How to Manage Projects in ClickUp

ClickUp is a flexible work platform that helps you organize projects, manage tasks, and collaborate with your team in one place. This step-by-step guide shows you how to set up your workspace, create projects, and track progress from planning to delivery.

This how-to is based on the official project management resources in the ClickUp Help Center so you can build reliable, scalable workflows.

1. Understand the ClickUp hierarchy

Before you build your first project, learn how work is structured. The hierarchy lets you move from high-level planning down to individual tasks.

• Workspace: Your company or organization account.
• Spaces: High-level areas such as departments, clients, or programs.
• Folders: Groups of related Lists that represent projects or project groups.
• Lists: Collections of tasks that usually represent a project phase, sprint, or workstream.
• Tasks and Subtasks: Actionable work items with assignees, due dates, and details.

Use this structure to separate teams, projects, and phases while keeping everything easy to find.

2. Set up Spaces for project work in ClickUp

Start by creating Spaces that match how your organization plans and executes work.

1. Open your Workspace and select the option to create a new Space.
2. Name the Space after a department, client, or major initiative.
3. Choose Space-level settings such as permissions, ClickApps, and default views.
4. Decide whether the Space is private or shared with your whole team.

Some common Space ideas include:

• Product development
• Marketing campaigns
• Client delivery
• Operations and internal projects

Spaces give you a dedicated area to group project Folders, Lists, and related views.

3. Create project Folders and Lists in ClickUp

Next, translate your project structure into Folders and Lists so each initiative is clearly organized.

3.1 Add a Folder for each project

1. Within the correct Space, create a new Folder.
2. Name it after the project, program, or client engagement.
3. Optionally set color coding and default views for the Folder.

Folders help you keep all Lists and tasks for that project in one place, separate from other work.

3.2 Add Lists for phases or sprints in ClickUp

1. Open your project Folder and create a List for each phase, sprint, or stream.
2. Use clear names such as “Discovery”, “Design”, “Development”, “Launch”, or “Sprint 1”.
3. Define List-level views like Board, List, or Gantt to match how your team works.

By mapping phases into Lists, you can easily see which tasks belong to each step of your project lifecycle.

4. Build and organize tasks in ClickUp

Tasks are the core of your project plan. Each task should represent a discrete piece of work.

4.1 Create tasks with key details

1. Open the relevant List and add a new task.
2. Give it a clear, action-oriented name.
3. Add a description with requirements, context, or links.
4. Assign one or more owners responsible for the work.
5. Set start and due dates, or date ranges if scheduling is flexible.

Use subtasks to break large tasks into smaller, trackable steps. This makes estimates and progress updates more accurate.

4.2 Use custom fields for better project tracking in ClickUp

Custom fields let you add structured data to tasks so you can track exactly what matters for your projects.

Common custom fields include:

• Effort or story points
• Budget or cost
• Priority level
• Client or stakeholder name
• Risk level or dependency flags

Once configured in your Space or Folder, custom fields appear on tasks and in views, giving you sortable and filterable project data.

5. Manage task statuses and workflows in ClickUp

Statuses show where each task stands in your workflow. Building a clear status set helps you and your team understand progress at a glance.

5.1 Configure project-specific statuses

1. Open Space, Folder, or List settings.
2. Define a status workflow that mirrors how your team works, for example: Backlog → In Progress → In Review → Blocked → Complete.
3. Save the template and reuse it across similar projects.

Consistent statuses let you filter, sort, and report on work across multiple Lists and Folders.

5.2 Update statuses as work moves forward

As your project progresses, keep tasks up to date:

• Move task cards between columns in Board view.
• Update the status field directly inside the task.
• Use automation rules to move statuses when conditions are met.

Accurate statuses ensure your project views and dashboards always reflect reality.

6. Use ClickUp views to monitor projects

Views help you see the same work in different ways so you can plan, execute, and track your projects effectively.

6.1 Board and List views for daily work

• List view: See tasks in a structured table with columns for assignee, status, dates, and custom fields.
• Board view: Visualize tasks as cards grouped by status or another field, ideal for agile and Kanban workflows.

Switch between these views to manage detailed task information or quickly rebalance workloads.

6.2 Gantt and Timeline views for schedules

To plan schedules and dependencies, use timeline-focused views:

• Gantt view: Display tasks on a horizontal timeline, adjust dates with drag-and-drop, and visualize dependencies.
• Timeline view: See work allocation across days and weeks to ensure the team is not over capacity.

These views make it easy to see critical paths, overlaps, and potential delays.

7. Collaborate with your team in ClickUp

Project success depends on clear communication. Use built-in collaboration features to keep discussions and decisions close to the work.

• Comments: Discuss details directly on tasks, tag teammates, and attach files.
• Proofing and approvals: Collect feedback and track sign-offs on creative or document-based work.
• Docs: Store project briefs, meeting notes, and requirements in connected documents.

By centralizing communication, you reduce the risk of lost information and keep everyone aligned.

8. Track progress and report on projects in ClickUp

Once work is underway, use reporting features to understand progress, blockers, and outcomes.

• Build Dashboards with widgets for status breakdowns, burndown charts, and workload.
• Filter views by assignee, List, or custom fields to review specific portions of your project.
• Save filters and view settings so you can return to them quickly during recurring status meetings.

Regularly reviewing these views helps project managers make informed decisions and adjust plans before issues escalate.

9. Automate routine project steps in ClickUp

Automation reduces manual work and keeps your projects consistent.

Examples of useful automations include:

• Change status when a task is assigned.
• Assign tasks automatically based on List or custom field values.
• Post a comment or send a notification when a task moves to a specific status.

Set up automations at the Space, Folder, or List level to standardize processes across similar projects.

10. Learn more about ClickUp project management

For deeper, tool-specific instructions and the latest feature updates, review the official project management section of the ClickUp Help Center at this page.

If you want expert help designing scalable, AI-ready project workflows, you can also work with a specialist consulting partner such as Consultevo.

By following these steps to structure your hierarchy, configure views, and standardize workflows, you can use ClickUp as a powerful hub for planning, executing, and tracking every project in your organization.

Need Help With ClickUp?

If you want expert help building, automating, or scaling your ClickUp workspace, work with ConsultEvo — trusted ClickUp Solution Partners.

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