How to Move From Trello to ClickUp Step-by-Step

If you are ready to upgrade your project management from Trello, ClickUp gives you more views, automation, and reporting so your team can manage work in one place.

This how-to guide walks you through evaluating your current Trello setup and rebuilding it in ClickUp using information and comparisons based on the Trello alternatives overview at this ClickUp blog resource.

Why Switch From Trello to ClickUp

Before you migrate, clarify why you are moving to a new platform so you can design your workspace correctly from day one.

Common reasons teams move to ClickUp include:

Needing advanced task management beyond simple boards
Wanting built-in docs, whiteboards, and goal tracking
Centralizing communication and reducing app switching
Getting better reporting and workload visibility
Requiring more flexible views than Trello lists and cards

Keeping these reasons in mind will guide how you set up Spaces, Folders, and Lists after import.

Plan Your Migration to ClickUp

Good planning avoids chaos when your team transitions tools. Use these preparation steps before touching any settings in ClickUp.

1. Audit Your Current Trello Boards

Review each board and list in Trello and decide what should move and what can be archived. Note:

Active projects and their boards
Lists that map to stages in a workflow (for example: To Do, Doing, Done)
Automation rules or Power-Ups you depend on
Custom fields you use frequently
Checklists that should become subtasks

Clean up old cards, close unused boards, and remove clutter before migrating to ClickUp so you start with a streamlined workspace.

2. Map Trello Concepts to ClickUp Hierarchy

ClickUp uses a structured hierarchy so you can organize information at scale. Roughly map your current setup like this:

Workspaces: Your company or major business unit
Spaces: Departments or large project categories
Folders: Programs, clients, or big initiatives
Lists: Specific projects or workflows
Tasks: Work items that were Trello cards
Subtasks: Steps that were Trello checklists

Make a simple mapping document so everyone understands how Trello boards will appear inside ClickUp after import.

3. Decide Which ClickUp Features to Use First

The platform offers more features than typical Kanban tools. At the start, choose a small set of features to avoid overwhelming your team:

Board view to mirror Trello-style workflows
List view for sortable, filterable task tables
Due dates, assignees, and priorities
Comments and @mentions for collaboration
Simple custom fields to replace Trello fields

You can layer in advanced capabilities like automations, dependencies, and dashboards after you are comfortable with the basics.

How to Import Trello Data Into ClickUp

Once your plan is in place, you can move your tasks. The following steps describe the typical import process based on how most teams transition from Trello.

4. Prepare Your ClickUp Workspace

Create or log in to your account and set up your initial structure:

Create a Workspace if you do not already have one.
Set up Spaces for each department or large work area.
Create Folders for major projects, programs, or clients.
Add Lists inside Folders for each Trello board you plan to migrate.

Having this framework ready makes it easier to place imported tasks where they belong.

5. Use the Trello Importer in ClickUp

Inside your Workspace, access the import tools. Then follow these general steps:

Choose Trello as the import source.
Authorize access to your Trello account.
Select boards and lists you want to import.
Map boards to Spaces, Folders, or Lists in ClickUp based on your earlier planning.
Confirm field mapping so titles, descriptions, and checklists come over correctly.

After the import runs, you will see your former cards appear as tasks with the same titles and content where possible.

6. Validate Your Imported Tasks

Review a few sample Lists and tasks to confirm everything looks right:

Check that tasks are in the right Lists.
Verify assignees and due dates where applicable.
Confirm checklists either stayed as checklists or became subtasks as planned.
Review custom fields to see if anything is missing.

Fix any mapping errors now to avoid confusion later for your wider team.

Rebuild Workflows Using ClickUp Views

Once your data is in place, set up views that match or improve on your old Trello boards.

7. Create a ClickUp Board View That Mirrors Trello

To maintain familiarity for your team:

Open a List or Folder that contains imported tasks.
Add a Board view if it is not already visible.
Set columns to your workflow stages (for example: Backlog, In Progress, Review, Done).
Group tasks by status so moving a card across columns updates its state.

This gives your team a Kanban experience similar to Trello, with the extra option to switch to List or Calendar views when needed.

8. Enhance Your Workflow With Advanced ClickUp Features

After your basic board is up and running, take advantage of capabilities that go beyond classic Trello-style boards:

Multiple views for the same work (Board, List, Calendar, Gantt, or Timeline).
Custom fields for budgets, estimates, or client details.
Dependencies to indicate blocking tasks.
Time tracking for billing and productivity insight.
Docs and Whiteboards to capture requirements and brainstorm ideas next to tasks.

Introduce new features gradually to keep your team focused and reduce resistance to change.

Collaborate and Communicate in ClickUp

Centralized collaboration is one of the biggest benefits when moving from simple boards to a complete work platform.

9. Replace Trello Comments With ClickUp Task Collaboration

Make it clear to your team that all work conversations happen inside tasks:

Use comments on tasks instead of email threads.
@mention teammates to notify them and assign action items.
Attach files directly to tasks rather than scattering them across other tools.
Use rich text formatting in descriptions and comments for clarity.

This keeps all context right where the work lives.

10. Use ClickUp for Cross-Team Visibility

Unlike isolated boards, the platform lets you connect multiple projects and departments:

Create dashboards to combine metrics from many Lists.
Use workload views to see capacity across team members.
Filter views to show only tasks assigned to you or due this week.
Share Spaces or Lists with stakeholders who need visibility but not full editing rights.

Better visibility helps leadership spot bottlenecks and allocate resources more strategically.

Optimize and Scale Your ClickUp Setup

After your core workflows are stable, you can refine and scale.

11. Standardize With Templates

Turn repeatable projects into templates:

Create project templates for client onboarding, campaigns, sprints, or launches.
Include tasks, subtasks, dependencies, and custom fields.
Clone templates whenever you start a new instance of that process.

This reduces setup time and keeps processes consistent across the organization.

12. Automate Repetitive Work

Use automation rules to handle routine updates:

Update status when a task is moved to a different list.
Auto-assign tasks based on status or priority.
Send notifications when due dates are approaching.
Create follow-up tasks when issues are marked as complete.

Carefully chosen automations free your team from manual updates and reduce the chance of tasks slipping through the cracks.

Support and Continuous Improvement

Your migration does not end at import. Plan for training and ongoing improvements so everyone gets the most value from the platform.

13. Train Your Team on ClickUp Essentials

Offer short training sessions so people understand how to work effectively:

Navigating Spaces, Folders, and Lists
Creating and updating tasks
Using Board and List views
Commenting and using @mentions
Finding work with search and filters

Combine live walkthroughs with written SOPs so new hires can learn quickly.

14. Review and Improve Your Setup Regularly

Set a recurring review, such as once per quarter, to evaluate how you use ClickUp:

Remove unused Spaces, views, and fields.
Refine templates and automations based on feedback.
Adjust permissions as teams grow or restructure.
Experiment with new features that support current goals.

Continuous refinement keeps your workspace fast, relevant, and easy to use.

Next Steps and Additional Resources

By following these steps, you can move smoothly from Trello to a more powerful environment without disrupting your team. For additional strategic guidance on tooling, automation, and implementation, you can explore consulting resources like Consultevo.

For a deeper comparison of Trello and other tools, review the full breakdown of Trello alternatives on the official ClickUp blog and use it as inspiration to keep refining your own workspace.

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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