Custom Statuses & Priorities
Tailor your workflow with custom task statuses organised by workflow category, custom priority levels, 22 status templates, 6 priority templates, drag-and-drop reordering, and per-Space configuration.
Every Space in PrimeTask starts with a default set of statuses (To Do, In Progress, In Review, Done) and priorities (Low, Medium, High, Urgent). These work for most people. But if your workflow has more stages - or different stages entirely - you can create your own from scratch or apply one of PrimeTask's built-in templates.
Custom statuses and priorities are a Pro feature. The defaults are available on every license. See License Settings to upgrade.
What you can do
Statuses
- Create custom statuses with your own names and colours, assigned to workflow categories (Not Started, Active, Complete, Closed)
- Pick from 22 pre-built status templates - Starter, Kanban, Scrum, GTD, Software Development, Bug Tracking, Sales Pipeline, and many more
- Save your current status set as a reusable template for other Spaces
- Drag statuses to reorder - within a category or across categories
- Set a default status for new tasks and a default complete status for when users mark tasks done
- Edit or delete any custom status - with task reassignment if the status is in use
- Manage statuses for any Space without switching - a Space selector lets you configure another Space from inside the same panel
Priorities
- Create custom priority levels with your own names and colours
- Pick from 6 pre-built priority templates - Standard, Simple, Extended, Numbered (P0–P4), MoSCoW, and Urgency Matrix
- Save your current priorities as a reusable template
- Drag to reorder by urgency
- Set a default priority for new tasks
- Edit or delete any custom priority - with task reassignment if the priority is in use
- Manage priorities for any Space without switching
How to open Custom Statuses & Priorities
- Settings → Category Management: Open Settings from the sidebar, open the Category Management card, and switch to the Statuses or Priorities tab. See Category Management Settings.
- Settings search: Open Settings and type statuses, priorities, or category.
- Command palette: Press ⌘+K (or Ctrl+K), type statuses or priorities.
- During the Setup Wizard: The initial setup flow offers status and priority template selection during Space creation. See Help & Documentation Settings.
Things worth knowing
Workflow categories - why they matter
Every status belongs to one of four workflow categories that control how PrimeTask treats tasks with that status:
| Category | Meaning | Effect on the app |
|---|---|---|
| Not Started | Work that hasn't begun | Tasks count as "remaining" in project progress; not included in "active" counts |
| Active | Work in progress | Tasks count as "active"; included in in-progress metrics |
| Complete | Successfully finished | Tasks count as "done"; project progress advances; triggers the next occurrence for recurring tasks |
| Closed | Ended without completion (cancelled, archived, deferred) | Excluded from most metrics; treated as resolved but not successfully completed |
When you create or move a status, you assign it to one of these categories. The category determines how the app counts, filters, and reports on tasks with that status - it's not just a label.
Pick categories deliberately
A status named "Blocked" placed in Active means PrimeTask treats blocked tasks as actively in progress. Place it in Not Started and blocked tasks count as not yet started. The category matters more than the name.
Every Space must have at least one status in Not Started and at least one in Complete. You can't delete the last status in either category.
Default statuses
Every new Space starts with four statuses:
- To Do - Not Started (the default status for new tasks)
- In Progress - Active
- In Review - Active
- Done - Complete (the default complete status when users mark tasks done)
These work for most simple workflows. Custom statuses let you expand, rename, or completely replace them.
Creating a custom status
Click Add Status (or pick from a template). For each status you set:
- Name - whatever fits your workflow ("QA Testing", "Blocked", "Ready to Deploy", "Waiting on Client")
- Colour - pick from a palette of rich colours for visual distinction
- Workflow category - assign to Not Started, Active, Complete, or Closed
The new status immediately appears in every status dropdown, filter, board column, and view across the Space.
22 pre-built status templates
Instead of building from scratch, pick a template that matches your workflow. PrimeTask ships with 22 templates covering a wide range of industries and methodologies:
General: Starter, Simple, Kanban, Personal Tasks
Software & Development: Software Development, Bug Tracking, Scrum Board, Scrum (Full), Feature Pipeline, Game Development, Operations & IT
Creative & Content: Content Creation, Design Project, Audio Production
Business: Sales Pipeline, Customer Support, Marketing Campaign, Project Management
Productivity: Getting Things Done (GTD), Goal Tracker, Learning Path
PrimeTask Signature: Prime Status (PrimeTask's own recommended workflow)
Each template comes with a full set of statuses mapped to the four workflow categories. Apply a template and your Space's statuses are replaced with the template's set. You can then add, remove, or reorder individual statuses to fine-tune.
Save as template
If you've built a status set you like, click Save as Template to capture it. Your custom template appears alongside the built-in templates in the picker and can be applied to any Space. Useful for setting up a consistent workflow across multiple Spaces.
Template requirements
To save as a template, your status set must have at least 2 statuses, at least one in Not Started, at least one in Complete, and at least one marked as the default.
Drag-and-drop reordering
Drag statuses up and down to reorder them within a category. You can also drag a status across categories - for example, move "On Hold" from Active to Not Started if you decide held tasks shouldn't count as in-progress. The drag respects the constraint that you can't leave Not Started or Complete empty.
Editing and deleting statuses
Click a status to edit its name, colour, or category. Click delete to remove it. If any tasks currently use the status you're deleting, PrimeTask asks you to reassign them to another status before the deletion proceeds - no tasks are left in limbo.
Default priorities
Every new Space starts with four priority levels:
- Low
- Medium (the default for new tasks)
- High
- Urgent
Creating a custom priority
Click Add Priority (or pick from a template). For each priority you set:
- Name - whatever fits your workflow ("Critical", "Backlog", "P0", "Nice to Have")
- Colour - pick from a palette
- Level - a numeric urgency level (higher = more urgent) that controls the order in dropdowns and sorts
6 pre-built priority templates
| Template | Levels |
|---|---|
| Standard (4 Levels) | Low, Medium, High, Urgent |
| Simple (3 Levels) | Low, Medium, High |
| Extended (4 Levels) | Low, Medium, High, Critical |
| Numbered (P0–P4) | P4 Nice to Have, P3 Low, P2 Medium, P1 High, P0 Critical |
| MoSCoW | Won't Have, Could Have, Should Have, Must Have |
| Urgency Matrix | Not Urgent, Somewhat Urgent, Urgent, Urgent & Important |
Apply a template to replace your Space's priority set.
Drag-and-drop reordering
Drag priorities up and down to reorder by urgency. The visual order matches the order shown in dropdowns, filters, and board columns when grouping by priority.
Managing another Space's statuses and priorities
Both the Statuses and Priorities tabs have a Space selector at the top - you can switch to a different Space and manage its statuses/priorities without leaving the panel. This is the right way to configure a fresh Space without flipping between the sidebar and Settings.
How statuses and priorities connect to the rest of PrimeTask
Board View - when grouping by status (the default), each custom status becomes a kanban column. Drag a task between columns to change its status. When grouping by priority, each priority level becomes a column. See Board View.
List View - custom statuses and priorities appear in the inline dropdowns on each task row for quick editing. They're also available as sort and group options. See List View.
Filters - custom statuses and priorities appear automatically in every filter dropdown across all views. You can filter by multiple statuses or priorities at once. See Task Filters & Sorting.
Task creation - new tasks default to the Space's default status and default priority. Change them during creation or edit later. See Creating Tasks.
Automations - automations can trigger on status changes and can set status/priority as actions. See Automations Settings.
Project progress - project completion percentages are calculated from how many tasks are in Complete vs Not Started/Active categories.
Apple Reminders sync - the sync respects status categories to determine which tasks to sync.
Common questions
"I want a simple three-column Kanban: To Do, Doing, Done."
Apply the Simple status template - it gives you To Do, In Progress, and Done. Then switch to Board View grouped by status.
"I want a full Scrum workflow."
Apply the Scrum (Full) or Scrum Board status template. You'll get Backlog, Sprint, In Progress, Code Review, Testing, Done, and more - all mapped to the right workflow categories.
"I changed a status from Active to Not Started. What happens to my tasks?"
Tasks with that status are now counted as "not started" instead of "active" in project progress and metrics. The tasks themselves don't change - only how PrimeTask categorises them.
"I deleted a status that had tasks on it."
PrimeTask asked you to reassign those tasks to another status before the deletion. If you confirmed the reassignment, the tasks are now on the new status. No tasks are ever left without a status.
"Can I use different statuses in different Spaces?"
Yes - statuses and priorities are per-Space. Your Work Space can use Scrum statuses while your Personal Space uses Simple. They're completely independent.
"I want the MoSCoW priority system instead of Low/Medium/High/Urgent."
Apply the MoSCoW priority template - it gives you Won't Have, Could Have, Should Have, and Must Have.
"Can Standard users create custom statuses?"
No - custom statuses and custom priorities are Pro features. Standard users use the four default statuses and four default priorities. The defaults work well for simple workflows; Pro unlocks full customisation. See License Settings.
Where to go next
| If you want to… | Read this |
|---|---|
| Manage statuses and priorities from Settings | Category Management Settings |
| See statuses as Kanban board columns | Board View |
| Sort and group by status/priority in a table | List View |
| Filter by status or priority | Task Filters & Sorting |
| See how statuses affect project progress | Projects Overview |
| Set up automations that trigger on status changes | Automations Settings |
| Create tasks with a specific status/priority | Creating Tasks |
| Upgrade to unlock custom statuses and priorities | License Settings |
| Return to the Tasks hub | Tasks Overview |