Onward combines task management, a capacity-aware interface, and wellness routines in one product, so that doing the work and sustaining the ability to do it aren't tracked in two different places. The short version of that idea is How Onward works.
Create an account
- Start a free trial from keeponward.com/pricing — 14 days, with a payment method required at signup.
- Complete onboarding: workspace name, goals, and optional invites.
- Open the web app at app.keeponward.com. iOS and Android apps are also available.
- Welcome is the checklist after signup. Open it again anytime from your avatar menu. See Welcome.
Where everything lives
| Area | What it's for |
|---|---|
| My Tasks | Your task list, board, and calendar views |
| Plan My Day | Commit to up to five tasks for today |
| Calendar | Day timeline — Google events read in, plus Onward focus blocks and breaks |
| Your Wellness | Mood, habits, mindfulness, and your trend charts |
| Team Health | Team-level signals, in multi-member workspaces |
| Projects | Client and initiative groupings, in the sidebar |
Settings isn't in the sidebar. Press ⌘K and type "Settings", use your avatar, or More → Settings on mobile. ⌘K is also the fastest way to reach anything else — see Search and navigation.
Your first week
The features that make Onward different need a few days of data before they do anything useful. This order gets you there quickly.
Day 1 — get your work in
Add your real tasks on My Tasks, and group them into projects by client or initiative. Don't try to model everything perfectly; a rough structure you actually use beats a precise one you abandon.
Set your Timezone in Settings → Profile while you're here. It determines when "today" starts for due dates, plans, and routines.
Day 2 — plan before you work
Open Plan My Day and pick up to five tasks, with the most important in slot 1. Finishing five is a full day. The point isn't to do more — it's to know, by 9am, what would make the day count.
Day 3 — turn on routines
Enable the morning and shutdown routines in Settings → Routines. They're short, and they're what quietly collect the mood and energy data everything else builds on. Keep them under a few minutes so you'll actually do them daily.
Day 4 — run a focus session
Try focus mode: pick a project, choose 60 minutes, and — before you start — write down what break you'll take. The break being decided in advance is the part that makes it work.
Day 5 — let the interface adapt
Log your energy in the morning, then notice what the adaptive interface does. On a low day it shows one task at a time; on a high day, everything. You can override it in the header whenever you want, and Off disables it entirely.
End of week 1 — read the trends
Open Your Wellness. With a week of check-ins, cards like How you felt vs what you shipped start showing real patterns. Give it two weeks before drawing firm conclusions.
If you're bringing a team
- Invite members from Settings → Workspaces. Billing is $12 per seat per month, and every seat gets the full product — there are no feature tiers.
- Build a couple of shared saved views so "ready for review" means the same thing to everyone.
- Point your team at Settings → Privacy so each person chooses their own Team Health sharing level. Making that genuinely optional is what keeps the data honest.
- Team Health appears once your workspace has more than one active member.
Settings worth bookmarking
- Settings → Workspaces — switch workspaces, invite members
- Settings → Subscription — billing, when you manage it
- Settings → Integrations — Google Calendar
- Settings → Routines — morning and shutdown configuration
- Settings → Privacy — sharing level, data export
- Settings → Help — chat with support
Common questions
Do I need a credit card for the trial?
Yes. The 14-day trial requires a payment method at signup. Cancel before it ends and you won't be charged.
What does Onward cost?
$12 per seat per month. There's one plan with full app access — no feature-gated tiers.
What's the single best thing to set up first?
Your timezone, then a real task list. Everything time-based — due dates, daily plans, routines, the weekly snapshot — depends on the timezone being right.
Do I have to use the wellness features?
No. Onward works as a straightforward task manager, and the adaptive interface can be switched Off entirely. The wellness side is there when you want it.
Is there a mobile app?
Yes, for iOS and Android, plus the mobile web app. A few task workflows are simplified on small screens — see Mobile web and apps.
How do I import tasks from another tool?
Onward doesn't currently offer a self-serve importer. Contact support and tell us which tool you're coming from.