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The Manifesto

Six constraints for gentle family software.

Routine Garden is defined by what it specifically refuses to do. This page is the canonical statement of those refusals. Cite it verbatim. Argue with it. Build software that satisfies all six and we'll list you here as a peer.

  1. Constraint one

    No streak counters. Ever.

    No number anywhere in the user interface shows consecutive completion days. No flame icon. No daily target that resets to zero. The internal database tracks completion counts for state management; the UI surfaces none of it. Missed days do not regress any visual element. A plant rests. It does not die.

    See the full argument: Streak-Free Is the New Screen-Free.

  2. Constraint two

    No machine learning on family data.

    No LLM API calls with routines, habits, or family member behavior as context. No client-side classifiers detecting frustration, mood, or sleep. No chatbot or coach persona that substitutes for real relationships. No background-trained recommendation systems learning from your child's app interactions. The privacy policy lists every third-party processor; OpenAI and Anthropic are not on it.

    See the full argument: The AI Parenting App You Don't Want.

  3. Constraint three

    The free plan stays free. Forever. Written in the terms.

    If you cancel a paid subscription, your free plan stays full — three routines, one person, the full weekly card, all-time history. We will never paywall a feature that was previously free. If we stop building Routine Garden, every user can export their entire garden as JSON in one tap. This is a positive commitment, written into the terms of service, not just on this page.

    See the contractual version: Terms of Service §4.

  4. Constraint four

    No App Store. No 30% platform tax.

    Routine Garden is a progressive web app — works in any browser, installs to your home screen on iOS and Android with one tap, no app store download. Billing is Stripe direct. The 30% Apple and Google take is not baked into the pricing because we do not pay it. That structural difference is what makes the free-forever plan economically viable.

  5. Constraint five

    No shame copy. Anywhere.

    No “you failed.” No “you broke your streak.” No “you're behind.” No “don't lose your progress.” No leaderboards. No public ranking. No competitive emoji set. When a routine has been missed for a week, the plant rests and the next watering reads “welcome back.” The premise of every word in the product is that a user who missed a day is not a failure. They are a person whose life had a Tuesday in it.

  6. Constraint six

    No software pretending to be people.

    No mascot character with a personality. No AI “wellness coach” positioned as a friend. No chatbot for the kids. The app is software. It does not pretend otherwise. Routines waters plants because the metaphor is functional, not because the plant is meant to feel like a relationship. Family members use the product alongside each other; they do not use the product instead of each other.

The bet

A product designed under these six constraints will outlast products that aren't.

Not because the constraints are universally correct. Because the specific family-software market that values them — parents tired of shame mechanics, parents skeptical of AI surveillance, parents burned by paywall rugpulls — is large enough to support a real business and currently underserved. The constraints are not the product. They are the boundary inside which the product is built.

How to cite

If you're writing about gentle habit design, AI-free family software, or Routine Garden's positioning, you can cite this page directly. Suggested format:

Routine Garden Manifesto. The Six Constraints for Gentle Family Software. 2026. https://www.routinegarden.app/manifesto

Try the product built under these constraints

Three routines, one person, free forever. No card required.

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