Motion

Overview

Motion is an AI-powered productivity suite founded in 2019 that combines calendar optimization + task management in one tool. The platform uses machine learning to automatically schedule tasks in calendar gaps based on deadlines, priorities, dependencies, and available time.

Core capabilities:

• AI Task Scheduling: Auto-schedule tasks in calendar based on due dates/priorities (e.g., "Finish board deck" due Friday → Motion blocks Thursday 2-hour slot automatically)
• Workload Balancing: Redistribute team tasks when individuals overbooked (AI detects teammate's calendar 80%+ full → reassigns tasks to available teammates)
• Calendar Optimization: Defend focus time, enforce buffer policies, manage meeting availability (similar to Reclaim.ai)
• Project Management: Organize tasks into projects, track dependencies, visualize timelines
• Meeting Booking: External scheduling links like Calendly (prospects book time with you)
• Dual Calendar Support: Works with Google Calendar AND Microsoft Outlook (vs Reclaim.ai Google-only)

Typical use case: A solopreneur consultant manages 20 client projects simultaneously with 60 tasks (proposals, deliverables, follow-ups) + 15 meetings/week. Previously spent 5 hours/week manually deciding "which task should I work on next?" and blocking calendar time. After adding all tasks to Motion with deadlines, AI automatically schedules task blocks in calendar gaps (e.g., "Draft proposal for Acme Corp" auto-scheduled Monday 2-4pm because Tuesday deadline is urgent, "Research competitor for Beta Inc" scheduled Friday afternoon because following week deadline is less urgent) → Saves 5 hours/week on prioritization while ensuring deadlines never missed.

Motion differentiates via comprehensive integration - traditional scheduling tools (Calendly) handle meetings only, traditional task managers (Asana) handle to-dos only, Motion handles both calendar + tasks with AI orchestration between them.

Used by 20,000+ teams including solopreneurs (auto-schedule project work around client meetings), small teams (workload balancing across 3-10 people), sales/CS managers (combine meeting scheduling + task management in one tool).

Cost comparison (comprehensive productivity suite):

• Motion Individual: $19/month (calendar + tasks integrated)
• Calendly Standard + Asana Premium: $12 + $11 = $23/month (separate tools, manual coordination)
• Savings: $4/month with Motion vs separate tools + integrated experience (no duplicate data entry)

Team plan pricing structure:

• Minimum 3 users: $36/month ($12/user × 3) to access Team plan features
• Per-user after minimum: Add 4th user for +$12/month, 5th user for +$12/month, etc.
• Not for solopreneurs: Solo users must pay Individual $19/user (can't access cheaper Team $12/user pricing)

Best value: Individual $19/month for solopreneurs managing 15-30 tasks/week across multiple projects (saves 4-6 hours/week on task prioritization vs manual Asana + calendar blocking). Team $12/user (with 3-user minimum $36/month) for small teams needing workload balancing.

When to upgrade:

• Individual → Team: When you add 2nd/3rd team member and need shared projects + workload balancing (Team becomes cheaper at 3+ users: $36 total vs $57 for 3 Individual plans)
• Team → Enterprise: When you reach 50+ users and need SSO, dedicated support, advanced analytics

1. AI Task Scheduling (Auto-Schedule Based on Deadlines)

Motion's AI task scheduling automatically blocks calendar time for task completion based on deadlines, priorities, and available calendar gaps.

How it works:

1. Add task: "Finish Q1 sales deck" → Set deadline (Friday 5pm), estimated time (3 hours), priority (high)
2. Motion AI analyzes: Checks calendar for 3-hour gaps before Friday deadline, considers existing meetings/commitments
3. Auto-schedule: Blocks Thursday 9am-12pm for "Finish Q1 sales deck" (last available 3-hour slot before deadline)
4. Reschedule dynamically: If urgent meeting request arrives Thursday 10am, Motion moves task to Thursday 1-4pm automatically

AI scheduling logic:

• Deadline proximity: Tasks due sooner get scheduled earlier (Friday deadline scheduled before next-week deadline)
• Priority weighting: High-priority tasks get prime calendar slots (morning focus time), low-priority tasks get afternoon slots
• Dependency tracking: Task B depends on Task A → Motion schedules Task A first, Task B only after Task A complete
• Available time matching: 3-hour task only scheduled in 3+ hour calendar gaps (won't fragment into 1-hour chunks)

Typical use case: Sales manager with 10 ongoing projects (board deck, pipeline analysis, team training materials, customer proposal, quarterly planning) + 25 meetings/week previously spent 4 hours/week manually deciding "what should I work on?" and blocking calendar time. After adding all 10 projects to Motion with deadlines, AI automatically schedules task blocks in optimal calendar slots (urgent tasks get morning focus time, less urgent tasks fill afternoon gaps) → Saves 4 hours/week on prioritization while ensuring all deadlines met.

AI scheduling benefits vs manual:

• No decision fatigue: AI decides optimal work sequence vs manually choosing "should I work on deck or analysis first?"
• Deadline protection: Urgent tasks automatically prioritized (vs manually forgetting low-visibility deadlines)
• Dynamic rescheduling: When meetings move/run over, AI reschedules task blocks automatically (vs manual calendar Tetris)

Limitation: AI learning curve takes 2-3 weeks (Motion needs data on how long tasks actually take vs estimates to improve accuracy). Initial task time estimates often wrong (estimate 2 hours, actually takes 4 hours → Motion's schedule breaks).

2. Workload Balancing (Prevent Team Overload)

Motion's workload balancing (Team plan $12/user) automatically redistributes tasks when individual team members' calendars become overbooked.

How it works:

1. Motion monitors capacity: Tracks each team member's calendar (meetings + task blocks + focus time)
2. Detect overload: Teammate's calendar reaches 80%+ booked (e.g., 32 hours of meetings/tasks in 40-hour week)
3. Redistribute tasks: AI suggests reassigning tasks to teammates with <60% calendar utilization
4. Manager approval: Manager reviews suggested redistribution → Approves → Motion reassigns tasks and notifies affected team members

Workload balancing scenarios:

• Uneven distribution: 5-person team has 50 tasks → 2 people assigned 20 tasks each (overbooked), 3 people assigned 3-4 tasks each (underutilized) → Motion suggests moving 10 tasks from overbooked to underutilized teammates
• Sudden meeting surge: Rep's calendar fills with 15 unexpected client meetings this week → Motion detects project work no longer fits → Suggests reassigning project tasks to teammates with lighter meeting loads
• Deadline conflicts: 3 team members all have tasks due Friday → Motion detects not enough collective time to complete → Suggests pushing less-urgent tasks to following week

Typical use case: Agency with 5 consultants manages 20 client projects. Project manager manually assigns tasks each Monday (4 tasks per consultant = 20 total). Mid-week, 2 consultants get pulled into urgent client fires (calendars fill with meetings) → Their project tasks can't be completed. Motion detects overload → Suggests reassigning 8 project tasks from overloaded consultants to 3 teammates with lighter calendars → Manager approves → Tasks redistributed → Prevents missed deadlines and evens workload.

Workload balancing limitations:

• Requires team plan: Not available on Individual $19/user plan (only Team $12/user with 3-user minimum)
• Manager must approve: AI suggests redistribution but doesn't auto-reassign (manager reviews before changes made)
• Context switching cost: Reassigning tasks mid-stream can reduce productivity (new assignee lacks context vs original assignee)

3. Dual Calendar Support (Google + Outlook)

Motion supports both Google Calendar AND Microsoft Outlook/Office 365 (vs Reclaim.ai Google-only) - critical for 50% of businesses using Microsoft ecosystem.

Supported calendars:

• Google Calendar: Full integration (read/write calendar events, check availability, auto-schedule tasks)
• Microsoft Outlook: Full Office 365/Outlook integration (same features as Google Calendar)
• Multi-calendar sync: Merge work + personal calendars (Google work + Outlook personal, or vice versa)

Outlook support benefits:

• Broader market: 50% of enterprises use Microsoft 365/Outlook vs Google Workspace → Motion accessible to both ecosystems
• No migration needed: Teams already on Outlook don't need to switch to Google Calendar (vs Reclaim.ai requiring migration)
• Unified experience: Same Motion features (AI scheduling, workload balancing, booking links) work identically on Google + Outlook

Typical use case: Sales team using Microsoft 365 (Outlook calendar, Teams meetings, Office apps) wants AI calendar optimization but can't use Reclaim.ai (Google-only). Motion provides identical AI task scheduling + calendar optimization while working natively with Outlook → No calendar migration needed vs switching to Google Workspace for Reclaim.ai.

Comparison:

• Motion: Google Calendar + Outlook support (100% market coverage)
• Reclaim.ai: Google Calendar only (50% market coverage, excludes Outlook users)
• Calendly/Cal.com: Both Google + Outlook support (100% market coverage)

4. Project Management (Task Organization + Dependencies)

Motion includes project management features (organize tasks into projects, track dependencies, visualize timelines) - overlapping with Asana/ClickUp.

Project management capabilities:

• Project organization: Group related tasks (e.g., "Q1 Board Deck" project contains 8 tasks: outline, research, design, write slides, review, revisions, practice, present)
• Task dependencies: Mark Task B depends on Task A → Motion won't schedule Task B until Task A complete (e.g., "Design slides" can't start until "Outline" finished)
• Timeline visualization: Gantt chart view showing project timeline (which tasks scheduled when, dependencies visualized)
• Team assignments: Assign project tasks to different team members (e.g., "Research" to analyst, "Design" to designer, "Write slides" to manager)

Project management vs Asana:

Motion's PM advantage: AI auto-schedules tasks in calendar (vs Asana showing to-do list, user manually blocks time). Critical for individual contributors who struggle with "when should I work on this task?" (Motion answers automatically).

Asana's PM advantage: More advanced features (custom workflows, rules, forms, portfolios, workload tracking) for complex project management vs Motion's simpler task lists with calendar integration.

Typical use case: Solo consultant managing 5 client projects (each with 10-15 tasks) uses Motion to organize work. Creates 5 projects → Adds tasks with deadlines → Sets dependencies (e.g., "Draft proposal" must finish before "Review proposal") → Motion AI automatically schedules all tasks in optimal sequence based on deadlines/dependencies → Eliminates need for separate Asana subscription ($11/month) while getting calendar integration built-in.

Limitation: Teams with complex PM needs (100+ tasks, custom workflows, advanced automations) should use Asana Enterprise vs Motion's simpler PM features. Motion best for lightweight PM (3-5 projects, 20-50 tasks total) vs Asana's heavyweight PM (50+ projects, 500+ tasks).

5. Meeting Booking Links (Like Calendly)

Motion includes meeting booking links (external scheduling like Calendly) as part of the suite - prospects book time with you, meetings appear in Motion calendar.

Booking link features:

• Availability sharing: Share link (e.g., motion.app/yourname/30min) → Prospects see available slots → Book meeting
• Respects task blocks: Motion booking links show only time free from both meetings AND task blocks (vs Calendly showing all non-meeting time)
• Buffer time enforcement: Enforce 15min buffer before/after meetings (prevent back-to-back scheduling)
• Custom branding: Add your logo, custom confirmation emails
• Integrations: Auto-generate Zoom/Google Meet links for bookings

Motion booking links vs Calendly:

Motion advantage: Booking links respect task blocks automatically (if Motion scheduled "Finish deck" 2-4pm Thursday, booking link won't show 2-4pm as available) vs Calendly showing all non-meeting time as available (overbooking risk).

Calendly advantage: 70+ native integrations (Salesforce, HubSpot, Marketo, Pardot) vs Motion's 10 integrations. Cheaper standalone ($0-12/user) if you only need booking links (vs paying Motion $19-34/user for full suite).

Typical use case: Sales rep using Motion for task management + calendar optimization also needs prospect booking links (currently uses Calendly $12/month separately) → Cancels Calendly → Uses Motion's included booking links → Saves $12/month while consolidating tools (one login vs two).

Choose Motion if:

• You use Microsoft Outlook/Office 365 (Reclaim.ai doesn't support)
• You need comprehensive task/project management (Motion has projects, dependencies, timeline vs Reclaim's basic tasks)
• You need workload balancing for 3-10 person teams (redistribute tasks when individuals overbooked)
• You want all-in-one suite (calendar + tasks + booking links integrated vs separate tools)
• You can justify $19-34/user premium (58-183% more expensive than Reclaim.ai but more features)

Choose Reclaim.ai if:

• You use Google Calendar exclusively (no Outlook requirement)
• You're budget-conscious ($0-12/user vs Motion $19-34/user = save 58-183%)
• You need smart 1:1 auto-coordination (Reclaim.ai unique feature vs Motion requiring manual scheduling)
• You want free tier ($0 unlimited habits/tasks to test before team rollout vs Motion 7-day trial only)
• You focus on calendar optimization only (don't need comprehensive task/project management)

Solopreneurs (1 person)

Best plan: Individual ($19/month) Why: AI auto-schedules 15-30 tasks/week across 3-5 projects in calendar gaps → Saves 4-6 hours/week on manual prioritization.

Use case: Freelance consultant managing 5 client projects (each with 10-15 deliverables) + 10 meetings/week previously spent 5 hours/week manually deciding "which task should I work on next?" and blocking calendar time. After adding all tasks to Motion with deadlines, AI automatically schedules task blocks (urgent tasks get morning focus time, less urgent fill afternoon gaps) → Saves 5 hours/week (worth $250-500 @ $50-100/hour fully-loaded cost) vs $19/month cost = 66-132x ROI.

When to skip: Skip Motion if you have <10 tasks/week (simple to-do list sufficient - use Reclaim.ai $0 free tier instead) or already use Asana for PM (duplicate functionality).

Small Teams (3-10 people)

Best plan: Team ($12/user with 3-user minimum = $36/month) Why: Workload balancing prevents individual overload, shared projects coordinate team work, cheaper than Individual plan at 3+ users.

ROI calculation (5-person team):

• Cost: $60/month ($12/user × 5) = $720/year
• Time saved: 3 hours/week per person on task prioritization × 5 people = 15 hours/week
• Value: 15 hours/week × 52 weeks × $50/hour = $39K/year value vs $720 cost = 54x ROI

Team features utilized:

• Workload balancing: Redistribute tasks when individuals overbooked (prevent burnout)
• Shared projects: Coordinate team deliverables (e.g., "Q1 product launch" project with tasks assigned to different team members)
• Collective scheduling: Book meetings requiring multiple attendees

When to upgrade: Upgrade to Enterprise ($34/user) when team reaches 50+ users and needs SSO, dedicated support, advanced analytics.

Not Recommended: Mid-Market/Enterprise (100+ people)

Why not: Motion lacks advanced enterprise features (granular permissions, custom workflows, compliance certifications, advanced analytics) vs Asana Enterprise or Monday.com Enterprise.

Enterprise needs not met:

• Granular permissions: Can't set complex access controls (who can view/edit specific projects)
• Custom workflows: No rules automation, custom fields, forms
• Compliance: No SOC2/HIPAA/GDPR certifications for regulated industries
• Advanced analytics: Limited reporting vs Asana's portfolio dashboards, workload charts

Alternative: Use Asana Enterprise ($25-35/user with advanced features) or Monday.com Enterprise (custom pricing with full compliance) for 100+ user deployments.

Motion is the best all-in-one AI productivity suite for solopreneurs/small teams who want calendar + task management integrated at $19-34/user/month. AI auto-schedules tasks in calendar gaps based on deadlines/priorities/dependencies (e.g., "Finish Q1 deck" due Friday → Motion blocks Thursday 2-hour slot automatically) → Saves 4-6 hours/week on manual prioritization and eliminates decision fatigue ("what should I work on next?").

Why Motion wins: Workload balancing for 3-10 person teams (AI redistributes tasks when individuals overbooked), supports Google Calendar AND Outlook (vs Reclaim.ai Google-only = 100% market coverage), all-in-one suite replaces Calendly ($12) + Asana ($11) = $23 separate tools with single $19 subscription. Dynamic rescheduling adjusts task blocks automatically when meetings move/run over (no manual calendar Tetris).

The catch: 58-183% more expensive than alternatives (vs Reclaim.ai $0-12/user, Cal.com $0-15/user). 2-3 week learning curve for AI to optimize scheduling patterns (not instant value like Calendly). Overlaps with Asana/ClickUp - teams already using dedicated PM tools get duplicate functionality (paying for both Motion + Asana = redundant). Complex setup (3/5 difficulty) vs simple Calendly booking links (1/5 difficulty).

Best for: Solopreneurs managing 15-30 tasks/week across 3-5 projects (consultants, freelancers, coaches), small team leaders (3-10 people) needing workload balancing to prevent overload, sales/CS managers combining meeting scheduling + project work (all-in-one suite vs separate tools), executives with competing priorities needing AI to auto-prioritize work.

Not for: Budget-conscious teams (free alternatives exist - Reclaim.ai $0, Cal.com $0), teams already using Asana/ClickUp for PM (duplicate functionality = waste), large enterprises (100+ users) needing advanced features (granular permissions, custom workflows, compliance certifications), simple scheduling needs (Calendly/Cal.com sufficient if you only need booking links).

Motion saves $200-300/week in time value (4-6 hours @ $50/hour fully-loaded cost) for $19-34/month = 46-158x ROI for meeting-heavy roles juggling multiple projects. The 7-day trial makes it risk-free to test AI task scheduling effectiveness before committing budget.

Rating: Silver Medal - Best AI productivity suite combining calendar + task management at $19-34/user with auto-scheduling saving 4-6 hours/week on prioritization. Workload balancing prevents team overload. Supports Google + Outlook (vs Reclaim.ai Google-only). Limitation: 58-183% more expensive than alternatives, 2-3 week learning curve, overlaps with Asana/ClickUp for teams already using PM tools. Not Gold: premium pricing hard to justify vs free alternatives, complex setup, niche appeal (comprehensive suite) vs universal scheduling needs.