Give thanks and prioritize your Wants and Needs with this beautiful app

Wants and Needs ($2.99) by Pixolini, Inc. is a simple app that will help you keep track of what matters the most. As you think about your wants, needs, and thanks, you’ll gain a new perspective on life. The app is similar to a journal, such as Day One, but with more focus on these areas only.

As I go through life, I often see or hear about cool new things that I immediately begin lusting after, such as the latest gadget or game. But these are always put on the back-burner, because there are always other things that take top priority. And then there are the things that I do have that I seem to take for granted, since I’m don’t always say my thanks everyday. I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one out there that has this problem too, right? Either way, Wants and Needs is an app to help you concentrate on these factors in life, and it does so in a beautiful way.

The design of Wants and Needs is simple and elegant, which is nice to have for an app such as this one. Though it is not my favorite color, the orange color scheme of the app looks nice as it contrasts with the white. The Avenir typeface looks gorgeous as well, and is a nice choice to use for an app like this. There is an overview screen and three different sections in the app, which you can navigate through by tapping on the tab you want at the bottom (easily accessible on the large screens of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus). The sections are clearly named and straightforward: Wants, Needs, and Thanks. There is also a main screen that features a bar graph of all of your wants, needs, and thanks, so you can get an obvious image of where your priorities are. Even if you’ve never used an app like this before, Wants and Needs is intuitive enough for anyone to use from the get-go.

As I mentioned, the main view of Wants and Needs is the screen that has a bar graph of the number of current wants, needs, and thanks you have. You can swipe horizontally on the graph to go to a circular or line graph as well, depending on your preferences. Underneath the graphs is a list of the total number of wants, needs, thanks, and starred items. Tapping any of these will take you to the full list, and you can quickly switch between them using the bottom tab bar.

When you want to add a new item to the app, just tap on the plus button in the top right corner of any screen in the app. If you do it from the main view, a menu pops up asking what section you’ll add it to, and if you’re in a section already, the item defaults to that choice, though you can change it at any time. Each item you add in Wants and Needs is pretty much a note, with the title being the first line. While you can add as much as you want in a note, it’s nice to keep it short and sweet so you can see the full thing in the note list. Users can also star items that have more meaning or significance, as well as attach an image to make it more memorable. Everything can be shared via the native iOS Share Sheet, exported as a PDF, or even printed (if that’s your thing).

The best way to get the most out of Wants and Needs is to use it often. Of course, sometimes it’s hard to remember to use an app when there’s so many vying for your attention these days, so fortunately Wants and Needs has weekly reminders that you can set. After all, the point of the app is to keep track of what you want (prevent overconsumption), what you need (priorities), and what you are thankful (reflect on the good and find hidden blessings) for. If you can continue to use this app over a long period of time, your gratitude can improve.

There is also support for passcode and Touch ID, so you can make sure that your stuff is hidden from nosy people. A Today widget can be found too, making the graph accessible with just a swipe. Wants and Needs uses iCloud sync to make sure all of your data is safe across multiple devices.

I think the concept of Wants and Needs is interesting, and it’s executed well in this app. The design is straightforward, and it is intuitive enough for anyone. I would like to see a bit of customization with more colored themes, so I hope the developer considers this. It would also be nice to have another alternative for syncing too, such as Dropbox, for those who don’t always trust iCloud’s reliability.

I recommend giving Wants and Needs a try if you need an app to help you keep track of those things as well as your thanks. You can find Wants and Needs on the App Store as a universal download for $2.99.