Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q. How can I learn to use Addness?

The Getting Started guide covers the 4 basic steps and 12 ways to use Addness.

All help articles are also published in an AI-readable format ( https://www.addness.com/llms.txt ). This page collects the questions that come up often.

About basic concepts

Q. What's the difference between a "goal" and a "to-do"?

A to-do is a goal you've decided to "do now." The "＋" at the start of a row in the "All ToDos" modal, opened with "See all ToDos", adds the goal to "ToDos". One-off work that comes to mind is also created as a goal first and then put into ToDos.

Q. Is there a phone or computer (Mac, Windows) app?

Yes. If you're on iPhone, try the iOS app; on a computer (Mac or Windows), Addness Desktop. You can also use it straight from a web browser. What only the desktop app can do (personal LINE integration, voice input, and requests from your phone to the AI on your computer) and which computers are supported are summarized in Web app and desktop app.

Q. Where on the goal page do my goals appear?

Your goal tree appears in the "All ToDos" modal, opened with "See all ToDos" on the goal page. A row with a due date gets a "Today," "◯ days left," or "◯ days overdue" badge at the right end. Past-due items are shown in red, and items due within 3 days from today in orange. Rows with no due date yet get no badge.

Q. Where should I put tomorrow's to-dos?

Leave things you won't do now out of your ToDos. Instead, set the due date to tomorrow: today the row's badge shows "1 day left" in orange, and tomorrow it changes to "Today." A due date doesn't add the goal to your ToDos automatically, so add it with the "＋" at the start of the row on that day (→ How ToDos work).

Sticking points in use

Q. Can I create two top-level goals? (I want to add another top goal or swap it for a different one)

No. There is only one top goal per organization. You can't create a second one, and "Move to root" in "Change Parent Goal" can't move another goal to the top either. Depending on what you want to do:

• Keep things separate, such as work and personal life: Put them under the top goal, or use separate organizations (→ Getting started as an organization)
• Change the top-level objective: Rewrite the top goal's title and ideal. To keep what was there before, create it as a child goal underneath

Q. I want to remove something from ToDos (I added it by mistake)

On a PC, remove it with the "−" that appears when you hover over the row in ToDos. On a phone, choose "Remove from ToDos" from the row's "…". Removing it doesn't delete the goal itself; it stays in "All ToDos."

Q. The due date is today, but it doesn't show up in ToDos

Even when the due date arrives, the goal isn't added to ToDos automatically. The due date only lets you know through the badge at the right end of the row ("Today," "◯ days left," "◯ days overdue"). When you're going to do it now, press the "＋" at the start of the row in the list opened with "See all ToDos" (→ How ToDos work).

Q. Do unfinished ToDos carry over to the next day?

Yes. What you put in ToDos stays there on the following days until you complete it or remove it with "−". You don't need to pick them again every morning. Completed ToDos stay visible in the list on the day you complete them and disappear from the next day (4 a.m. in the organization's time zone) (→ What happens when the date changes?).

Q. My custom widget stays at "Preparing" or "Review required" and doesn't work

The feature for building your own widgets is still in development and doesn't work yet. On the current screen, custom widgets you've placed show "Custom widgets are in development" (previously they showed "Preparing. Available in the next update" or "Review required"). There's nothing for you to approve or fix. The ready-made widgets you can choose from "Add widget" work.

Q. How do I create daily to-dos (routines)?

You don't need to type them in by hand each time. Use the "Routines" on the templates page. Make the chunk of work you want to repeat into a template and decide the destination parent goal, the rhythm (daily / weekly by weekday / monthly by date or month-end), and the assignee, and the full template set is added automatically that day (→ Templates page).

Q. Where did the "recurring goals" I set before go?

They migrated to routines. The migrated settings can be checked and edited on the templates page's "Routines" tab.

Q. I've lost track of how to operate it

The "?" (Operation guide) in the heading of the "All ToDos" modal has a list of what the icons mean, click operations, and keyboard operations. If you still don't know, just ask your MCP-connected AI directly.

About permissions and teams

Q. Can it be used by a team?

Yes. Invite members from "Invite" on the members list page, and you can share the same goal tree as a team (only organization admins can create invite links; people who aren't admins see "Request in DM" and can ask an admin). Set an owner, editors, and members per goal to proceed while keeping responsibilities clear.

Q. What kinds of goal permissions are there?

There are three: "owner," "editor," and "member." The owner can do all operations, the editor can edit the goal, and the member can only view and comment.

Q. Will my goals be visible to everyone in the organization?

No. Only people assigned as owner, editor, or member to that goal or one of its higher goals can see it. A goal you're not assigned to isn't shown in the tree or search even to members of the same organization.

Q. What happens to sub-goal permissions?

A higher goal's permissions are inherited by the lower goals (sub-goals). For example, if you're set as "editor" on the parent goal, you're automatically "editor" on the sub-goals below it too.

Q. Which account should we sign up with when using Addness at a company?

Sign up with your company email address (such as your company Google account) from the start. You can't switch a personal account to a company account later, and the goals you own and your completion history don't move to the new account. If you've already started with a personal account, rejoin the organization with your company account, set the goals back to incomplete for now, reassign their owners, and then complete them again.

Q. I use Addness both personally and at my company. Won't the AI look at organizations other than my company's?

The AI connection is tied to the organization you chose when connecting. However, the AI can switch to other organizations you belong to and read them. There's no setting that locks the AI to your company's organization only. If you want to keep personal and company use clearly separate, sign in with separate accounts (email addresses) (→ Security and data handling).

Q. "Organization settings" doesn't show up

Only organization admins can open Organization settings (General, Members, Plan and billing, Usage, Integrations, Meeting notes bot, Network). Admins see "Organization settings" in the menu of their own icon at the bottom left and in "More" → "Other features." If it doesn't show, check with your admin. Your own profile, notifications, display and language, and so on can be changed in My Settings, which everyone can use (→ My Settings).

About AI

Q. What can AI do?

Your usual MCP-connected AI (Claude Code, Codex, ChatGPT, etc.) reads your Addness goals and moves the work forward. Choose "Work on it" from "Ask AI" on a goal row, and the AI decides what to do next from the gap between the ideal and the current state, creating child goals as needed as it goes. Choose "Brainstorm" to sort out your thinking and child goals while talking with the AI. Choose "Ask," and the AI only reads the goal and answers your question without changing the goal. The AI also updates the ideal, records things in the body, comments, and so on (→ Goal page).

Q. The AI stopped partway and asked me to check something. Do I have to do the rest myself?

No. Answer the AI's question, or send "continue" in the same conversation, and the AI carries on. If you closed the conversation, press "Ask AI" → "Work on it" on the goal again; the AI rereads the goal's body and child goals and continues the remaining work. The AI stops when there's an operation that needs permission (AI app permissions, sending, deleting, etc.), a choice for you to make, or something for you to check (→ Goal page: "When the AI stops and asks you to check something").

Q. Where did Addy in the bottom right go?

The places to talk with Addy inside the app's screens ("Ask Addy," the goal's AI chat, the chat in today's ToDos, and so on) were removed in September 2026. What you used to ask there (creating, breaking down, working on, or discussing goals) you now ask your usual AI connected via MCP (Claude Code, Codex, ChatGPT) from "Ask AI" on a goal row. Addy itself (the AI that runs inside Addness) is still available as the AI of the LINE Official Account, in goal review suggestions ("Addy has a proposal"), and in Addy Unlimited mode.

Q. The connection between the AI and Addness keeps dropping. I'm asked to sign in again and again

The connection to Addness expires after 90 days. It drops earlier than 90 days when you reconnect from the same AI app (the previous connection is cut) and when one person has more than 20 connections (the connection unused the longest is cut first). When it drops, ask the AI to "sign in to Addness again" and press "Allow" in the browser (→ MCP integration: "Sign-in doesn't proceed / the connection drops").

Q. Pressing "Open in Codex" or "Open in Claude Code" doesn't open the app

That AI's app (the Codex app or the Claude app) needs to be installed on your computer. When you're using the browser and the app didn't open, you see "◯◯ didn't open." Install the app, or press the "Copy instruction" that appears, then paste it to the AI and send it (→ Install an AI app and connect it to Addness).

Q. What happens if AI tokens run short?

These tokens are the allowance for Addness's built-in AI (AI minutes, transcription, etc.); running short doesn't affect use from MCP-connected Claude Code or Codex. Tokens are granted monthly. You can check the next grant timing in Organization settings › Usage. If you can't wait for the grant, upgrading your plan increases your allowance. On Focus and Unlimited, turning on Addy Unlimited mode lets you keep using it beyond the limit (the excess is added to your next bill based on usage). Starter doesn't include this allowance (→ Plans and billing).

Q. I want to check this month's usage amount

To check this month's usage amount, use the place where you subscribed (there's a slight lag before it reflects). For a per-member cost estimate, you can also check it in Organization settings › Usage's "View details by member."

About notifications

Q. There are too many notifications

At the top of the notifications page, narrow to "Unread" and choose "Mentions" under "Type" to clear the mentions addressed to you first. If you get many notifications about what happens under your goals (everyone's activity), you can reduce them by changing "Everyone's activity" in the gear's "Notification settings" to "Only goals where you're the owner" or "Off" (notifications to you and overdue alerts always arrive). For details, see the Notifications article.

Q. I want to turn off only customer list notifications

In the gear's "Notification settings" on the notification list, or in "Notification types you receive" under My Settings › Notifications, turn off "Customers." Notifications of a type you turn off don't arrive in the notification list, by email, in Slack, or as push notifications. Other types (mentions, comments, goals, and so on) can be turned off per type in the same place (→ Notifications: "Changing how you receive notifications").

Q. I want to mark notifications as read in bulk

Press "Select multiple" at the top right of the notification list, select notifications, and press "Mark as Read." You can select up to 20 at a time. To mark all unread ones as read, check "Select all" in the "Unread" view, then press "Mark as Read" (→ Notifications: "Marking notifications as read").

Q. I can't find older notifications

Notifications are deleted after 180 days. Notifications for mentions addressed to you remain.

Q. Can I receive notifications in Slack?

Yes (available on the Focus and Unlimited plans). First, an organization admin connects the Slack workspace in Organization settings › Integrations. After that, each member turns on "Slack Notifications" under "Delivery channels" in My Settings › Notifications, and Addness notifications arrive in Slack too.

About plans and pricing

Q. What's the difference between plans?

There are four plans: Starter, Pro, Focus, and Unlimited. Starter is the lowest-priced plan. For the price, check what's shown on the plan selection screen. The main differences are the usage allowance for Addness's built-in AI, plus the number of meeting notes bot runs, screen recordings, routines, storage capacity, and how much of the usage report you can see (use of MCP-connected Claude Code or Codex runs on the AI's own contract, unrelated to this allowance). For details, see the Plans and billing article.

Q. Do we also need a Claude or ChatGPT subscription besides Addness?

Separately from Addness, each person who hands work to AI needs a subscription on the AI side (Claude or ChatGPT). Not everyone needs one, only the people who ask AI. Members who only work through their to-dos, view goals, comment, or chat can use Addness with just the Addness subscription (→ Install an AI app and connect it to Addness).

Q. Can I use it for free?

There's no free plan for newly started organizations. Monthly Pro, Focus, and Unlimited subscriptions include a 7-day free trial when eligible, such as on a first subscription. Starter, the lowest-priced plan, is monthly only, with no trial.

Q. When is there no free trial?

In any of the following cases, payment starts without a trial.

• You sign up for Starter
• The organization has subscribed at least once before (including subscribing again after canceling)
• The same email address or payment method has already been used for a subscription or trial in another organization
• You sign up for annual billing

Q. Can I cancel during the trial?

Yes. If you cancel by the day before the trial end date, you won't be charged, and the trial ends free of charge on its end date. The steps are the same as canceling (below). Annual has no trial.

Q. If I change plans during the trial, will I be charged right away?

Just changing the plan doesn't start billing; at the end of the trial, you're billed for the plan you changed to. Switching to annual billing ends the trial that day.

Q. How is the billed headcount decided?

You're billed for the members who count as seats. When you invite someone and a seat is added, the prorated amount up to the next renewal date is billed right away. Members you remove are reflected from the next renewal. This works the same for monthly and annual billing (some plans started before September 2026 are billed by the highest member count that month). Only the organization's regular members (people) count toward seats; guests, external members, people you shared a goal with outside the organization, and AI don't count.

Q. If I create a second organization, is it charged separately?

Yes. Subscriptions are per organization, and each organization is charged for its headcount. When you subscribe a second organization with the same email address or payment method, there's no free trial. If you only want to separate businesses or teams, you can split goals under the top goal within one organization and divide who sees what through assignments (→ Permissions and member management: "Who can see what").

Q. I want to check whether I'm on a plan (my current plan)

"Current plan" appears under "AI tokens" in Organization settings › Usage (organization admins can see it). If you subscribed but it doesn't look like you're on the plan, check whether the organization you subscribed and the organization you have open are the same. If there are two organizations with the same name, you may have the one without the subscription open (→ Plans and billing).

Q. After canceling or during a trial, I want to remove the payment method I registered

Even after you cancel, the subscription continues until the next renewal date (or the end of the trial, if you're on one). Until then, that payment method is used for the final charge, so it can't be removed. To remove it right away, add another payment method first and then remove it (→ Plans and billing: "Invoices, receipts, and payment methods").

Q. Do invited members also need to register a payment method?

No. The organization's admins handle the subscription and payment, so invited members don't need to register a payment method.

Q. I want to cancel a paid plan

To cancel, use the place where you subscribed. The steps are shown on the subscription screen. Once you schedule a cancellation, you can keep using Addness until the next renewal date. When the period ends, the contract terminates and that organization can't be used until you subscribe again (goals, content, and members remain; there's no free trial when you subscribe again). For details, see the Plans and billing article.

Q. I want to switch from Pro to Starter. If I cancel and sign up again, will my goals remain?

While you have a Pro or higher contract (including during a trial or while a payment is overdue), you can't switch to Starter. Starter can only be taken by an organization with no contract. If you schedule a cancellation, you can keep using Addness until the next renewal date. When the period ends and the contract terminates, the organization has no contract, and you can subscribe to Starter. Goals, content, and members stay in the same organization. Starter is monthly only, with no free trial (→ Plans and billing).

Q. What's the difference between deleting an organization and deleting my account?

Deleting an organization removes the whole organization (an admin does it from Organization settings › General). No one can open the organization's data — goals, comments, member information, and so on — anymore, and it can't be restored (it isn't erased from the database and is kept with no set time limit). The subscription also ends on the spot. This is different from canceling, where you can keep using Addness until the next renewal date (→ Deleting an organization). However, a subscription started from the iPhone or Android app doesn't stop, so cancel the subscription in the App Store or Google Play.

Deleting your account removes your personal account (from "Danger zone" in My Settings › Account). Organizations that have other members remain; you simply leave them. Organizations where you're the only member are deleted along with your account, and their subscriptions stop (a subscription started from the iPhone or Android app is canceled in the App Store or Google Play). If you're the last admin of an organization that has other members, you can't delete your account, so first make another member an admin or delete that organization. Deleting your account can't be undone either.

When you're in trouble

Q. I have too many goals to manage

Delete goals you no longer use (their child goals go with them; you can restore them for 30 days) and complete finished ones, and fewer goals line up on the goal page. You can also find the goal you're looking for by asking your MCP-connected AI to "find the goal about ◯◯."

Q. Where are the goals I archived before?

Goals can no longer be archived. When archiving ended, archived goals were moved to the same place as deleted goals. For 30 days from that move, you can bring them back from "Restore deleted goals" in the "…" menu of the parent goal's row. After 30 days they are permanently deleted.

Q. I accidentally deleted a goal

Deleted goals can be restored. From "Restore deleted goals" in the "…" menu of the parent goal's row, choose the goal to restore. Deleted child goals under it come back along with it. You can also bring it back by asking your MCP-connected AI to "restore the goal called '◯◯' that I deleted." Goals can be restored only within 30 days of deletion. After 30 days they are permanently deleted and can't be brought back.

Q. What happens to a goal's Drive files when I delete the goal?

When you delete a goal, every Drive file linked to it at that moment is moved to the trash. Files in the trash are permanently deleted after 30 days. Once moved, they can't be used from other goals or from personal shares either. The confirmation screen for deleting a goal shows how many files are affected, so check it before you delete. Restoring the goal doesn't bring the files back automatically; restore the ones you need from the Drive trash.

Q. I connected my calendar, but the meeting bot doesn't join my meetings automatically

The first connection turns automatic attendance on and video saving off. Existing connections and reconnections use saved settings. Check the following.

• For automatic booking of new events, Automatically attend events must be on in My Settings. For the event in question, check Attendance under Upcoming events on the Meeting notes page
• The event belongs to the Google Calendar you connected and has a Google Meet or Zoom meeting URL. Events without a meeting URL cannot have attendance booked
• Both monthly-limit and AI-balance checks required for new automatic bookings are available. If booking is unavailable, follow the on-screen guidance and check attendance for each event
• Turning video saving off does not stop attendance. Audio, transcription, and meeting notes continue for meetings the bot attends. To stop the connection, press Disconnect

The meeting bot cannot be used on the Starter plan. Bookings are also blocked when the monthly limit is reached or your AI balance is insufficient (→ Meetings and minutes).

Q. When I ask an AI to create a group, it says "consent to the secrecy of communications is required"

You need to agree on the screen before the AI can create it. Consent is asked separately for DMs and groups, and it is shown only once, the first time you open that kind of room. Having agreed for DMs doesn't cover groups.

If you don't have any group yet, create the first one yourself with "New chat" → "Create group" in Chat, and open it. The consent notice appears, so press "Agree and continue". After that, you can ask the AI to create groups (→ Chat page).

Q. Can I ask an AI like Claude Code how to use Addness?

Yes. All help articles are also published in an AI-readable format ( https://www.addness.com/llms.txt ), so with any AI that can read a URL — Claude Code, Codex, ChatGPT, etc. — just tell it "read this URL and answer my questions about how to use Addness," and the AI answers based on the help.

Q. What is MCP integration?

It's a feature that lets you operate Addness directly from AI clients like Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, and Claude Desktop. Send the following request to the AI you use to connect. The AI proceeds where it can and guides you only where your action is needed, such as the browser sign-in approval. For the detailed steps, see MCP integration.

Please set up Addness MCP (https://vt.api.addness.com/mcp).

Q. The sign-in verification code email doesn't arrive

Check your spam folder, then resend the code from the screen where you enter it. If it still doesn't arrive, you can also sign in with "Continue with Google" (→ Security and data handling: "Sign-in and two-step verification").

Q. My AI won't connect to Addness

First, ask your AI "Show me my Addness organizations" and check whether it answers with your organization names. If it doesn't, see "If it doesn't connect" in MCP integration for how to fix it.

Q. Are there features I can only use with the desktop app?

There are mainly three: personal LINE integration, voice input (Addness Voice), and requests from your phone to the AI on your computer. Goals, ToDos, chat, and so on work the same in the web app. The desktop app supports Macs with Apple silicon (M1 or later) and Windows. Supported computers differ by feature, so check "Supported computers" in Web app and desktop app.

Q. What's the difference between "LINE Official Account" and "Personal LINE"?

The LINE Official Account integration lets you add Addness's official account as a friend and talk to Addness's AI in LINE. You can connect it from My Settings › Integrations on the web. Personal LINE lets the AI you connected via MCP (Claude Code, Codex) read and send your own LINE messages, and you connect it from the desktop app on your computer. The differences and what to check before connecting are in LINE integration.

Q. Does personal LINE stop when I close my computer?

Yes. The AI reads and sends LINE messages only while the computer with the desktop app open is awake. If the computer is asleep, the AI gets "Can't connect to your Addness Desktop," so wake the computer and open the app (→ LINE integration: "Connecting personal LINE").

Q. Google Calendar events don't show up in "Today's schedule" on the goal page

What's read is the main calendar of the connected Google account. Events from other calendars, such as shared calendars, show up when you select them in "Calendars to read" under My Settings › Integrations (→ Goal page: "Google Calendar integration").

Q. Is the original audio (recording file) of a meeting I made minutes for kept?

Not for Addness meetings. The recorded audio is deleted after it's used for transcription, and only the minutes and the transcript remain. With the Google Meet or Zoom meeting notes bot, the recording is kept only when "Also save the meeting video" is turned on (→ Meetings and minutes: "What's kept as minutes").

For other questions, you can send them from "Questions about Addness" on the help home page.