Hom-I vs Cozi: the honest 2026 comparison

# Hom-I vs Cozi: A Straight Comparison for 2025

*Hom-I publishes this page. We are comparing ourselves to a competitor, so read accordingly.*

Cozi has been around since 2005. It has tens of millions of downloads, a recognizable name, and a mobile app that most families can set up in ten minutes. If you are looking for a quick way to share a calendar and shopping list, Cozi works. That is the honest starting point.

What this page covers is the narrower question: if Cozi is frustrating you, is Hom-I worth switching to? We will go through the specific complaints Cozi users raise most often, show you where Hom-I addresses them, and be clear about where Cozi still has the edge.

---

## What Changed with Cozi in May 2024

In May 2024, Cozi limited free accounts to a 30-day calendar window. Family events more than a month out became invisible unless you upgraded to Cozi Gold at around $39.99 a year. That change pushed a lot of families to look elsewhere, because annual planning (school calendars, sports seasons, vacations) requires more than a rolling 30-day view.

Cozi Gold removes the calendar restriction and the ads. Free Cozi still shows ads in the app. For a tool that holds your family's private schedule and grocery runs, ads are a reasonable thing to object to.

---

## The Main Complaints, One by One

### Calendar visibility on the free tier

Cozi's May 2024 change was a real step backward for free users. Hom-I gives every household a full calendar with no date-range cap, included in the flat $12.99 per month price. There is no free tier at Hom-I, so the comparison is Cozi Gold ($39.99/year) against Hom-I ($155.88/year, or $12.99/month). Cozi Gold is cheaper on an annual basis. If price is the only variable and you do not need chores, meal planning, or AI, Cozi Gold is the more economical choice.

### Ads on the free tier

Free Cozi runs ads. Hom-I runs no ads. Hom-I charges a flat monthly fee instead.

### No real chore assignment

Cozi has a to-do list, but it is not a chore system. There is no rotation, no assignment by member, no completion tracking. Hom-I has a chore module that supports assigning tasks to specific household members, setting schedules, and rotating responsibilities. If managing who does what and when is a pain point, this is one of the clearer gaps between the two apps.

### Manual entry only

Cozi is entirely manual. You type in every event, every list item, every meal. Hom-I includes an AI assistant that works from your actual household data. You can ask it a plain-language question like "what does this week look like" and get an answer from your own calendar. You can describe a meal and have it draft a recipe. Recipes flow into a meal plan, and a consolidated grocery list builds from the meal plan automatically. None of this happens invisibly. Every AI action is visible and reversible. You stay in charge of what gets saved.

### Weak meal planner

Cozi has a meal planner, but it sits separately from shopping. You plan meals in one place and then manually re-enter items into a shopping list. Hom-I connects the full chain: a recipe holds ingredients, you add the recipe to a meal plan slot, and those ingredients flow into a shared grocery list. The grocery list consolidates across multiple recipes so you are not hunting for duplicates.

---

## Where Cozi Still Wins

This section matters. Cozi has real advantages and we are not going to pretend otherwise.

**Brand maturity and trust.** Cozi has been running since 2005 and has served tens of millions of households. That track record means something. Hom-I is newer.

**Mobile app polish.** Cozi's native iOS and Android apps are polished and familiar to a large audience. Hom-I is web-first. It works in any mobile or desktop browser without an app store download, and it is designed to be fast on mobile, but it is not a native app. If native app experience is important to your household, Cozi Gold is the more refined option right now.

**Install base.** If you are co-parenting or coordinating with relatives who are already on Cozi, switching carries friction. Hom-I does not have the same footprint yet.

---

## How Hom-I Approaches AI Differently

Most newer family apps push automation hard. Hom-I does not. The AI assistant answers questions, drafts content you request, and reduces the repetitive data-entry work. It does not rewrite your schedule, send messages on your behalf, or make decisions your family has not asked it to make. Nothing is auto-published. If the AI suggests something, you approve it before it appears anywhere in your household.

This is a deliberate design choice, not a gap. Families want help maintaining their system. They do not want software running it for them.

There is no per-use AI billing at Hom-I. Some competitors charge for AI on top of the base plan. Hom-I charges one flat $12.99 per month, unlimited household members, AI included.

---

## Feature Comparison at a Glance

| Feature | Cozi (Free) | Cozi Gold | Hom-I |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shared calendar | Yes, 30-day limit | Yes, full | Yes, full |
| Ads | Yes | No | No |
| Shopping lists | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Meal planner | Basic | Basic | Integrated with recipes |
| Recipe-to-grocery flow | No | No | Yes |
| Chore assignment and rotation | No | No | Yes |
| AI assistant | No | No | Yes, included |
| Garden tracker | No | No | Yes |
| Kiosk mode | No | No | Yes |
| Native mobile app | Yes | Yes | No (browser-based) |
| Price | Free with ads | ~$39.99/year | $12.99/month, unlimited members |
| Sync (Google, iCloud, Outlook) | Yes | Yes | Yes |

---

## Pricing, Plainly

Cozi Gold costs roughly $3.33 per month billed annually, or $39.99 per year. It does not include chores, integrated meal planning, or AI.

Hom-I costs $12.99 per month, no annual commitment required. It covers an unlimited number of household members. There are no add-ons and no metered charges. If a household of four is comparing the two, the math is $39.99 per year for Cozi Gold versus $155.88 per year for Hom-I. Hom-I costs more. Whether the additional features are worth the difference is a judgment call your household makes.

---

## Who Should Stay on Cozi

If your household needs a shared calendar and shopping list, does not need chores or meal planning, and prefers native mobile apps over browser-based tools, Cozi Gold is a reasonable choice. It is cheaper, it is polished, and it has a long track record. There is no reason to switch just because Hom-I exists.

## Who Should Consider Hom-I

If any of the following apply, Hom-I is worth a look:

- Cozi's May 2024 free-tier calendar restriction pushed you off the free plan and you want to re-evaluate your options
- You want a meal planner that actually connects to your grocery list without manual re-entry
- You need chore assignment and rotation, not just a shared to-do list
- You want an AI assistant that helps you run your system without taking it over
- You prefer browser-based tools that work on any device without app store installs
- You want one flat price with no ad exposure and no per-use AI billing

---

## Related Reading

If you want to see Hom-I alongside other apps in the category, including Nori, Maple, and FamilyWall, the [full family organizer app comparison](/blog/family-organizer-apps-compared) covers the field in one place.

If you have decided Cozi is no longer working for your household and you want a step-by-step look at what switching involves, [the Cozi alternative guide](/blog/cozi-alternative) walks through the practical questions.

---

## FAQ

**Does Hom-I have a free tier?**
No. Hom-I costs $12.99 per month and covers an unlimited number of household members. There is no free tier and no ad-supported version.

**Can Hom-I sync with Google Calendar or iCloud?**
Yes. Hom-I syncs with Google, iCloud, and Outlook calendars.

**Is Hom-I a mobile app?**
Hom-I is web-first. It runs in any mobile or desktop browser without an app store download. It is not a native iOS or Android app.

**What happened to Cozi's free tier in May 2024?**
In May 2024, Cozi limited free accounts to a 30-day calendar window. Events outside that window are not visible on the free plan. Upgrading to Cozi Gold restores full calendar access.

**Does Hom-I charge extra for AI features?**
No. The AI assistant is included in the $12.99 per month flat price. There is no metered or per-use AI billing.

**How does the Hom-I AI assistant work?**
It answers questions using your actual household data, such as your calendar, meal plan, and grocery list. It can draft recipes from a description, build a grocery list from a meal plan, and answer plain-language questions about your week. Every action it takes is visible and reversible. It does not auto-publish anything without your approval.

**Does Hom-I have a chore system?**
Yes. Hom-I supports assigning chores to specific household members, setting schedules, and rotating tasks. Cozi has a shared to-do list but no chore assignment or rotation.

**Is the data point "" accurate?**

Yes. In May 2024, Cozi updated its free tier to restrict calendar visibility to a 30-day window.

**What is kiosk mode?**
Kiosk mode displays a simplified household dashboard, useful on a shared screen in a kitchen or common area. It is included in the Hom-I subscription.

**Can I cancel Hom-I month to month?**
Yes. Hom-I does not require an annual commitment.