Routines · Productivity · Free
The steps you take every morning and every evening, in order, run one at a time so you don't have to remember them.
Build a morning, evening or anytime routine as ordered steps, then run it one step at a time with timers and module links.
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Built onceName it, pick a time of day and its weekdays, then add each step as a Todo, a Timer or a Module.
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Run one step at a time"Begin" goes full screen: "STEP 1 OF 3", a timer that starts itself, and "NEXT UP" to show what follows.
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Forgiving about the dayA missed routine stays due a day longer, and its streak counts only the days you scheduled it.
Your first week with Routines
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Start with the one you already do
Tap + and name the routine you half-do anyway, like "Morning Startup". Pick its time of day, a start time and its weekdays.
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Keep it to three steps
Add three steps on "Build it". Make the one that drags a "Timer", so it ends on its own.
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Begin it when it's due
Its card reads "TODAY" with a "Begin" button. Walk through it, then close the "Complete" screen to save the run.
Every step, in detail
- 1 Open Routines and tap "+" to start "New Routine".
- 2 On "What's the routine?", name it, pick an emoji, choose a time of day and a start time, and pick the days it repeats.
- 3 On "Build it", tap "Add step…" and choose "Todo", "Timer" or "Module" for each step. Drag to reorder.
- 4 On "Review & create", pick a life area, add any reminders, and tap "Create".
- 5 When the routine shows "Today", tap "Begin".
The day on one line
Routines opens on today: every routine run today or still due, as stops along one line in clock order. Below it, the cards sit under their time of day, the due ones first. Here is a Tuesday at 4pm.
Sample · Tuesday, Oct 20, 4pm
TODAY 2 of 4 done
- Morning Startup, done
- Midday Reset, done
- Piano Practice, next due
- Evening Shutdown, due
Morning — before noon
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Morning Startup 7:15am · Weekdays · 3 steps Last done today, 07:31✓ Done
Evening — afternoon & night
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Piano Practice TODAY Missed yesterday · 6pm · Mon, Wed, Fri · 3 steps Last done Oct 16Begin
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Evening Shutdown TODAY 8:30pm · 6x/week · 3 steps Last done yesterday, 20:51Begin
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Midday Reset 1pm · Weekdays · 2 steps Last done today, 13:16✓ Done
Anytime — on demand
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Sunday Plan Sun · 4 steps Last done Oct 18Run
Midday Reset is an Afternoon routine, so it sits under Evening, “afternoon & night”. Piano Practice runs Monday, Wednesday and Friday and was missed on Monday, so on Tuesday it is still due, “Missed yesterday”. Sunday Plan is not due and stays off the line. The coloured bar down a due card is its life area.
A run, one step at a time
“Begin” fills the screen with the first step and nothing else. Evening Shutdown has one of each kind: a Todo, a Module step that opens Tasks, and a ten-minute Timer.
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Todo. Tap “Done ✓” when it’s done.
Step 1 of 3, Tidy the desk, a Todo step. Tap “Done ✓” when it’s done.
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Module. Opens Tasks in a sheet; “Done” brings you back.
Step 2 of 3, Plan tomorrow, a Module step. Opens Tasks in a sheet; “Done” brings you back.
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Timer. Starts by itself. With “Auto-advance timed steps” on, the run moves on when it ends.
Step 3 of 3, Wind-down stretch, a Timer step. Starts by itself. With “Auto-advance timed steps” on, the run moves on when it ends.
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Complete. “Close” here saves the run. “Close” before this point saves nothing.
The Complete screen: Duration 17 minutes, completed 3 of 3 steps. Closing it saves the run.
What a run keeps
Evening Shutdown, its last four runs
A run is saved as its day, how long it took and how many steps were done or skipped. The dashed line is the ten-minute timer: a run that finishes every step can hardly come in under it.
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3 of 3 steps
17 minutes, 3 of 3 steps.
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3 of 3 steps
15 minutes, 3 of 3 steps.
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3 of 3 steps
19 minutes, 3 of 3 steps.
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2 of 3 steps · Skipped 1, “Plan tomorrow”
13 minutes, 2 of 3 steps, Plan tomorrow skipped.
The routine’s page adds them up in “HISTORY”: current and longest streak, total runs, average duration and the last run. A routine linked to an identity ends the run with “+1 vote for your identity today”.
A missed day, and the streak around it
A streak counts the days a routine is scheduled, so a day off is not a miss. A late run keeps its day, as long as it comes before the next scheduled one. Piano Practice runs Monday, Wednesday and Friday; tap a day to add or take away a run. Nothing here is saved.
Sample · Piano Practice since Oct 6 · try it
Carry over missed routinesKeep unfinished routines due after their scheduled day. In Settings.
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Piano Practice TODAY Missed yesterday · 6pm · Mon, Wed, Fri · 3 steps Last done Oct 16Run
Run it today and Monday is kept late: the streak comes back as six. Set the carry-over to “Same day” and Monday stops waiting, so Piano Practice is no longer due on a Tuesday. The setting moves when a missed routine stays due; the streak keeps one day’s grace either way, unless a routine sets its own.
Insights: the shape of your routines
“Insights” in the ⋯ menu reads every run you’ve saved. These cards are drawn from twelve weeks of the sample: the five routines above, run most days, missed some.
Sample · Insights
Your longest active streak is 14 days — Morning Startup.
68 completions in the last 30 days.
Completions · 30 days
You’ve completed 68 routine runs in the last 30 days.
Average run takes about 17 min.
Active streaks
Where each routine stands today.
Your best run ever is 22 days.
- 🌅 Morning StartupMorning14d
- 🔆 Midday ResetAfternoon6d
- 🌙 Evening ShutdownEvening5d
- 🗓️ Sunday PlanAnytime5d
Piano Practice is left off: missed on Monday, its streak is 0 until it runs.
Weekly rhythm
Thursday is when you run them most.
Completions by weekday.
- 29 Mon
- 29 Tue
- 25 Wed
- 30 Thu
- 29 Fri
- 9 Sat
- 9 Sun
When you run them
Evening anchors most of your routines.
- Evening2
- Morning1
- Afternoon1
- Anytime1
This card counts routines, not runs: two of the five are set for the evening.
Cadence
How often you show up.
Average run takes about 17 min.
Tips
- Keep a short routine short. One or two Todo steps make it a quick check you can run from the card.
- If you run a routine by mistake, long-press its card, or open "⋯" on its page, and choose "Reset for today".
- "Keep screen awake" in Settings stops your phone sleeping while a routine is running, which helps with timer steps.
- Archive a routine you are pausing for a season. Open it from "Archived" in the "⋯" menu, and its own "⋯" has "Unarchive".
- A routine that runs only on some weekdays keeps its streak on the days in between, so give it only the days you mean.
Questions
About Routines day to day.
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What happens if I miss a routine?
It stays due for one day after its scheduled day, marked "Missed yesterday". "Carry over missed routines" in Settings sets that from "Same day" to 7 days, and each routine can override it.
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Does my streak break on days the routine isn't scheduled?
No. A streak counts only the routine's scheduled weekdays. A late run still keeps its day if it comes before the next scheduled one, and today counts against you only once it is over.
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Can a step open another part of HourLife?
Yes. A "Module" step shows an "Open" button for that module during the run, which opens it in a sheet you close with "Done". A Premium module needs Premium.
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I marked a routine done by mistake. Can I undo it?
Long-press its card, or open "⋯" on its page, and choose "Reset for today". The run comes off its history and its streak.
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Will my screen lock during a timer?
Not by default. "Keep screen awake" in Settings is on. A timer keeps time if you leave the app, and a notification says when it ends.
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If I close a run halfway, is it saved?
No. A run is saved only when you close its "Complete" screen. Closing earlier leaves the routine due, so "Begin" starts it again.
Works with
Where Routines hands off to the rest of HourLife.
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Today
The "Routines due" widget on Today lists routines pending for the day, and Sprint mode has a "Routines" section where you can begin them.
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Areas
Each routine belongs to a life area, chosen on "Review & create", which tints the bar down the left of its card while it is due.
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Journal
Add a "Module" step for Journal and the run shows an "Open Journal" button that opens it in a sheet you close with "Done".
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Tasks
A "Module" step for Tasks opens your list in the middle of a routine, which makes "Plan tomorrow" part of an evening shutdown.
Read and try
Books from the library that Routines puts into practice, and something to try on paper or in the browser.
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The Miracle Morning Hal Elrod Elrod's morning built from six ordered practices. A routine in HourLife runs its steps one at a time.
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Habit Stacking S. J. Scott Scott on chaining small habits into one routine so each cues the next.
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The Creative Habit Twyla Tharp Twyla Tharp on the routine that starts her working day, and why a ritual beats willpower.
Already have HourLife?
Routines is under Productivity in the module list. The ⋯ menu on the Routines page holds "Insights", "Settings" and "Archived".
Routines is in the Library, under Productivity. If it isn’t there, turn it on in Settings → Look & Feel → Modules.
What would you like to know?
Ask a question about this feature or tell us what’s missing.
