For many people, the Date you set for a task is the date you plan to do it. A Deadline, on the other hand, is the date a task needs to be completed by.
A big assignment at school. A report for your boss. Taxes (😱). Deadlines in Todoist let you track a task’s actual deadline separately, so you can schedule out time to start working on it.
Here’s Jon with an intro to this long-requested feature!
How it works
- Deadlines are available on paid plans whether you’re using Todoist solo or with your Team.
- To add a deadline to a new task, click Deadline and select a date. For existing tasks, open the task view and set or edit its deadline. That’s it! That’s the feature. 🌈
- The deadline of a task will be visible wherever you see that task in Todoist: Upcoming, Labels, Today, etc. As a deadline approaches (within 7 days), a countdown will show to give you a subtle reminder that it’s getting closer.
- In the Calendar view, deadlines are highlighted in the All day section so you can’t miss them. Clicking them will take you to the task’s details so you can make sure you’ve planned to tackle it in time. 💪
- When the deadline for an uncompleted task arrives, it will be shown in your Today and Upcoming views so it doesn’t slip through the cracks.
If you prefer to add a deadline to a task while you type, use the {} shortcut. For example, {tomorrow} sets a task’s deadline as tomorrow. Learn more about adding task details by typing
When to use deadlines
Like setting the priority of a task, a deadline adds context that helps you plan your time. But they’re not always needed. In fact, the less you use them, the more powerful they become. (Insert mind-blown gif here 🤯)
Here are a few times when adding a deadline to a task is a good fit:
- You’ve agreed with your boss to finish a report by the end of the month (but you’ll start working on it on Monday).
- A task you’re handing-off to a teammate needs to be done by next Friday to keep the project on track.
- You have a major assignment due in three weeks, but will definitely need multiple sessions to crack it. 🧠
For now, deadlines work with one-time tasks only. But, based on your feedback, we’re thoughtfully exploring how to also bring them to recurring tasks in a future update.
“When do you need this by?”
No more! 🥳 Adding a deadline to a task before you hand it over to a teammate effortlessly tells them when it needs to be done.
Once your teammate takes over, they can schedule time to work on the task using the Date field. The deadline will stay put, no matter how many times their plans change.
It starts with a task
Want some inspiration on how other Todoist users have met their own deadlines? Take a look at all of the weird and wonderful things they’ve achieved in the last year! Along with the first task that springboarded them to success. 🚀