Stars and Priorities

Use a star to mark tasks you want to return to, and priority to rank their importance. Each task can have both, and changing one does not change the other.

Choosing a Star or Priority

A star is useful for a short selection of things you want to do next. Priority gives tasks one of four levels: None, Low, Medium, or High.

For example, star the calls you want to make this afternoon. Give a contract review High priority if its importance should remain clear during later reviews too. Stars remain set until you remove them; they do not expire at the end of the day.

Stars

Tap the priority control at the end of a task row to show its choices, then tap the star. Tap it again to remove the star. The task editor also has a star in the controls beside the title. Swipe from the type choices to the priority page if needed.

For several tasks, enter Batch Editing, select them, and choose Priority > Star or Unstar.

What Starring Does

• It includes the task in the Starred Focus List.
• It can include the task in Today when Settings > Appearance > Include starred tasks is on.
• It lets the task match the type: starred search filter.

A star does not add a due date, set an alert, or change the task's priority. See Focus Lists for the views and their visibility settings.

Priorities

Choose None, Low, Medium, or High. The task's priority indicator shows the chosen level in the task list.

Setting a Priority

Tap the priority control on the task row to open the choices, then choose a level. You can also use the priority control beside the title in the Task Editor.

To set several at once, select the tasks in Batch Editing and choose Priority, then the level. The Star and Unstar choices in that menu change the stars independently.

What Priority Does

Choose Priority from the sort bar to order tasks by importance. The sort direction and Settings > Appearance > Starred above Hi-Priority affect the order you see.

You can also search or build a Smart List with these filters:

Filter	Matches
type: hiprio	High-priority tasks
type: medprio	Medium-priority tasks
type: lowprio	Low-priority tasks
type: prio	Tasks with any priority
type: noprio	Tasks with no priority

Priority alone does not give a task a date or add it to Today. Use a due date, start date, star, or the relevant view settings when you want to decide when it appears.

When to Use Each

What you need	Use
A set of tasks to do next	A star and the Starred Focus List
A lasting order of importance	Priority
Important tasks across lists	A Smart List using type: hiprio
A deadline or reminder	A date or alert in the Task Editor

For dates and reminders, see Dates and Durations and Notifications and Alarms.