Task Filters & Sorting
Filter tasks by status, priority, project, tags, dates, custom fields, and more - then sort, group, search, and save the result as a reusable view.
When your task list grows, filters help you focus on what matters right now. PrimeTask offers two layers of filtering - Quick Filters for fast multi-select on common fields, and Advanced Filters for precise conditions on any field with operators like "contains", "after", or "is not set". Both layers combine with AND logic: every filter must match for a task to appear.
On top of filtering, you can sort by one or more fields, group by status, priority, project, or other dimensions, and search across task names, descriptions, tags, and more. When you've built a view you want to return to, save it as a named view - the filters, sort, grouping, search, and column settings are all captured and restored with one click.
What you can do
Quick Filter
by status, priority, project, pinned tasks, start date presets, recurring tasks, archived projects, comments, and custom fields - all with multi-select
Advanced Filter
by any standard or custom field with type-specific operators (is, contains, after, before, is set, is not set, and more)
Filter by relative dates
show tasks due today, this week, next month, or a number of days from now, and the filter keeps up as the days go by
Filter by a rolling window
Filter between two dates
everything due in a given month or range, both ends included
Edit a filter you have already added
open it back up, change it, and press Update
Search
across task names, descriptions, tags, assignees, statuses, priorities, and custom field values - real-time, across all views
Sort
by one or more fields, with a separate ascending or descending direction for each level
Group
by status, priority, project, task type, assignee, tags, start date, or due date - with collapsible group headers and counts
Save named views
capture your current filters, sort, grouping, search, and column settings as a reusable preset
Update, rename, and delete
saved views
Use filters across all four views
List, Board, Calendar, and Gantt all share the same filter system
Quick Filters
Quick Filters are designed for the most common filtering needs. Open the Quick Filters dropdown from the filter bar to find:
Status and priority
Multi-select from your Space's configured statuses and priorities. Check multiple items to show tasks matching any of them. Uncheck to remove.
Project
A searchable list of your projects. Select one or more to show only tasks in those projects. A special No Project option shows tasks that aren't linked to any project.
Pinned tasks
Toggle to show only pinned tasks, or hide pinned tasks from the list.
Start date presets
Three one-click presets for time-sensitive filtering:
- Starting Today - tasks with a start date of today
- Starting This Week - tasks starting within the next 7 days
- Active Now - tasks that have already started but aren't due yet (start date is in the past, due date is in the future)
Recurring tasks
Toggle to show only recurring tasks, or hide them from the list.
Archived projects
When you have archived projects, a toggle appears to hide tasks in those projects. This keeps your active task list clean.
Comments
Choose Has comments to show only tasks with a discussion on them, or No comments to find the ones nobody has commented on yet. See Task Comments.
Custom fields
Quick Filters also support filtering by custom field values - dropdowns, multi-select fields, checkboxes, ratings, currency fields, and relationship fields all have quick-filter options in the dropdown. See Task Custom Fields.
Advanced Filters
For precise filtering, use the Advanced Filter panel. Pick any field, choose an operator, and enter a value. You can add multiple advanced filters - they combine with AND logic (all must match).
Available operators
The operators available depend on the field type:
Text fields (name, description, URL, email, phone) - equals, not equals, contains, does not contain, starts with, ends with, is set, is not set
Date fields (start date, due date, created, updated) - is, is not, after, before, is within, in the next, in the last, is set, is not set. After and before leave out the day you pick, so after 1 October starts from 2 October. Is within is the opposite: both ends are included. In the next and In the last take a number of days and count from today. Start date and due date can also use a relative date, see Exact or relative dates below.
Number fields (progress, custom number/currency/rating) - equals, not equals, greater than, less than, is set, is not set
Selection fields (status, priority, dropdown) - equals, not equals, is set, is not set
Multi-value fields (tags, assignees, multi-select) - contains, does not contain, is set, is not set
Checkbox fields - equals (yes/no)
Relationship fields - has links, no links
Comments - is, is not, greater than, less than, with the number of comments on each task. Greater than 2 shows tasks with three or more comments. For tasks with or without any comments, use the Comments quick filter. To find words written inside comments, use Global Search.
Exact or relative dates
When you filter by Start date or Due date, choose Exact to pick a day on the calendar, or Relative to pick a date measured from today:
- Today, Tomorrow, or Yesterday
- Last week, Current week, or Next week
- Last month, Current month, or Next month
- Last year, Current year, or Next year
- Number of days ago or Number of days from now, then enter how many days
A relative date such as Current month covers a stretch of days, so each operator works like this:
| Operator | What it shows with a relative date |
|---|---|
| Is | Tasks whose date falls inside that stretch, for example due date is current month |
| Is not | Tasks whose date falls outside it |
| After | Tasks whose date comes after it ends |
| Before | Tasks whose date comes before it starts |
| Is within | Tasks whose date falls inside it, both ends included |
Rolling windows, such as the next 90 days
Choose Due date, then In the next, then type a number of days. That is the whole thing.
You get everything due between today and that day, and the window moves with the calendar. Tomorrow it means tomorrow onwards, with nothing for you to change, so a saved view built on it keeps working indefinitely.
Any number works, so 7, 30, 90, 180 and 365 are all available without a preset for each.
In the last does the same thing backwards, for everything dated within the past however many days.
It also does what you would expect at the edges: overdue work stays out of a forward-looking window. Use Before today when you want the overdue list.
Rolling windows make the best saved views
A view called This quarter built on due date in the next 90 days never goes stale, because it is counted fresh every time you open it. A view built on two fixed dates has to be edited every few months.
Everything between two dates
Choose Is within and stay on Exact, and you get two date pickers with and between them. Pick 1 October and 31 October to see everything due that month.
Both days are included, unlike after and before. This replaces the old approach of adding one after filter and one before filter to bracket a range.
A filter such as due date is current week shows next week's tasks once next week arrives, so a saved view built on it never needs changing.
When your week starts
Last week, current week, and next week follow the first day of the week you have chosen in Settings → System Preferences. See System Preferences.
Filtering by assignee
When you filter by Assignees, pick the person from a list instead of typing their name. The list shows everyone assigned to at least one task, and you can search it by name, which helps when you work with a lot of people.
Changing a filter you have already added
Click a filter in Active Filters, or the pencil beside it, and it opens back up exactly as you built it: the same field, the same operator, the same dates. Change what you want and press Update Filter, or press Cancel to leave it alone.
The filter stays where it is in the list, so a carefully ordered set does not get shuffled when you adjust one of them.
Nudge the number instead of starting over
Rolling windows are worth tuning. Build due date in the next 90 days, look at the result, then edit it down to 30 if it is too much. It is two clicks rather than rebuilding the filter.
Combining Quick and Advanced Filters
Quick Filters and Advanced Filters work together. Both are active simultaneously with AND logic - a task must pass all quick filters AND all advanced filters to appear. This lets you use Quick Filters for broad selection (like "Status = In Progress") and Advanced Filters for precise conditions (like "Due date before next Friday").
Search
The search bar in the Quick Filters dropdown lets you find tasks by typing keywords. Search is real-time - results update as you type.
PrimeTask searches across:
- Task name and description
- Status and priority names
- Tag names
- Assignee names
- Custom field values (text, dropdown labels, numbers, dates)
Search uses AND logic for multiple words - typing "urgent bug" shows only tasks where both "urgent" and "bug" appear somewhere in the searchable fields. Search is case-insensitive.
Sorting
Use Sort in the filter bar to choose how your tasks are ordered. Sort by any standard field, such as name, status, priority, due date, start date, created date or progress. You can also sort by a custom field. Each field can run ascending or descending.
When you have many available fields, search for the one you need instead of browsing the full list.
Sorting by a custom field requires Pro.
Sorting itself, including everything below, is part of every licence.
Sorting on more than one level
One field often is not enough. "Order by project, and inside each project put the urgent work first" is two instructions, not one.
Choose Add as next sort level for a second field and it becomes the tie-breaker: tasks are ordered by the first field, and wherever two tasks match on it, the second field decides. Add a third and it settles whatever the first two leave equal.
Each level keeps its own direction. Project can run A to Z while priority inside it runs highest first.
When more than one level is active, PrimeTask shows how many levels are controlling the order.
To change which level wins, drag it. The order of the levels is the order in which they are applied. Moving priority above project changes the result.
Remove any level you no longer need. Removing the first one promotes the next.
Build it in the order you would say it out loud
"By project, then by priority, then by due date" is exactly the order the levels go in. If the result looks wrong, you have usually got two levels the wrong way round, and dragging one of them fixes it without rebuilding the whole thing.
Empty values
A task with nothing in the field you are sorting by sorts to the end when the order is ascending, and to the top when it is descending. Empty is treated as the largest value rather than as zero, so unset tasks group together instead of mixing in with real values.
A level whose field is no longer there
If a saved arrangement mentions a field that has since been deleted, or one that does not apply to what you are looking at, that level is marked as unavailable and quietly skipped when the order is worked out. The remaining levels still apply.
It stays in the list rather than disappearing, so you can see why an order is not behaving as you remember and remove it yourself.
Manual sort (drag to reorder)
In List View, you can also arrange tasks in any order you want by dragging them. Pick Manual from the Sort menu to keep tasks in the exact order you drag them into - PrimeTask stops applying any automatic sort and respects your custom arrangement instead.
You don't have to switch to Manual first: if you drag a task while another sort is active, PrimeTask automatically switches to Manual so your new position sticks. Pick any other sort option at any time to leave Manual and go back to an automatic sort.
Manual replaces your sort levels rather than sitting on top of them. Choosing it clears the arrangement, because an order you set by hand and an order worked out from fields are two answers to the same question, and PrimeTask will not pretend to honour both. Save the arrangement as a view first if you want it back later.
Manual ordering is available in List View, where task rows can be dragged. Other views preserve your saved sort arrangement even when they use their own layout order.
Manual sort covers top-level tasks, subtasks inside their parent, and CRM tasks - everything you can drag in List View is saved in the order you set. See List View for the full drag-to-reorder experience.
Your manual order is shared across views
The custom order you set by dragging in List View is the same order that appears in the Project Tasks tab inside a project. Reorder once and both places match.
Where sorting is available
| View | Sorting |
|---|---|
| List View | Yes, including Manual |
| Board View | Sort choices are preserved, but card order follows the board's own ordering within each column |
| Calendar View | Agenda mode only |
| Gantt View | No, the timeline decides the order. A sort you set elsewhere is kept and applies again when you leave |
Your sort levels stay with the current saved view when you switch layouts. They apply again whenever you return to a layout that uses automatic field sorting.
Grouping
Click the Group button in the filter bar to group tasks by a field. Available grouping options:
- Status - one group per status
- Priority - one group per priority
- Project - one group per project, plus an "Unassigned" group
- Task type - personal, project, CRM, subtask
- Assignee - one group per assignee
- Tags - one group per tag (tasks with multiple tags appear in multiple groups)
- Start date or Due date - grouped by date
- None - no grouping (flat list)
Each group has a collapsible header showing the group name and task count. Collapse groups you don't need to focus on the ones you do.
Where grouping is available
Grouping is available in List View. Board View has its own separate grouping system (by status, priority, project, assignee, or custom lists - see Board View). Calendar and Gantt views don't support grouping.
Saved Views
A saved view captures your entire filter setup so you can return to it later with one click.
What a saved view stores
- All active filters (quick and advanced)
- Every sort level, in order, each with its own direction
- Grouping field
- Search query
- View mode (List, Board, Calendar, or Gantt)
- Column settings (List View - widths, visibility, order)
- Column aggregation settings
- Collapsed columns (Board View)
How to save a view
Set up your filters, sort, grouping, and search the way you want
Click Save View in the filter bar
Enter a name for the view
The view is saved and becomes the active view
Loading a saved view
Click the saved view name in the filter bar dropdown. PrimeTask restores all settings - filters, sort, grouping, search, column layout, and view mode - exactly as they were when you saved.
Updating a saved view
Saved views change only when you say so. When you change filters or settings while a saved view is showing, a Save changes bubble points at the Update button, in every view and in fullscreen. Click Update to keep the changes in the view, or leave them and the view stays as it was. Close the bubble and it comes back the next time you change something.
Renaming and deleting views
Open the view management area in the filter bar. You can rename any saved view or delete views you no longer need. Deleting the view you are on returns you to your Default view.
Saved views are per-Space
Each Space has its own saved views. Switching Spaces switches your views along with your tasks.
Things worth knowing
Filters persist across view switches
When you switch between List, Board, Calendar, and Gantt views, your active filters stay in place. The same filtered set of tasks appears in each view - just presented differently.
All four views share the filter bar
The filter bar appears at the top of the Tasks page regardless of which view you're in. Quick Filters, Advanced Filters, and Search work identically across all views. Sorting and grouping availability varies by view (see the tables above).
Filter badges show what's active
The filter bar shows badges indicating how many filters are active. Each advanced filter appears as a removable chip. Quick filter counts appear on the Quick Filters button. This makes it easy to see at a glance what's narrowing your task list.
The Default view remembers your changes
You do not have to save the Default view. Every change you make to it is kept automatically: which columns you show, their widths and order, your filters, sort, grouping, search and view mode. It is still there after you quit and reopen PrimeTask, and after you visit a saved view and come back. To start again from the original layout, open the view management area in the filter bar and choose Reset to defaults.
Common questions
"I filtered my tasks and now I can't find a task I know exists."
Check your active filters - the task might be hidden by a status, priority, or project filter. Clear all filters to see every task, then re-apply filters one at a time to find which one is excluding the task.
"Can I filter by custom field values?"
Yes - both Quick Filters and Advanced Filters support custom fields. Quick Filters handle dropdowns, multi-select, checkboxes, ratings, currency, and relationship fields. Advanced Filters support all custom field types with type-specific operators. See Task Custom Fields.
"Can I filter tasks by what was written in their comments?"
Not from the filter bar, which filters Comments by number. Use Global Search instead: it finds comments by their words and opens the task each one belongs to.
"Can I save a view that includes my column layout?"
Yes - saved views in List View capture column widths, visibility, and order along with all filter settings.
"I want to see only overdue tasks."
Use an Advanced Filter: field = Due date, operator = Before, then choose Relative and pick Today. Combine with a status filter excluding completed tasks. The filter moves on with the calendar, so it still shows what is overdue tomorrow.
"Does After include the day I pick?"
No. After and Before leave out the day you pick, so due date after 1 October starts from 2 October and due date before 31 October stops at 30 October. To cover a whole month in one filter, use Is with a relative date such as Current month or Next month.
"Can I share saved views with my team?"
Saved views are stored per-Space. If you use a shared Space (via File Sync or iCloud), saved views sync to all members of that Space.
"How do I reset everything back to defaults?"
Open the view management area in the filter bar and choose Reset to defaults, which appears once you have changed the Default view. This returns the Default view to its original layout: no filters, no search, no grouping, the original columns and the original sort.
"Why did my Default view go back to how it was?"
It no longer does. Earlier versions kept some Default view changes only after you clicked a small save icon, so columns you had hidden could come back after a restart. The Default view now remembers every change on its own. If yours looks different from how you left it, check whether a saved view is showing in the filter bar dropdown, and pick Default to return to it.
"Why did my sort change to Manual after I dragged a task?"
Manual is how PrimeTask remembers custom orders. If you drag a task while another sort is active, PrimeTask switches to Manual automatically - otherwise the list would immediately re-sort by the previous field and undo your drag. Pick any other sort option to leave Manual and go back to automatic sorting.
If you had several sort levels set up, switching to Manual clears them. Save them as a view before you start dragging if you want them back afterwards.
Where to go next
| If you want to… | Read this |
|---|---|
| Use the sortable list view | List View |
| Use the Kanban board with custom grouping | Board View |
| Select and change multiple tasks at once | Task Bulk Actions |
| Use custom fields for filtering | Task Custom Fields |
| Customise statuses and priorities | Custom Statuses & Priorities |
| Choose the first day of your week | System Preferences |
| See all four task views | Task Views |
| Return to the Tasks hub | Tasks Overview |