Tasks

Creating Tasks

Required

• Task Name: What you need to do
• Duration: How long you estimate it will take

Optional

• Project/Stage: Where this task belongs
• Priority: Urgent, High, Medium, Low, or None (None is a grey flag that sits below Low everywhere and sorts last)
• Schedule Date: When you plan to work on it
• Notes: Additional context with rich Markdown formatting (Pro)
• Subtasks: Break tasks into smaller steps (Pro)

A task added from the Today view lands in the Inbox unless you choose a project.

Defaults for New Tasks

Three settings under Settings → General decide how anything you create starts out:

• Default task duration: the length a new task gets. Anything with a real length of its own, parsed from the title or carried in from a template, keeps it.
• Default task priority: any level you like, or Last Used, which starts each new task at whatever priority you last set by hand. That suits work that arrives in runs of the same urgency.
• Default subtask duration: the starting length for new subtasks, or None if you would rather set them case by case.

Every way of adding a task in the app resolves through the same settings: the + button, the Mac quick-add bar, dragging the + button into a list, Scan Tasks, and a Markdown import for any line that carries no length of its own.

Drag the + Button (iPhone & iPad)

The + button drags. Pull it into your list to create a task exactly where you drop it: between tasks in Today or the Inbox, into a specific stage of a project, or onto a project card to add it straight to that project. A dotted line with a plus shows where the task will land while you drag. Tap, double-tap, and long-press all work as before.

Quick-Add Bar (Mac)

On Mac, a persistent Add a task bar sits at the bottom of Today, every project, and the Inbox. Its label adapts to where the task will go, so you always know the destination.

• Type a task and press Return to capture it, then keep going to add several in a row without reaching for the toolbar.
• It parses durations, dates, and times from what you type (“45m”, “tomorrow”, “10.15”) just like the inline editor.
• The buttons on the right set the priority (click to cycle, right-click to choose) and the default duration for new tasks.

By Voice

Say “Add a Set task” and the task joins today’s plan without Set opening at all. Any duration in the sentence is parsed, and the free plan’s limits still apply: a full day saves the task to your Inbox, and a full Inbox creates nothing and points you at Pro. The same thing is a Shortcuts action called Add Task, so it works from the Action button, Spotlight and your own automations. See Siri & Shortcuts.

From Your Wrist

The Apple Watch app captures by voice from its + button, and a captured task’s duration can be edited straight from the wrist, with the rest of the day’s times moving with it. See Apple Watch.

Import a Project from Markdown (Pro)

A whole project’s worth of tasks can arrive at once from a Markdown file. # becomes the project, ## headings become stages, list items become tasks, indented list items become subtasks, indented plain text becomes notes, and durations and dates are read from each line. Ordinary Markdown checklists written in other apps work too.

Three ways in: Settings → Data → Import Project from Markdown, Import Project… in the Projects toolbar, or share a .md file to Set from Files, Mail or anywhere else. Paste from Clipboard in that same sheet handles text you have copied rather than saved.

A review step shows exactly what will be created, you can untick anything you don’t want, and one undo removes the whole import. The destination can be a new project or straight into Today.

Scan Tasks from Image (Pro)

Photograph or import any list (handwritten notes, whiteboards, printed lists, screenshots) and Set turns it into tasks. Durations, dates, and times (“45m”, “tomorrow”, “10.15 - Jogging”) are picked up automatically, so a rough list becomes properly timed tasks.

Set uses on-device Apple Intelligence on supported devices, with smart parsing everywhere else. Nothing is created until you review the results: edit titles, durations, and priorities, untick any lines you don’t want, and choose a project or add them straight to Today.

Scan Tasks lives in the Today and project toolbars. See the Scan Tasks documentation for full details.

Smart Title Parsing

Set can automatically detect durations, dates, and start times typed at the end of a task title, saving you from manually adjusting pickers.

Duration Parsing

Add a duration at the end of your task name:

• Write report 45m → duration set to 45 minutes, title becomes “Write report”
• Team meeting 1h → duration set to 60 minutes
• Deep work session 1h30m → duration set to 90 minutes
• Quick review 1.5h → duration set to 90 minutes

Format	Example	Result
Minutes	45m, 45 min, 45 minutes	45 min
Hours	2h, 2 hr, 2 hours	120 min
Hours + Minutes	1h30m, 1h 30m	90 min
Decimal Hours	1.5h, 1.5 hours	90 min

Date Parsing

Add a date or day at the end of your task name:

• Review PR tomorrow → scheduled to tomorrow
• Call dentist Feb 14 → scheduled to Feb 14
• Meeting monday → scheduled to next Monday

Format	Example	Result
Relative	today, tomorrow	Today / tomorrow
Day name	monday, fri	Next occurrence
Month + day	Feb 14, February 14	That date
With year	Feb 14 2026	Exact date
Numeric	2/14	That date

Start Time Parsing

Add a start time at the end of your task name:

• Stand-up at 9am → start time set to 9:00 AM
• Lunch at 12.30pm → start time set to 12:30 PM
• Call at 2pm → start time set to 2:00 PM
• Jogging 10.15 → start time set to 10:15 (a bare time works without “at”)

Combining

You can combine duration and date together:

• Write blog post tomorrow 1h → scheduled to tomorrow, duration 60 min

Ordinal suffixes like 1st, 2nd, 3rd are supported in all month-name formats. Also works with subtask titles for duration parsing.

Redesigned Task Cards

Tap any task card to expand it and see all details inline, no separate sheet required. On Mac, double-click to expand. When a task has notes or subtasks, they open automatically with the card.

Task names, subtask names and stage names save when you finish editing rather than on every keystroke. Typing in a long list no longer lags behind your fingers, because the screen is not rebuilt for every character.

Properties Row

Quick-access pills at the top of the expanded card:

• Priority, Tap to open the priority picker and choose Urgent, High, Medium, Low or None.
• Duration, Tap to open the duration sheet
• Schedule, Tap to pick a date and time for this task
• Notes and Subtasks, Toggle those sections
• ⋯ More, Repeat, templates, Isolate (iPhone and iPad), and delete

The Duration Sheet

Tapping the duration pill on an expanded card opens a proper sheet rather than a menu, on iPhone, iPad and Mac alike:

• Presets from 5m to 4h. One tap applies the length and closes the sheet, so a common duration is as quick as the menu it replaced.
• Plus and minus step the value in five-minute increments.
• Drag the number up or down to scrub through anything in between. Double-tap it to go back to where you started, and a running total under the value shows how far you have moved it.
• A subtask chip appears when the task has unfinished subtasks. Tapping it cycles through three states: match the subtask total now, keep the task matched to that total from here on, then off again. The chip’s label always names what the next tap will do.

Action Bar

On iPhone and iPad, opening a task swaps the tab bar for a floating action bar with that task’s actions. On Mac, the same actions sit along the bottom of the open card (hover any icon for its name):

• Play, Start the timer for this task
• Star, Add/remove from Today view
• Move, Move to a different project/stage
• Delete, Remove the task
• ⌄ Close, Collapse the card

Pin and Isolate

• Pin notes or subtasks (from the notes ⋯ menu or the pin icon) to keep them visible on the collapsed card, notes rendered in full markdown.
• Isolate a task (from the card’s ⋯ menu, or a swipe action you assign) for a distraction-free view of just that one card, with an exit button at the bottom.

Schedule Date

Use the schedule pill on any task card to pick when a task should happen. Scheduling a task stars it and places it in the Today view for that date.

Quick options in the picker:

• Today, schedule for today
• Tomorrow, schedule for tomorrow
• Clear, remove the schedule and unstar the task

You can also drag a task onto a date pill in the week strip to quickly reschedule it to that day.

When the Day Is Already Full

Starring a task queues it after everything already starred, so a day can end up running past the time you said it ends. Set says so rather than quietly running into the small hours.

• Star into a day that is genuinely full and a toast offers Move, which shifts that one task to the first day that has room for it.
• If the plan as a whole overruns, Today’s finish time turns orange and reads something like “2h over”, and a banner counts the tasks starting past your day end. Tap Move there and they shift onto the days ahead, filling each day up to its end before spilling into the next.

Nothing is ever shortened or deleted to make things fit: the work moves, it does not shrink. See Today view for the full picture.

Locked Start Times

Lock a task’s start time to keep it fixed during recalculations. Useful for meetings or calls at a set time.

To lock: expand a task card and tap the lock icon next to the start time. Locked tasks stay in place when you tap the recalculate button.

A locked task will not drag. Picking one up used to unlock it silently on drop, which is the opposite of what a lock is for, so the drag simply refuses to start. Tap the lock icon on the card to open it first, then drag. Everything else flows around the locked slot rather than through it.

Rich Notes with Markdown (Pro)

Task notes support full Markdown formatting, letting you create structured, detailed notes for each task.

Accessing Notes

1. Tap any task to expand the task card
2. Scroll to the Notes section
3. Double-tap the notes area to enter edit mode
4. Double-tap again to exit and see the formatted preview

Double-tapping opens a full-screen notes editor with the markdown toolbar, live syntax highlighting, and more room to write.

Markdown Syntax Guide

Text Formatting:

• Bold: **bold text** or __bold text__
• Italic: *italic text* or _italic text_
• Strikethrough: ~~strikethrough text~~
• Highlight: ==highlighted text==
• Inline code: `code text`

Headings:

# Heading 1
## Heading 2
### Heading 3

Lists:

Bullet lists (use -, *, or +):

- First item
- Second item
  - Nested item (indent with spaces)

Numbered lists:

1. First item
2. Second item
  1. Nested item

Checklists (interactive - tap to toggle):

- [ ] Unchecked item
- [x] Checked item

Links:

[Docs](https://example.com)

Links are tappable in the formatted preview. They are ordinary Markdown, so a note exported to Markdown, or opened in any other app, keeps them.

Other Elements:

• Horizontal rule: --- or ***
• Paragraph breaks: Leave a blank line between paragraphs

Formatting Tools

Use the formatting toolbar above the keyboard to quickly insert:

• Bold, italic, strikethrough, highlight, or code formatting
• Bullet points, numbered lists, or checklists
• Headings and horizontal rules
• Indent and outdent for the current line

The toolbar buttons highlight when your cursor is on formatted text.

The link button. Select some text and tap it, and the selection becomes the link’s label with the address slot left selected, so typing or pasting replaces it straight away. Tap it with nothing selected and you get a [text](url) skeleton to fill in. If a URL is already on your clipboard it goes in for you, which makes turning a phrase into a working link a single tap.

AI Rewrite (Pro)

Tap the sparkles button in any notes editor to reshape your notes without retyping them:

• Improve Formatting: restructures messy notes into clean, structured markdown.
• Rewrite as Clear Steps: turns your notes into an actionable checklist.

It runs on-device with Apple Intelligence, so nothing leaves your device, and one tap reverts to your original notes. See the AI Notes documentation for more.

Customization

Style your notes from Settings → Interface → Markdown Settings: heading colours, bold colour, highlight style, bullet and numbering styles, and indentation. These options are also reachable from the settings icon in the notes toolbar.

Exporting Notes

Export task notes in multiple formats for sharing or printing:

1. Tap the menu icon (⋯) in the task notes section
2. Select “Export Notes”
3. Choose your format:

• PDF - For sharing/printing
• HTML - Web-ready format
• Rich Text - For other apps
• Markdown - Raw text format

4. Share via Messages, Mail, Files, or other apps

Subtasks (Pro)

Break down large tasks into smaller, manageable steps. Subtasks reduce overwhelm by giving you clear, actionable next steps.

Adding Subtasks

1. Tap a task to expand the task card
2. Scroll to the Subtasks section
3. Tap “Add Subtask” button
4. Enter the subtask name and set its duration
5. Repeat to add more subtasks

Working with Subtasks

• Check off subtasks, Tap the checkbox as you complete each step
• Track progress, See completion percentage (e.g., “2/5 completed”)
• Swipe to delete, Swipe left on a subtask to remove it
• Tap anywhere on the row, Tap to edit the subtask
• Drag to reorder, Live drag-and-drop reordering with smooth animations

Pin Subtasks

Want to see subtasks without expanding the card? Tap the pin icon next to “Subtasks” to show them on the collapsed card, perfect for keeping your next steps visible at a glance.

Duration Calculation

A task can take its length from its subtasks, either once or continuously, and both live on one chip in the duration sheet. Tap the task’s duration to open the sheet, then tap the chip. It always names what the next tap will do:

• Match subtasks sets the task to the total of its unfinished subtasks, once. The chip shows that total in brackets, so you can see what you are about to apply.
• Keep in step with subtasks starts tracking, so the task follows as you add, remove or resize subtasks
• Keeping in step with subtasks means it is tracking; tap once more to stop and keep the value where it is

The chip only appears when the task has unfinished subtasks, and the total it applies is clamped between 5 minutes and 8 hours.

Benefits

• Reduces overwhelm for complex tasks
• Provides clear next steps
• Helps track progress visually
• Pin to see subtasks without expanding
• Supports focus and follow-through by reducing cognitive load

Task Templates (Pro)

Save frequently used tasks as reusable templates. Templates preserve all task details including name, duration, subtasks, notes, and priority.

Using Templates

1. When creating a new task, leave the task name field empty
2. Tap the document icon to the right of the task name field
3. Browse templates by category
4. Tap a template to load it instantly
5. Edit any details as needed

Included: Set comes with 20+ preset templates across categories like Daily Routines, Cleaning & Chores, Health & Wellness, and ADHD Support.

Saving Templates

1. Set up a task with all the details you want (name, duration, subtasks, notes, etc.)
2. Tap the template icon in the action bar of the expanded task card
3. Choose Save as Template
4. Give your template a name
5. Choose a category (optional)

Managing Template Categories

Organize templates with custom categories:

1. In the template picker, tap “Edit Categories”
2. Create new categories with:

• Custom name
• SF Symbols icon
• Color choice

3. Drag to reorder categories
4. Assign templates to categories when saving

Repeating Tasks (Pro)

Set tasks to repeat on a schedule and track your consistency over time.

Setting Up Repeating Tasks

1. Tap a task to expand the task card
2. In the Properties row, tap the Repeat pill
3. Choose your recurrence pattern:

• Daily, Every day or every X days. Quick options: Every day, Weekdays, Weekends
• Weekly, Select specific days of the week (e.g., Mon, Wed, Fri)
• Monthly, On a specific day of the month (with a day-of-month picker that handles shorter months automatically)
• Yearly, On a specific date each year

4. Set when the recurrence ends (optional):

• Never
• On a specific date
• After X occurrences

Auto-Starring Due Recurring Tasks

Recurring tasks automatically appear in your Today view when they’re due, so you never forget your regular routines.

Tracking Streaks and Stats

The Task Detail card shows stats for repeating tasks:

• Completed, Total number of times you’ve completed this task
• Last Completed, When you last finished it
• Completion Rate, Percentage with visual progress bar
• Current Streak, How many times in a row you’ve completed it
• Best Streak, Your personal record
• Next Due, When the task will occur next

These stats help you stay motivated and build lasting habits.

Resetting Stats

If you want to start fresh, tap “Reset Stats” in the stats section. This clears completion count and streak data but keeps the task and its recurrence settings.

Exporting Lists

Beyond exporting a single task’s notes, you can export a whole list. Export Today, any project, or your Inbox as a PDF, Markdown, or Rich Text file from the Today and project toolbars. Configure formatting under Settings → General → Export Options. See the Export documentation for details.

Email sends the list in the body of a ready-to-send email. It takes several addresses separated by commas, so a list can go to anyone, and the address in Settings is only a prefill rather than the destination. Every email carries a Markdown file alongside the PDF, and whoever receives it can open that file in Set with Import Project.

Task Priority

Urgent

Critical and time-sensitive. Drop everything else.

High

Important and should be done soon.

Medium

Standard priority. Schedule time for these.

Low

Nice to have. Do these when you have extra time.

None

No priority at all, a grey flag that sits below Low everywhere and sorts last. It exists because a reminder imported from Apple Reminders without a priority used to arrive as Low, and sync then wrote that Low back into Reminders you had never prioritised.

Task Actions & Gestures

• Tap: Expand the task card to view and edit all task properties inline
• Swipe Right: Edit duration (default, customizable in Settings)
• Swipe Left: Unstar (default, customizable in Settings)
• Swipe a blank task: A just-created task with no title yet deletes when you swipe it, instead of running your usual swipe action (iPhone & iPad)
• Log a completed task: Swipe a finished task to log it, in Today, Projects, and the Inbox (iPhone & iPad), or right-click it and choose Log Task on Mac. It moves to your stats and clears from the list, so you no longer have to log the whole day at once. Swipe the other way for Log All to clear every completed task in that view at once. Right-clicking a completed task on Mac also offers Log All Completed, which clears every finished task in that view in one go.
• Drag: Reorder in Today view, Inbox, and projects. Drag into projects from inbox, or into stages from project view.
• Long-press: Start dragging a task to move it (including onto date pills)

Dragging

Drag and drop was rebuilt:

• Rows step aside while your finger is still moving, rather than settling once you let go, and the new order is written to the database once on drop instead of on every row you cross.
• Pickup is about twice as quick.
• The floating miniature card is gone. The rows themselves show the drag, so there is nothing hovering under your finger to obscure the list.
• The system’s green plus badge is gone from every drop target. Dropping an Inbox task on a project card shows a large plus in that project’s own colour instead.
• Drops land exactly on the line you were shown. A position whose resulting times could not survive the drop, such as beside a task locked earlier than the plan can begin, is refused rather than accepted and then rearranged.
• A task with a locked start time will not drag until you tap its lock open.
• Subtasks travel with their parent when a task moves between stages.

Swipe Actions (Pro)

Pro users can customize swipe left and swipe right actions in Settings → Interface → Swipe Actions. Available options:

• Duration: Edit task duration
• Unstar: Remove task from Today view
• Priority: Change task priority
• Schedule: Open the full date and time picker to schedule the task
• Delete: Delete the task
• Move: Move task to a different project or stage
• Select Mode: Enter select mode for bulk actions
• Start Timer: Start the timer for this task
• Isolate: Open a distraction-free view of just that one task
• Skip to Tomorrow: Move the task to tomorrow. Assign it as a swipe action, or turn on the evening option in Settings → Interface so it only appears alongside your usual swipe after a time you choose (default 5 PM). The task auto-stars back into Today when tomorrow arrives, with an Undo toast if you tap it by mistake.

You can also customize the swipe colors in Settings → Interface → Customization.

Context Menus

• Long-press a project to edit or delete it quickly
• Right-click tasks on macOS for quick access to star, duplicate, move a task to a project, set a repeat, and more
• Convert Subtask to Task (Mac): Right-click a subtask on Mac and pick Convert to Task to promote it to a top-level task in the same project or stage

Undo & Redo

Made a change you didn’t mean to (added a task, deleted the wrong one, moved something)? Press ⌘Z to undo and ⌘⇧Z to redo, right across the app.

Quick Delete & Title Length

Two options under Settings → Interface tune how tasks behave:

• Quick Delete: Turn it on to delete tasks instantly, with no confirmation popup.
• Adjustable title length: Choose how many lines task and subtask titles show before they truncate, from one to five, with separate controls for tasks and subtasks.

An Undo pill for Quick Delete. With the confirmation gone, a mistap on the trash used to be final, and the trash sits next to the collapse chevron. Deleting a task now shows a compact Undo pill for a few seconds, coloured like the tab bar. Tap anywhere on it and the task comes back with its fields, subtasks, schedule and project links intact. If the delete also removed a linked calendar event or reminder, the next sync recreates it.

The pill covers deleting one task. A batch delete from Select Mode still goes through immediately with no way back.