Building ADHDAlly: A Productivity App Designed for ADHD Brains
Founded and built a cross-platform app (iOS, Android, Web) from the ground up—designed from lived experience to work with how ADHD brains actually function.
- Shipped on iOS, Android, and the Web as a solo founder
- Designed around ADHD-specific UX patterns: no failure states, dopamine menus, visual-spatial task layout
- Built subscription business with free access for users who can't afford it
- Bootstrapped and independently funded
The Problem
Most productivity apps are built for neurotypical users. The standard advice for people with ADHD—make a list, hold yourself accountable, try harder—doesn’t just fail; it actively harms. It frames ADHD as a discipline problem rather than a different way of thinking.
After my own ADHD diagnosis, I realized the coping strategies I’d developed over the years weren’t workarounds—they were the system. I wanted to build an app that understood that.
What ADHDAlly Does
ADHDAlly is a productivity app built specifically for how ADHD brains work. It’s available on iOS, Android, and the web.
Tasks without overwhelm. A card-style task view gives tasks a visual-spatial location in the app, making them feel real. A time-tested workflow (inspired by Getting Things Done) lets you park low-priority items so you can focus on what actually matters right now.
Routines, not just tasks. Not everything that needs doing fits the task model—medications, laundry, watering plants. ADHDAlly’s routines feature lets you build repeating checklists with schedules and elapsed-time tracking, so nothing falls through the cracks.
Dopamine menus. When you’re stuck or burned out, ADHDAlly helps you remember what actually recharges you. A filterable list of activities you enjoy—tagged for context—so you can pick something that fits the moment and get moving again.
No failure states. The app doesn’t remind you what you didn’t do last week. Everything quietly resets. You get as many fresh starts as you need.
Visual customization. Add photos to tasks and routines, pick colors, make your list visually distinct. For ADHD brains, making things look interesting isn’t decoration—it’s functional.
The Design Philosophy
The guiding principle: help, not accountability. Accountability tools—reminders of failure, streaks that break, public commitments—work by adding pressure. ADHDAlly works by reducing friction and increasing autonomy. You stay in control. The app helps you center and focus yourself rather than telling you what to do.
Building It
ADHDAlly is a solo-founded, bootstrapped product. I designed, built, and shipped the iOS app, Android app, and web app. The company is independent by intention—keeping it that way means I can stay focused on what’s actually useful for people with ADHD rather than what optimizes a growth metric.
Pricing reflects the same values: subscriptions for those who can afford them, free access with no questions asked for those who can’t.