Comparison

Cal Countdown vs Sunsama

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Cal Countdown

This app automatically displays a color-coded countdown to your next calendar event on your Apple Watch face or iPhone "Today" screen. It simplifies time management by eliminating manual calculations, offering visual cues as events approach.

Highlights
  • Automatic countdown to next event
  • Color-coded time indicators
  • Apple Watch complication support
  • iPhone/iPad "Today" widget
  • Calendar data integration
  • Option to skip specific events
Features
Read full description

"Cal Countdown" is a free, simple iOS & Apple Watch app that automatically creates a color-coded countdown to the next event on your calendar and displays it on your Apple Watch face and/or your "Today" screen. The app is primarily intended to be used as a complication on your Apple Watch or as a widget. If your days are anything like ours, packed with various meetings scattered throughout the day, every time you check your calendar, you're trying to figure out one thing: How much time do I have until my next appointment? So, you glance at your watch, note the start time of your next appointment, and calculate the difference between the current time and your next event. We got tired of doing this mental calculation many times a day, but much to our surprise, we could not find an existing iOS application that would do this chore for us. So we decided to build it ourselves. Now, every time we glance at our watch, it immediately tells us what we want to know: How much time do I have until my next appointment? The app's color changes from blue to green to yellow to orange to red as you approach the start of your next event. (6+ hours = Blue, 2-6 hours = Green, 1-2 = Yellow, 30-60 mins = Orange, 0-30 mins = Red) Cal Countdown supports all the different Apple Watch complications. All Apple Watch complications that support multi-color will be color-coded (but not all watch complications support multiple colors.) Using "Cal Countdown" is as easy as it gets. It uses the calendar data already on your phone; no signing in; no entering any usernames or passwords. The app lets you select the calendars you want to include or not in your calendar countdowns. Don't have an Apple Watch? You can still use Cal Countdown on your phone as an iPhone/iPad app with a "Today" widget. Cal Countdown does not require an account. It does not even require an internet connection. The app uses the calendar data already on your iPhone. It's completely secure. Your calendar data remains completely private, and never leaves your phone. Cal Countdown also has the ability to ignore or skip certain events on your calendar. This feature is especially useful if you have shared calendars with your family, friends, or colleagues. We often have events on our calendars that we need to know about, but may not be attending ourselves. If you want Cal Countdown to ignore or skip these events and start counting down to the following event on your calendar, just tap the "Ignore" button, and Cal Countdown will immediately start a countdown to the following event.

About

Sunsama

This mobile app complements a desktop planner, allowing quick task additions and scheduling on the go. Review your daily plan and stay focused on your workload, synced with your calendar events.

Highlights
  • Quick task addition
  • Schedule tasks on calendar
  • Review daily plan
  • Syncs with Google Calendar
  • Syncs with Outlook Calendar
  • Companion to desktop app
Features
Read full description

*Companion app to the desktop app* You can use the Sunsama mobile app once you've planned your first day from the Sunsama desktop app. This mobile app is built as a companion to the desktop app to help you stay in sync when you're away from your desk, not as a standalone replacement. *Add tasks quickly* When a new tasks comes up and you're not at your desk, quickly add it to your task list. You can schedule it onto your calendar and move it to the right spot on your list to work on it later. *Stay true to your plan* Review what you planned for the day. Create a calm, focused space to stay on top of your workload. *Synced with your calendar* Browse both your tasks and calendar events each day. Synced with Google Calendar and Outlook Calendar.

Screenshots

Cal Countdown4 screens
Sunsama4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Cal Countdown at 95% against Sunsama's 50%. Cal Countdown also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.5). Sunsama's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 3 months) and ratings volume (519 vs 21). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Cal Countdown holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sunsama has 519 ratings behind it against 21, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 95% of Cal Countdown's written reviews are positive against 50% of Sunsama's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Cal Countdown ships an update every 3 months, Sunsama every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Cal Countdown versus Sunsama: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCal CountdownSunsama
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (21 ratings) — better4.5 (519 ratings)
Positive reviews94.7% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings21519 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS26.016.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB80 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFranck ReyhermeSUMMAY, Inc.

Customer experience

Cal Countdown

All ratings21 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews19 reviews
Positive94.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.3%

Sunsama

All ratings517 ratings
Positive87.4%
Neutral2.9%
Negative9.7%
Written reviews174 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral12.1%
Negative37.9%

Bugs and requests

Cal Countdown

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Sunsama

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App crashes on launch
  • Tasks disappearing or not syncing properly
  • Login issues with Google and other accounts
  • Unreliable mobile app performance

Requested features

5 requests
  • Improved mobile app with more features
  • Widgets and lock screen integration
  • Better task management and rescheduling options
  • AI-powered task scheduling and planning
  • Integration with more third-party apps

In-app purchases

None

Cal Countdown

No in-app purchases

None

Sunsama

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Cal Countdown free?
Cal Countdown is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Sunsama free?
Sunsama is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Cal Countdown or Sunsama?
Cal Countdown is rated higher. Cal Countdown averages 5.0 out of 5 from 21 ratings, while Sunsama averages 4.5 from 519 ratings.
Do Cal Countdown or Sunsama have ads?
Neither Cal Countdown nor Sunsama shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Cal Countdown or Sunsama?
Cal Countdown ships an update every 3 months, and Sunsama every 2 weeks. Most recently, Cal Countdown was updated on November 2, 2026 and Sunsama on November 3, 2026.

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