Project Management in Notion: A Step-by-Step

• Guide for Teams Managing projects and collaborating with a team can be streamlined in Notion.
• With its flexible databases and views, Notion lets you build a project tracker that fits your workflow.
• You can plan, track, and document projects in one shared workspace, reducing context-switching between tools .

Guide for Teams

Managing projects and collaborating with a team can be streamlined in Notion. With its flexible databases and views, Notion lets you build a project tracker that fits your workflow. You can plan, track, and document projects in one shared workspace, reducing context-switching between tools . In Notion, you can integrate to-do lists, Kanban boards, timelines, and documentation. For example, Notion’s official guides and user examples show how you can embed tasks, meeting notes, and even content from other apps (like Figma or GitHub) directly into project pages . This makes it easier for team members to see all work and files related to a project in one place.

Setting Up a Project Tracking System

Create a “Projects” Database. Start by making a new database (Table - Full Page) called "Projects."

Each entry is a project. Key properties might include

Project Name (Title)

Description (Text) Owner (Person) Status (Select: e.g., “Planning,” “In Progress,” “Review,” “Completed”) Start Date , Due Date (Date fields)

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Priority or Category . Think of this as your project dashboard – a place to see all projects at a glance. You can then create tasks or sub-tasks linked to each project. Create a “Tasks” Database. Make another database for tasks (or called “To-Do’s” or “Issues”). Key properties:

Task Name (Title)

Project (Relation to Projects database) – this lets you link tasks to a specific project. Assignee (Person)

Status (Select: e.g., To Do, In Progress, Done)

Due Date (Date)

Type or Category (Select: e.g., Bug, Feature, Documentation)

This relational setup means every task can point to its project, and on each project page you can see all related tasks (via a “Linked Database” or a roll-up if you use one). Views: Table, Kanban, Timeline. Notion’s multiple views are powerful for project management: Kanban Board (Board View by Status): Create a view of the Tasks database where cards are grouped by Status . For example, columns for To Do, Doing, Review, Done. The Kanban board “is ideal for organizing tasks within each phase” of a project.

You can simply drag tasks across columns as work progresses. This visual workflow is great for agile teams. Timeline or Calendar: In a timeline view of the Projects or Tasks database, you see tasks or projects laid out on a timeline. Notion’s timeline helps “map out project phases clearly, making it easier to identify potential bottlenecks” . For instance, put tasks on the timeline by their Due Date . This shows if too many tasks cluster at once, or if a project phase is lagging.

Table (List) Views: Useful for quick entry and bulk editing. You might have a simple to-do list view where you filter only tasks assigned to you. Kanban for Projects: You can even make a Kanban view of the Projects database by Status (Planning, In Progress, Completed). This is helpful for an executive overview. Organize with Phases and Subtasks. For complex projects, break them into phases or milestones. In Notion, you could treat phases as high-level tasks or separate pages.

The key is hierarchy: you might have a main project page with sections or database filters for each phase’s tasks. As one guide suggests, “create distinct phase categories and subcategories” when setting up, to break the project into manageable parts . Use Templates for Repeated Workflows. If your projects follow a pattern (e.g. new marketing campaign, software release, onboarding project), create a Page Template in the Projects database.

This template can include

A sublinked Tasks database filtered by this project.

Pre-structured sections (Overview, Goals, Meeting Notes, etc.).

Default properties or initial tasks. 7. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 1. 2.

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Using templates streamlines kicking off a new project. Notion recommends using templates to ensure “repetitive processes to be streamlined” and maintain consistency .

Track Progress and Collaborate.

Status Updates: Encourage team members to update the Status of tasks as they work. Your Kanban columns will then reflect the workflow. Comments & Mentions: Team members can leave comments on any task or project page. Use @ to mention colleagues (Notion will notify them). This keeps discussion tied to the relevant task. Embed Files: Inside project or task pages, embed relevant documents: reports, spreadsheets, even external content via embeds (Figma designs, Google Docs). Notion’s guide shows how you can “embed content from various external tools into your Notion pages” so everything is visible. Database Locks (Optional): For larger teams, you can use page or database locking to prevent accidental changes (e.g., lock final project plans so they aren’t edited by mistake) .

Using Kanban and Other Views

Kanban Boards: As noted, a Kanban view is a popular choice. You might have one Kanban for tasks (steps in the workflow) and one for projects (like which phase each project is). This gives a quick visual on what’s happening. For agile teams especially, having each column represent a project phase helps “promote transparency across the team” . Timeline View: Plan deadlines with the timeline. If you set Start Date and Due Date on tasks or projects, Notion’s timeline view is basically a mini-Gantt chart.

If a date changes, the chart auto-adjusts. This feature is handy because you can drag bars in the timeline if schedules shift (one Notion user shared that changing a due date automatically updated the Gantt chart) . Dashboards: Consider creating a top-level Dashboard page. On it, embed filtered linked views of your Projects and Tasks databases (e.g., a list of “My Tasks for Today,” a chart of tasks by status). Notion’s flexibility allows you to mix text, status icons, and databases all on one page.

Collaborative Best Practices

Real-Time Collaboration: Notion supports multiple people editing simultaneously . You can see teammates’ cursors and edits in real-time. This means two team members can comment on the same spec or update tasks without version conflicts. It’s a true shared workspace. Permissions: Set access levels properly. For example, all members can edit project pages, but lock the overall Projects database structure so only admins add new fields . Notion lets you share whole workspaces or individual pages with specific team members. Comments & Mentions: Encourage using @mention to bring someone into a discussion on a task. Also use checklists within tasks for smaller steps; Notion checkboxes make sub-items trackable. Naming & Templates: Use clear names for projects and tasks. Make page templates for things like “Meeting Notes” or “Status Report” so everyone uses a consistent format.21 1. 2. 3. 4.

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Comparison to Other Tools

Notion’s strength is its flexibility. Unlike Trello (which is Kanban-focused) or Asana (which is tasks-focused), Notion aims to be an all-in-one workspace. It can handle project tracking with boards and tables, while also storing documentation and knowledge . Keep in mind, though, that Notion doesn’t automate things (no built-in task dependencies or email reminders). As one analysis notes, if you need heavy PM features like automated workflows, you might integrate Notion with other tools or use its AI/reminders where possible .

Wrapping Up

By following these steps, you can set up a Notion system that evolves with your team . You get visual project boards and clear task lists, all connected to notes and docs in the same space. As described by experts, this clutter-free digital workspace helps avoid the chaos of disorganized project management . With Notion, your team can focus on getting things done, rather than jumping between apps.

Next step

If you want to turn this into a reusable workspace, save your best blocks as a page template, name your properties consistently, and test your setup on mobile. Small tweaks like clearer statuses, fewer views, and better naming make a template feel instantly premium.

Try the free tools to estimate time saved and plan your next build, or head back to the Articles page to keep learning.