The Best Alternative to Motion: Carly

Carly is an AI-powered scheduling assistant that works over email and SMS. Unlike traditional booking links or calendar tools, Carly reads messy email threads she is cc'd on, understands context, and sends real invites that keep the conversation natural. You can forward Carly an email, send her a text, or send screenshots and images for her to process and add to your calendar. It's built for busy professionals who want a human-like assistant that just works, handling coordination and calendaring so you don't have to. ChatGPT could never be this useful.


Feature Comparison

FeatureCarlyMotion
AI-Powered SchedulingPartial
Human-like Assistant
Click-to-Book (One-Click Scheduling)
SMS Integration
Multiple Calendar SupportPartial
Smart Time Zone Detection
Natural Language UnderstandingPartial
Email Thread Awareness
Handles Incoming Invitations
Pricing$35/month$19-34/user/month
Setup Time2 mins30 mins
Response Time1 min20 min
Available 24/7
Task Management

Why Carly is the Better Choice

Motion is a comprehensive productivity platform that combines task management with calendar features. While this all-in-one approach appeals to some users, it comes with significant complexity and a steep learning curve. Carly takes a focused approach: be the best AI scheduling assistant possible.

Click-to-Book Simplicity: Carly’s new click-to-book feature lets your contacts schedule meetings with just one click - no booking pages, no availability grids, no forms to fill out. Motion relies on traditional booking links that require multiple steps from your contacts.

True Conversational Scheduling: Carly works like a human assistant, handling scheduling conversations naturally via email and SMS. Motion’s AI is focused on auto-scheduling tasks and optimizing your calendar layout, not on communicating with other people on your behalf. If someone emails you asking to meet, Carly can handle the entire coordination; Motion cannot.

SMS Integration: For quick scheduling requests that come via text message, Motion offers no solution. Carly handles SMS scheduling just as smoothly as email, so you’re never stuck copying availability back and forth manually.

Faster to Start, Faster to Use: Motion requires significant setup time (30+ minutes) to configure projects, tasks, and scheduling preferences. Carly is ready in 2 minutes. And when you need to schedule a meeting, Carly responds in 1 minute compared to Motion’s 20-minute average.

Better Value: Motion charges $19-34 per user per month and requires annual billing. Carly offers straightforward $35/month pricing, making it more cost-effective for individuals and small teams who primarily need scheduling help rather than a full task management system.


Conclusion

Motion excels as a task management and calendar optimization tool for users who want AI to plan their entire workday. However, if your primary need is an AI assistant that handles scheduling conversations with other people - via email, SMS, or click-to-book - Carly delivers a more focused and effective solution. With faster setup, faster responses, and purpose-built scheduling features, Carly is the better choice for professionals who want to eliminate scheduling friction.

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