Here are my default apps of 2025. My 2024 list is here.

The Libro, YNAB, SavvyCal, and GLM links below are referral links. You can find more of my referral links here. I’d love a free audiobook if you end up switching from Audible to Libro.fm (you should seriously consider it, as I noted at the end of this audiobook review post). 💗

• 📝 Notes: Obsidian + NeoVim
• ✅ To-Do: Obsidian
• ✍ Writing: Obsidian + NeoVim
• 🧑‍💻 Code Editor: NeoVim
• ⏲ Focus Mode: Focus Friend & Brain Focus
• 🔍 Search: Kagi (and sometimes the free Perplexity)
• 🤖 LLM chat in-browser: Claude mostly, but sometimes Chat GPT, Z.ai’s GLM, or Typing Mind with API keys
• 🤖 LLM coding agent: Claude Code mostly, sometimes with a Claude subscription and sometimes with my Z.ai GLM subscription
• 🌐 Browser: Vivaldi
• 🔖 Bookmarks: Raindrop.io
• 📚 Audiobooks: Libby (💖), Spotify (meh), Libro (💖), Audible (yuck)
• 🎤 Podcasts: Podcast Republic (switched from Pocket Casts this year)
• 🎵 Music: Spotify
• 📼 Screencasting: OBS + Kdenlive + Whisper API + Custom Python scripts
• 📁 Cloud File Storage: a mix of Git, Dropbox, Google Drive, and Obsidian Sync
• 📜 Word Processing: Google Drive
• 📈 Spreadsheets: Google Drive, Airtable, occasionally LibreOffice
• 💰 Budgeting and Personal Finance: YNAB
• 💬 Chat: Signal, Discord, Slack
• 📆 Scheduling + Booking: SavvyCal
• 📆 Calendar: Google Calendar
• 📹 Video Calls: Google Meet + Discord + Zoom
• 🔐 Password Management: Bitwarden
• 🔏 Multi-Factor Auth: Aegis (Android) + Authenticator (laptop)
• 🐚 Terminal: Gnome Terminal + Tmux + Tmuxstart + Starship + Direnv
• 🐍 Python Installation Manager: uv
• 🐍 Python script runner: uvrs (hopefully to be replaced by uv eventually)
• 🗃️ Version Control: Git
• 🖥️ DNS: Cloudflare
• 📮 Email: Gmail
• 🎒 Backups: Manual Calendar Event + Git
• 🏠 Smart Home Hub: Google Home (maybe I’ll use Home Assistant eventually?)
• 🏃 Fitness Tracker: Fitbit

Also see: - My direnv, starship, and uv setup for Python - My custom Python shell configuration tool - my dotfiles for my customized Python shell configuration, how I manage my project directories, and more.

Biggest changes from 2024

I switched from Pocket Casts to Podcast Republic. I’m not entirely satisfied with either. I wish there was a podcast app that allowed me to easily maintain multiple queues/coming up-style playlists at once but wasn’t so complex.

My LLM use changed this year, first with the discovery of Typing Mind (thanks to my friend Kevin Markham) and later thanks to command-line LLM agents becoming a thing.

I also started using Hank Green’s Focus Friend app. Or maybe playing it, since it’s a bit of a game plus pomodoro-style app in one.

I continue to really appreciate Kagi and have been getting more use out of both Raindrop and Obsidian this year (which were both new to me last year).

I’ve also been really enjoying using uv a bit more seriously than I was last year. I didn’t mention it above, but I’ve finally listened to Jeff’s repeated recommendations to use justfiles and I’m loving those too.