To make a checklist in Notion, type [] followed by a space, or type /todo, and Notion adds a to-do block with a checkbox. Press Enter for the next item and click a box to tick it. For a team checklist, use a database instead: a Checkbox property for done, a Person property for the owner and a Date property for the due date, with a template you can repeat on a schedule.
This guide covers both: the quick to-do list, a checklist database step by step, a checklist that repeats every week, how to see who ticked what, and where a Notion checklist stops being the right tool for a team process.
Two Kinds of Checklist in Notion
Notion gives you two ways to hold a checklist, and the right one depends on who uses it:
- A to-do list on a page is a column of checkboxes in a note. It takes seconds and suits a personal list, meeting actions or a short procedure inside a document.
- A database puts each step on its own row, with properties for the owner, the due date and the status. It suits a checklist several people work through, because you can filter it, sort it and give each person their own view.
A Quick To-Do List on a Page
- On any page, type [] and then a space (no space between the brackets), or type /todo and press Enter. Notion's keyboard shortcuts also list Cmd+Option+4 on a Mac and Ctrl+Shift+4 on Windows.
- Type the first item and press Enter: the next line is a new checkbox.
- Press Tab to indent an item under the one above it, for sub-steps.
- Click a box to tick it, or press Cmd+Enter (Ctrl+Enter on Windows) on the line.
- To change existing bullets or lines into checkboxes, select them, open the ⋮⋮ menu beside a block and choose Turn into, then To-do list. Notion's editing basics describe the menu.
On a phone there is no / menu: tap + and choose the to-do list from the toolbar above the keyboard.
How to Make a Checklist Database in Notion, Step by Step
Add a database
Open the page where the checklist should live and type /database, or /Table view for a table in the page. Notion's guide to creating a database covers both. Don't use /table on its own: that adds a simple table, which Notion says has no filters, sorts or property values. Each row of the database is one step of the checklist, and the Name column holds the step.
Add the properties
Click + at the end of the header row to add a property. For a team checklist, add a Checkbox called Done, a Person called Owner and a Date called Due. Notion's database properties page describes Checkbox as "useful for lightweight task tracking" and Person as useful for assigning tasks. If you want more than done and not done, add a Status property, whose options fall under To-do, In progress and Complete.
Give each person a view
Add a view and a filter so people see only their own steps: open the view settings, choose Filter, pick the Owner property and choose yourself. A filter applies only to you until you click Save for everyone, according to Notion's help on views, filters and sorts. A Board view grouped by Status shows the checklist as columns, and a Calendar view lays the steps out by their Due date.
Set reminders on due dates
Click a Due date and choose Remind to get a reminder on that date and time. Notion's help on reminders says they arrive in the inbox, as a desktop or mobile notification and by email if Notion isn't open. Adding someone to the Owner property also notifies them, according to Notion's notification settings.
Share it and protect the structure
Share the page with your team from Share. To let people tick steps without changing the columns or views, give them Can edit content, which Notion's sharing and permissions page describes as editing pages and property values but not the structure of the database. On a full-page database, Lock database in the ••• menu has a similar effect: people can still enter data but can't change views or properties.
An Example Checklist Database
Here is a new-starter IT checklist as a Notion database. The Due column counts days from the start date, so the same steps work for every new starter.
| Name | Done | Owner | Due | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Create the user account and email address | ☐ | IT | Day −3 | Not started |
| Order and set up the laptop | ☐ | IT | Day −3 | Not started |
| Add to payroll | ☐ | HR | Day −1 | Not started |
| Book the welcome meeting | ☐ | Line manager | Day 1 | Not started |
| Grant access to shared drives and tools | ☐ | IT | Day 1 | Not started |
Make the Checklist Repeat
For a checklist you run every week or every month, build it once as a database template and set it to repeat. In this case each row of the database is one run of the checklist, and the steps are to-do blocks inside it:
- Create a database for the runs, for example "Weekly close", with a Date property and a Person property for whoever leads the run.
- Click the arrow next to New and choose + New template. Put the checklist inside the template as to-do blocks.
- Open the same menu, click ••• next to the template and choose Repeat. Pick daily, weekly, monthly or yearly, then the interval, the start date and the time.
Notion then creates a copy of the template in the database on that schedule. Notion's help says a repeating template doesn't trigger database automations, so anything that should happen when a run starts has to be done by hand.
For a ready-made start, Notion's template gallery has a to-do lists category with free and paid checklist templates from Notion and other creators.
See Who Ticked What
Add a Last edited by and a Last edited time property to the database: Notion fills them in automatically and nobody can edit them. For earlier states of a page, open ••• and then Version history. Notion's help on restoring content sets out the limits:
- Version history goes back 7 days on the Free plan, 30 days on Plus and 90 days on Business. Enterprise can keep it for any number of days.
- You need at least Can edit access to see it.
- Restoring a database restores its pages' properties but not their content.
On the desktop and mobile apps you can also make a page available offline from the ••• menu. Offline pages don't work in a web browser.
Where a Notion Checklist Runs Out
Notion is a good home for a personal list and for the documents that explain a process. Teams usually hit the same limits when one checklist becomes a process that runs every week or for every new starter:
The five limits teams run into
- You choose between owners and repeats. Per-step owners and due dates need a database row for each step, while a repeating template copies a page whose steps are plain to-do blocks. Getting both means building relations between databases yourself.
- Any editor can tick any box. Nothing stops a step being ticked out of order, before an earlier one is done, or unticked later.
- Nobody is chased when a step is late. A reminder fires on its date, but Notion's help says there are no recurring reminders, and automations other than Slack notifications need a paid plan.
- The history is time-limited. Version history keeps 7 to 90 days on most plans, and Last edited by shows only the latest change to a row.
- There is no sign-off. An approval is a checkbox or a status like any other, with nothing to stop the next step until it is given.
That is the point where checklist software earns its place. In CheckFlow a template starts a fresh checklist on schedule with every task already assigned and due, halts keep steps in order, approvals record the decision, and every run is kept with who did what and when. Generate with AI can turn the text of a Notion page, or a description of the process, into a template you can edit, and the free AI checklist generator builds one from a single sentence. If you are weighing the two tools for documented procedures, our Notion alternative for SOPs page sets out where each one fits, and recurring checklists shows how CheckFlow schedules runs.
Make a Checklist in Other Apps
The same checklist in the other tools your team may use: Excel, Google Sheets, Word, Microsoft Teams and Lists and OneNote.
Sources
- Notion Help, "Notion keyboard shortcuts"
- Notion Help, "Intro to writing & editing in Notion"
- Notion Help, "Create a database in Notion"
- Notion Help, "Table view databases in Notion"
- Notion Help, "Database properties in Notion"
- Notion Help, "Database views, filters, sorts & groups"
- Notion Help, "Set reminders in Notion"
- Notion Help, "Notification settings in Notion"
- Notion Help, "Sharing & permissions settings in Notion"
- Notion Help, "Customize your Notion database settings"
- Notion Help, "Database templates in Notion"
- Notion Help, "Database automations in Notion"
- Notion Help, "Delete & restore content in Notion"
- Notion Help, "Use Notion pages offline"
- Notion Marketplace, "To-do lists" templates
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I add a checkbox in Notion?
Type [] followed by a space, or type /todo. The keyboard shortcut is Cmd+Option+4 on a Mac and Ctrl+Shift+4 on Windows. Press Enter for the next item and click a box to tick it.
How do I make a checklist template in Notion?
In a database, click the arrow next to New and choose + New template, then put the checklist inside it as to-do blocks. Each new page made from the template starts with the list unticked. Notion's template gallery also has ready-made checklist templates in its to-do lists category.
Can a Notion checklist repeat every week?
Yes, with a repeating database template. Click ••• next to the template, choose Repeat and pick daily, weekly, monthly or yearly. Notion creates a new copy in the database on that schedule. A repeating template doesn't trigger database automations.
Can I assign checklist items to people in Notion?
Yes, in a database: add a Person property and choose the owner on each row. Notion notifies people when they are added to a Person property, and a Date property can carry a reminder. In a plain to-do list on a page, items have no owner.
How do I see who ticked a box in Notion?
Add a Last edited by property to the database to see who last changed each row, or open Version history from the ••• menu. Version history goes back 7 days on the Free plan, 30 days on Plus and 90 days on Business.
