Creating Projects

PrimeTask gives you two ways to create a project: Quick Create (a single modal to set a name, description, colour, dates, and optional CRM in one shot) or the Project Setup Wizard (a guided 7-step flow that also imports existing tasks, adds goals and milestones, links them together, and enables CRM). Both paths live behind multiple entry points so you can start a project from wherever you are in the app - the sidebar, the Projects page, the command palette, a CRM contact or company, or the first-run onboarding wizard.

Quick Create is enough to start

Only the project name is required. You can add dates, goals, milestones, tasks, CRM, notes, and fields later.

What you can do

Create a project in seconds

with Quick Create - just a name is required

Launch the Setup Wizard

after Quick Create to flesh out goals, milestones, tasks, and CRM in one guided flow

Create projects from multiple entry points

sidebar, Projects page, command palette, CRM contact/company pages, and the onboarding wizard

Set a banner image

from Unsplash or upload your own - added from the project after creation

Choose a colour gradient

for the project card and sidebar badge

Set a status, start date, and deadline

during creation

Enable CRM

during creation - shared (uses Space CRM), isolated (project-only), or none

Import existing tasks

into the new project via the Setup Wizard

Define goals and milestones

during setup with automatic two-way linking

Edit everything later

all fields are editable from the project detail page

Seven ways to start creating a project

1. Projects page

Click Projects in the sidebar to open the Projects page, then click New Project at the top. The Quick Create modal opens.

2. Sidebar

The sidebar has a project creation action in the Projects section. Click it and Quick Create opens.

3. Command palette

Press ⌘+K (or Ctrl+K) to open the command palette, then search for new project. A dedicated shortcut - ⌘+⇧+P (or Ctrl+⇧+P) - creates a project from anywhere in the app without opening the palette. See Keyboard Shortcuts.

4. From a CRM contact or company

Open any CRM contact or company detail page and find the linked projects section. You can create a new project directly from there - the new project is automatically linked to that contact or company. See Contact Details and Company Details.

5. Dashboard Quick Actions

The Dashboard's Quick Actions widget includes a New Project action that opens Quick Create.

6. Onboarding wizard (first-run)

The first-run Setup Wizard walks new users through creating their first project as part of the welcome flow. Project suggestions are tailored to your role (personal, project manager, freelancer, software developer, content creator, sales, marketing, designer, support, power user). See Setup Wizard.

7. Import or copy

You can also create a project by copying an existing project to another Space via the Copy to Space wizard - see Copy to Space.

Use the closest entry point

Create from CRM when the project belongs to a contact or company; create from Projects when you are planning work from scratch.

Quick Create - the fast path

Quick Create opens a single modal where you set the essentials and save. This is the default when you click any of the entry points above.

Fields

Field	Required	Purpose
Name	Yes	The project's display name
Description	No	A short summary of what the project is about
Colour	No	A gradient for the project's visual identity across the app
Status	No	Active (default), On Hold, Completed, or Canceled
Start date	No	When the project begins (used in health and expected progress calculations)
Deadline	No	When the project should be done (used in health calculations)
Enable CRM	No	Toggle to create the project with CRM enabled
CRM mode	If CRM enabled	Shared or Isolated - see below
Launch Setup Wizard	No	Toggle on to open the wizard right after creation

Only the name is required. Everything else can be set now or edited later from the project detail page.

Launch Setup Wizard toggle

At the bottom of the Quick Create modal, a toggle lets you launch the Project Setup Wizard immediately after the project is created. Turn it on if you want to plan goals, milestones, and import tasks as part of the creation flow. Leave it off for a bare-bones project you'll flesh out later.

Turn on the wizard for planned work

The wizard is best when you already know the project goals, milestones, and starting task list.

The Project Setup Wizard - the guided path

When you enable the Setup Wizard (either from Quick Create or by triggering it on an existing project), PrimeTask walks you through a 7-step flow that sets up a fully-planned project in one sitting.

Step 1 - Basics

Confirm or adjust the project's name, description, colour, status, start date, and deadline. This mirrors the Quick Create fields. If you arrived from Quick Create, the fields are pre-filled with what you already entered.

Step 2 - Import tasks

Browse existing tasks that aren't yet linked to a project and select the ones you want to move into this project. Features:

Search by task name
Hide completed tasks to focus on active work
Pagination for long lists
Multi-select with checkboxes

Selected tasks are linked to the new project when the wizard completes. You can skip this step if you're starting fresh.

Step 3 - Goals

Add project goals - high-level outcomes you want to achieve. In this step you just add goal titles; the full goal configuration (type, Key Results, priority) is done later on the Goals tab. See Project Goals and Project Milestones.

Step 4 - Milestones

Add milestones - key checkpoints with due dates. Each milestone can be linked to one or more goals from Step 3. Milestone types and detailed configuration are set later on the Milestones tab.

Step 5 - Linking

Link the tasks you imported in Step 2 to specific milestones from Step 4. Each task can be linked to one milestone. This is how milestones auto-calculate progress - from the completion of the tasks linked to them.

Step 6 - CRM

Choose whether this project has an integrated CRM, and if so which mode:

Shared - the project uses your Space's existing CRM (contacts, companies, activities)
Isolated - the project gets its own CRM, separate from the Space's CRM
None - no CRM on this project

CRM is part of the Pro tier

Choose CRM during project setup only when the project needs contacts, companies, activities, or CRM tasks. Manage your license from License Settings.

See Project Team & CRM for the full explanation of these modes. The CRM step is skipped automatically if CRM isn't available on your license.

Step 7 - Review

See a summary of everything you configured - imported tasks, goals, milestones, links, CRM mode - and click to apply. PrimeTask saves all the data to the project in one operation.

Skipping the wizard

Every step has a Skip option in the footer. Skipping closes the wizard with the project created (and any already-entered data saved), so you can always bail out early and finish configuration from the detail page.

Banner images

Banner images are added after the project is created, from the top of the Project Details Page:

Upload a file from disk
Pick from Unsplash with keyword search
Remove the current image (the gradient fallback returns)

Projects without a banner image show a colour gradient based on the project's colour setting. See Projects Overview for more on the banner image workflow.

CRM enablement during creation

Both Quick Create and the Setup Wizard let you enable CRM during creation. When enabled, you choose Shared or Isolated:

Shared CRM - new contacts, companies, and activities you add to the project appear in the Space's main CRM alongside everything else. Best for client portfolios where you want unified CRM.
Isolated CRM - the project gets its own CRM data that never mixes with the Space's CRM. When switching to isolated, PrimeTask asks you to confirm because it changes how CRM data is scoped. An Auto-sync with Shared CRM option lets isolated projects optionally mirror updates.

You can change CRM mode later, but switching from shared to isolated (or vice versa) has data implications - review Project Team & CRM before changing a live project.

Things worth knowing

Tasks can be linked to a project at any time

You don't have to decide on the task's project when creating the project. Every task can be assigned to a project from its detail page, during creation, or via Quick Add with @projectname. See Creating Tasks and Quick Add.

First-run onboarding creates your first project

When you first install PrimeTask, the onboarding wizard guides you through creating a Space, setting preferences, and making your first project. The project creation step suggests names based on your selected role. See Setup Wizard.

Projects from CRM auto-link

When you create a project from a CRM contact or company detail page, the new project is automatically linked to that entity. You don't need to manually link them afterward. This saves a step when you're standing up project work around a specific client.

Projects are per-Space

A project is created in the currently active Space. To create a project in a different Space, switch Spaces first. If you want to move an existing project to another Space, use Copy to Space - see Copy to Space.

The wizard can be re-run

If you create a project via Quick Create and later want to use the wizard to finish setup, you can trigger the Setup Wizard on an existing project. This is useful when you create a quick project and come back later to plan goals and milestones properly.

Project name suggestions in the onboarding wizard

During first-run onboarding, the project creation step shows name suggestions tailored to the role you selected earlier (personal, project manager, freelancer, software developer, content creator, sales, marketing, designer, support, or power user). These are starting points - you can type your own name instead.

Common questions

"What's the minimum I need to create a project?"

Just a name. Every other field (description, colour, dates, CRM, tasks, goals, milestones) is optional.

"Should I use Quick Create or the Setup Wizard?"

Quick Create is faster and fine for small or exploratory projects - you can always add goals, milestones, and tasks later. The Setup Wizard is better when you have a clear plan and want to stand up a fully-structured project in one sitting.

"Can I skip steps in the wizard?"

Yes - every step has a Skip option. Skipping saves the project with whatever you've already entered.

"Can I add a banner image during creation?"

Not in Quick Create or the wizard - banner images are added after creation from the project detail page. You can do this immediately after saving.

"How do I create a project from a contact?"

Open the contact's detail page, go to the linked projects section, and use the create-project form there. The new project is automatically linked to that contact. See Contact Details.

"Can I create a project via keyboard shortcut?"

Yes - press ⌘+⇧+P (or Ctrl+⇧+P) from anywhere in the app. Quick Create opens immediately. See Keyboard Shortcuts.

"What happens to imported tasks during the wizard?"

Tasks you select in Step 2 are linked to the new project when the wizard completes. They remain exactly as they were - just with a project field now set.

"Can I undo creating a project?"

The project is created when you save. To remove it, archive or delete it from the project detail page - see Archive.

Where to go next

If you want to…	Read this
Learn what projects are and see the Details Page	Projects Overview
Understand the tabs on the project page	Project Details Page
Use the Overview tab after creation	Project Overview Tab
Add goals and milestones	Project Goals and Project Milestones
Enable or change CRM on the project	Project Team & CRM
Invite a team	Project Team
Link tasks to the project	Creating Tasks
Create from Quick Add syntax	Quick Add
Copy a project to another Space	Copy to Space
Set up your first project during onboarding	Setup Wizard
Return to the Projects hub	Projects Overview