Slack lists: Track project tasks

When your team is collaborating in Slack but keeping track of projects in another tool, context can get lost. With lists, you can capture, track, and stay aligned on tasks — right where you’re already working.

Capture project work

Let’s say you’re starting a new project and you’ve created a channel to coordinate with the team. As you discuss the project in the channel, use a list to track key tasks and their deadlines.

Create a new list

Start a list from scratch, or use one of our templates (the Project tracker template is a great option).

1. From your desktop, hover over   More, then select   Lists.
2. In the top-right corner, click   New, then select   List.
3. If you’d like, select the Project tracker template, then click Use Template.

Customize your list

Customize the list with the information you’d like to include. In the Project tracker template, Task, Status, Assignee, and Due Date are added for you, but you can add, edit, or delete fields to suit your needs.

Add a field

Edit a field

Delete a field

1. From the list, click the plus icon at the end of the top row.
2. Enter a name for the field and choose a field type. Select additional options if prompted, then click Save.

1. From the list, hover over the field you’d like to edit.
2. Click Edit field.
3. Make your changes, and click Save when you’re done.

1. From the list, hover over the field you’d like to delete.
2. Click Delete field.
3. Click Yes, Delete This Field to confirm.

Add items to the list

Once you’ve set up your list, start adding items for each project task you need to complete.

1. Click Add item and enter a description.
2. For each item, click the field cells to enter relevant information or select an option (like an assignee or due date).

Tip: You can turn any message into a task. From a conversation, hover over a message and click the   three dots icon, then select Add to list.

Create list views

You and your team can visualize information in different ways by creating views that you can save and come back to. For example, you might want to create a view that filters your tasks by priority and sorts them by due date.

1. From a list, click the   filters icon .
2. Below Edit view, choose how you’d like to sort, filter, hide, and group the items in the list. You can also choose between table or board layout.
3. Click Save View, then click Save As New View.
4. To switch between saved views, click   All items. 

Keep the right people aligned

To keep the right people aligned on work being done, share the list with specific people or channels, assign tasks, and start dedicated threads for items that need additional discussion.

Share your list

If there’s already a channel dedicated to the project, share the list there so everyone has access to it.

1. From the list, click Share in the top-right corner.
2. Type the name of people or channels, then click the Can edit drop-down menu to decide if they can view or edit the list and select Share.
3. To set general permissions, click Only invited people can access. Then choose Anyone in [organization] can view or Anyone in [organization] can edit.

Assign tasks

When you assign someone a task in a list, they can view it in the Assigned to you section of the Lists page. 

1. From the list, click the People icon below the Assignee field.
2. Search for someone’s name, or select them from the list.

Start a message thread

When you need to have a focused conversation about a task, whether to discuss blockers or share status updates, start a thread for the item in the list.

1. From the list, hover over an item, then click   Add comment to start a thread or   View comment to continue a thread.
2. Type and send your message.

Enable notifications

You can enable notifications for items in a list you want to keep tabs on. For example, it might be helpful to get notified whenever the status of certain items change.

1. From the list, hover over the item you want to enable notifications for and click   Open.
2. Click the three dots icon, then hover over Notifications on and choose an option. 

You'll find any notifications you receive in   Activity.

More ways to use lists