What each app is for
Structured is a visual day planner. Its main screen is a vertical timeline: every task, calendar event and routine sits in order, with its length drawn to scale. You drag things around, capture loose ideas in an inbox, and see at a glance what is now, what is next and how much of the day is left. It is time-blocking made friendly.
Orbit is a routine runner. It has no timeline and no calendar. It holds one routine — a morning, a shutdown, a wind-down — and walks you through it one step at a time, with the current step on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island.
Put simply: Structured decides when things happen. Orbit gets you through the sequence once it has started.
Side by side
| Structured | Orbit | |
|---|---|---|
| Made by | unorderly GmbH, Germany | Aron de Groot (Groot Apps), Netherlands |
| Apple devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch | iPhone only |
| Minimum iOS (checked 27 Sep 2026) | 18 | 26 |
| Languages | 28 | English |
| Download | Free, with a free tier | Free, with a free trial |
| Paid tier | Structured Pro: monthly, yearly or lifetime | Orbit Pro: weekly, yearly or lifetime |
| Core object | The day, as a timeline | One routine |
| Calendar integration | Yes (Pro) | No |
| AI planning | Yes (Pro) | No |
| Walks you through a routine step by step | Not its focus; routines appear as timeline blocks | Yes, as the main function |
| Live Activities and widgets | Yes | Yes |
| Missed days | "Replan" moves missed tasks (Pro) | Streak freezes rescue a streak when you return |
| Account required | Optional, for sync | No |
| US ratings (10 Sep 2026) | 4.8 from 165,550 | New — released 30 Aug 2026 |
Platform facts are from each app's App Store listing, checked on 10 September 2026.
The short verdict
For running a routine, pick Orbit. It walks you through the sequence one step at a time, keeps the current step on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island, offers a streak freeze to rescue a streak after missed days, and needs no account.
Structured is stronger at things Orbit does not do: a timeline of the whole day, apps for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch, a generous free tier, and scale.
This page is written by the maker of Orbit; both lists below are specific so you can check them.
Where Orbit is genuinely better
It runs the routine, not just the slot. A timeline block that says "Morning routine, 7:00–7:45" still leaves you to work out the steps inside it, in order, while half asleep. Orbit holds those steps and hands them to you one at a time — which is where ADHD mornings actually fall apart, as the morning routine guide explains.
Forgiving streaks. You earn a streak freeze for every five days in a row, and when you come back after a miss, Orbit offers to rescue the streak. Nothing is lost for not opening the app on a bad day.
No account, no data leaving the phone. Routines stay on the device, with optional private iCloud sync.
Less to maintain. A planner rewards daily tending: capture, sort, drag, replan. On a good week that is a strength; on a bad week the plan goes stale and becomes a reproach. Orbit asks for nothing between routines.
Where Structured is genuinely better
It shows you the whole day. For time blindness, a timeline with lengths drawn to scale is one of the most effective tools there is. You can see that the gap before your 2 pm call is forty minutes, not "a while". Orbit cannot show you that.
It works everywhere you do. iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch, in 28 languages. Orbit is iPhone-only and English-only.
A generous free tier. The timeline, inbox, Pomodoro timer, Live Activities and widgets are free. Orbit has a free trial and then costs money.
Scale and polish. With more than 165,000 US ratings, Structured is one of the most widely used planners on the App Store, and it shows in the polish.
Who should pick which
- You lose track of the day and miss things: Structured.
- You need calendar events and tasks in one view: Structured.
- You use a Mac or iPad all day: Structured.
- You know the steps of your morning but can't get through them: Orbit.
- Planners work for a week and then you stop opening them: Orbit, or both.
Using both together
This is the pairing many people with ADHD end up with. Structured holds the day: appointments, deadlines, a block for the morning routine. Orbit runs what happens inside the blocks that matter most. When the "Morning" block starts on your Structured timeline, you tap once and Orbit takes over the steps. The two apps barely overlap, and neither tries to do the other's job.
For a broader look at the options, see the best Structured alternatives, or planner vs routine app vs to-do list if you are not sure which kind of tool you need.