sections set up yet, this view might still appear almost identical. However, when sections are in place, the column view presents those sections side-by-side, offering a visual aid that makes moving tasks between sections a breeze.
#3: Location-triggered reminders
One of my all-time favorite features in Reminders is the option to receive notifications when I reach a specific location, like my home.
Typically, I use Siri for this by simply saying, “Remind me to do X when I arrive at home.”
Alternatively, you can access a reminder’s details by tapping the ‘i’ button and setting up a location-based alert from there.
#4: List sharing and task assignment
With Reminders, you can easily share your lists for collaborative efforts. Unlike some task managers that charge for this feature, Apple provides it to all users without any additional cost.
After setting up a shared list, you can assign individual tasks to your team members, notifying them of their responsibilities. This division of tasks fosters clarity and accountability in joint projects.
#5: Templates
For many users, certain projects involve a repeatable set of tasks.
In such cases, Reminders offers a Template feature.
Templates are essentially saved lists of reminders that you can easily access and reuse in the future.
If you frequently manage a similar set of tasks, you can convert that list into a template, allowing you to create a new list from it with minimal effort.
To save a list as a template, open it, tap the three dots in the corner, and select ‘Save as Template.’
#6: Smart Lists
Initially, when Reminders introduced Smart Lists, users had limited control over them. Thankfully, Apple has since enhanced this feature significantly.
When you create a new list, you can now change its type to ‘Smart List.’ This allows you to customize the list to include tasks based on seven different criteria:
- Tags
- Date
- Time
- Location
- Flag
- Priority
- and Lists
Your Smart List can be tailored to use ‘any’ or ‘all’ of these criteria, providing the flexibility to build the precise list that meets your requirements.
While I personally don’t utilize tagging, it’s a valuable feature for many advanced users managing tasks or files. Reminders fully supports tagging.
If categorizing tasks into lists and sections isn’t sufficient for your needs, you can introduce tags and create a Smart List based on the tags you wish to include or exclude.
What are some of your favorite advanced features in Apple’s Reminders app? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
