Do firstUrgent and important
Deadlines, real problems and things only you can do today. Do them now, and add them to My Day so they're the first thing you see.
Urgent or important?
The Eisenhower matrix, built into your to-do list.
Do first, Schedule, Delegate or Whenever: four boxes for what is urgent and what is important. Drag a task from box to box, on a phone as well. They stay the same tasks as in your lists, never copies.
- Stays 2×2 on a phone
- Same tasks as your lists
- Plain words work here too
Priority Matrix
Hold a card to move itDo first
Fix the leaking tapToday
Finish the grant formTomorrow
Schedule
Plan next quarterFri
Book the eye test
Delegate
Order the office chairsAssigned
Reply to the survey
Whenever
Sort the old photos
What is the Eisenhower matrix?
The Eisenhower matrix sorts a to-do list by two questions: is it urgent, and is it important? The answers give four boxes: do it now, schedule it, hand it off, or let it wait. Freely, a free to-do list, builds it in as the Priority Matrix, where a task's box is also its priority.
The four boxes
What goes where
Laid out the classic way: urgent on the left, important on top.
ScheduleImportant, not urgent
The work that moves things forward: planning, learning, health. Give it a day before it turns urgent; type it with one, such as “plan next quarter friday”.
DelegateUrgent, not important
Interruptions and small favours that someone else could handle. Assign the task to them, and it shows up in their Assigned to me.
WheneverNeither
Nice-to-haves and busywork. Do them last, batch them on a quiet afternoon, or drop them without guilt.
Step by step
How to use the Priority Matrix in Freely
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Open Priority Matrix
It's in the sidebar, next to your lists. An empty box says Drag tasks here or tap +.
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Type straight into a box
Tap + in a box and type the task. Plain words work here too: “send the report friday” lands in that box, dated Friday, in your Work list.
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Or give a task its box
Open any task and pick one of the four under Priority. It appears on the board at once.
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Move it as things change
Hold a card for a moment and drag it to another box; with a mouse, just pull it. Swipe a card right to add it to My Day, or left to delete it, with Undo.
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Focus on one box
Tap the enlarge button on a box to give it the whole board, and tap it again for all four. A task leaves the board once it's done.
Plan next quarter
Priority
🔥Do first
📅Schedule
📋Delegate
🌿Whenever
Due · Repeat
Fri
A task's priority and its box are the same thing: change one and the other follows.
Built in, not bolted on
One set of tasks, seen four ways
- Tick a task in its list and it leaves the board; move it on the board and its priority changes everywhere
- Sort any list By priority to see Do first at the top and Whenever at the bottom
- A small sun on a card means it's already in My Day
- The four boxes stay four boxes on a phone, never a long column
- Next to the matrix, the Canvas is a free board for sticky notes: link one to a task, or turn it into one
Work
By priorityHonest limits
What the matrix leaves to you
- You choose the box. Freely doesn't guess urgency or importance from dates or words, and a task without a box isn't on the board.
- Open tasks only. Finished tasks leave the board; you'll find them under Completed in their list.
- One box per task. A task is in one of the four, or in none.
Questions
The priority matrix: questions
Is a task's box the same as its priority?
Yes. In Freely a task's priority is its box, so sorting a list By priority puts Do first at the top and Whenever at the bottom.
Does the matrix work on a phone?
Yes. It stays a two-by-two grid on a phone: hold a card for a moment, then drag it into another box.
What's the difference between Schedule and Delegate?
Schedule is for important work that isn't urgent yet: give it a date. Delegate is for urgent things that don't need you: hand them to someone, for example by assigning the task to them.
Sort your list in four boxes
Start with what's on your mind right now. Most of it is not as urgent as it feels.
Free, with no card and no ads, on your phone and your laptop.