Tot- MinimalistMinimalist

Name: Tot
Rating: 4.4 (237 reviews)

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About

Tot is a minimalist text scratchpad from The Iconfactory for Mac, iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch. It gives you seven color-coded "dots", each holding one plain-text or Markdown document, synced through iCloud.

Tot deliberately limits you to seven documents, each represented by a colored dot, which makes it a place to collect and edit snippets, drafts, lists and temporary notes rather than an archive. It lives in a single window or in the Mac menu bar, supports Markdown with an option to automatically convert rich text to Markdown, shows live word and character counts, and offers keyboard shortcuts for common text operations. Tot 2.0 (August 2025) added customizable smart bullets for checklists and to-dos, text dividers, automatic indentation, an option to keep the window floating above others, and bulk save, share and export on iOS; a later update redesigned it for Liquid Glass. Text syncs automatically between devices through iCloud, with automatic backups, Home Screen widgets and Shortcuts actions for storing and retrieving text. The Mac app (Tot) and the iPhone/iPad app (Tot Pocket) are free downloads with premium features unlocked by a separate $19.99 in-app purchase on each platform, and the Apple Watch app (Tot Mini) is a small separate purchase.

Who Is Tot Best For?

Tot is particularly well-suited for:

Mac users who want a menu-bar scratchpad

Writers collecting snippets and drafts

Minimalists who dislike sprawling note archives

Apple Watch users who jot quick text

People who juggle a few short-lived lists

View all Minimalist apps

Credibility of This Listing

We show what we know, where it comes from, and what is still incomplete.

Review Coverage

4.4/5

Aggregated score built from 1 public review source.

NoteFinderz Research

October 9, 2026

NoteFinderz research refreshed on October 9, 2026.

Product Freshness

October 7, 2025

Latest known product update: October 7, 2025.

Descriptions, use cases, pros, and limitations are written and curated by NoteFinderz. Ratings and review volume are aggregated from public signals when they exist.

Visible Review Sources

237 aggregated reviews

App Store (Tot Pocket)

237 reviews

4.4/5

View source

Features

Markdown

Real-time Sync

Dark Mode

Keyboard Shortcuts

Tasks/TODO

Tray App

Export Options

Sharing

Automations

Offline Mode

Quick Capture

Ratings & Reviews

4.4

(237 reviews)

Aggregated from 1 sources

App Store (Tot Pocket)

4.4

(237)

Pricing

Freemium

Free Tier Available

Project Health

Status

Active

Publisher & Origin

Developer

The Iconfactory, Inc.

Source Model

Closed source

License

Proprietary

Country of Origin

United States

Headquarters

Greensboro, North Carolina, United States

Origin Type

Company

Origin Note

The Iconfactory is a long-standing independent design and app studio known for apps such as Twitterrific, xScope and Linea. Tot launched in February 2020.

Pros

✓Extremely simple: seven dots, no folders or clutter

✓Fast access from the Mac menu bar

✓Markdown support with automatic rich text conversion

✓Seamless iCloud sync across Mac, iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch

✓One-time purchases, no subscription

Cons

⚠Hard limit of seven documents

⚠Apple-only, with no Windows, Android or web version

⚠Separate purchases needed for Mac and iOS

⚠Not suited to long-term note archives or search across many notes

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Tot free to use?

Yes, Tot offers a free tier that you can use without payment. Tot for Mac and Tot Pocket for iPhone and iPad are free downloads. Premium features (such as configurable smart bullets and text dividers) are unlocked with a one-time in-app purchase of $19.99 on Mac and $19.99 on iOS/iPadOS; the purchases are separate because the apps are not universal. Tot Mini for Apple Watch costs $1.99. No subscription.

What platforms does Tot support?

Tot is available on macOS, iOS, iPadOS. Download the app for your preferred platform to get started.

Does Tot work offline?

Yes, Tot supports offline mode. You can access and edit your notes without an internet connection, and changes will sync when you're back online.