Multi-Task Actions and the Drag Bar
Tasks rarely need editing one at a time. When you start dragging a task selection, the Drag Bar appears above the toolbar and gives you fast drop targets for common bulk actions.
Selecting Tasks
⌘-click to add tasks to the selection one at a time.⇧-click to select a contiguous range.⌘Ato select all visible tasks. Selected tasks highlight together. The selection survives clicking onto the Drag Bar — no need to press-and-hold.
Drag Bar Targets
Drag the selection onto a Drag Bar target:
- Copy — duplicate the selected tasks.
- Share — share a copy of the selected tasks.
- Delete — remove the selected tasks.
You can also drag tasks directly onto other parts of the window:
- Drop on a list in the Lists Panel to move tasks there. Hold
⌥(Option) while dropping to copy instead of move. - Drop on the Today Focus List to set the due date to today.
- Drop on the Scheduled Focus List to schedule a start date.
- Drop on the Starred Focus List to star tasks.
- Drop on the Done Focus List to mark tasks complete.
- Drop on a tag in the Tags panel to apply that tag.
- Drop on a date in the Mini Calendar to set the due date.
You cannot drag and drop tasks onto a Smart List. Smart Lists are virtual filtered views of real lists — they don't store tasks themselves. To move a task into a list whose perspective is shown by a Smart List, drop it on the underlying real list instead.
Menu-Bar Equivalents
If you'd rather use the menu, the Drag Bar actions and related multi-task actions have menu equivalents:
| Action | Menu |
|---|---|
| Defer | Task > Defer... |
| Schedule | Task > Schedule... |
| Copy | Edit > Duplicate (⌘D) |
| Move | Task > Move |
| Share | Task > Share |
| Tag | Task > Edit Tags or Task > Tag... |
| Delete | Edit > Delete |
Keyboard Shortcuts for Multi-Task Actions
Most multi-task operations have a single-letter keyboard shortcut — no modifier required when the Task List has focus and one or more tasks are selected. They work the same way on a single task or a multi-selection.
Dates
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
D | Defer... — pick a relative offset (Today / Tomorrow / Next Week / Custom) |
K | Schedule... — pick a specific date |
T | Due Today |
Y | Due Tomorrow |
⌃T | Start Today |
E | Due Time... |
X | Duration... |
. / , | Add a Day / Subtract a Day to the Start Date |
] / [ | Add a Day / Subtract a Day to the Due Date |
⇧. / ⇧, | Add a Week / Subtract a Week to the Start Date |
⇧] / ⇧[ | Add a Week / Subtract a Week to the Due Date |
⌥, | Remove Start Date |
⌥[ | Remove Due Date |
⇧⌘[ | Remove Due Time |
Status, Priority and Star
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
⌘. | Mark As Completed |
⌥⌘. | Mark As Not Completed |
S | Star |
⌃S | Unstar |
0 / 1 / 2 / 3 | Priority None / Low / Medium / High |
= / - | Increase / Decrease Priority |
Tag, Move, Convert
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
L | Tag... |
⌥L | Untag... |
M | Move... |
⌥⇧⌘1 | Convert To a Task |
⌥⇧⌘2 | Convert To a Project |
⌥⇧⌘3 | Convert To a Checklist |
Editor Quick-Jumps
When a task is selected, these shortcuts open the editor pre-focused on a specific field — handy when you want to change one thing across many tasks rapidly:
| Key | Field |
|---|---|
⌘E | Edit Note |
⌘' | Edit Alerts |
⌘/ | Edit Dates |
⌘\ | Edit Priority |
⌘R | Edit Tags |
⌘B | Edit Action |
⌘G | Edit Location |
⌘; | Edit Recurrence |
⌘L | Edit List (move) |
⌃⌥R | Remove All Tags |
Other Useful
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
⌘D | Duplicate selected tasks |
⌘⌫ | Delete |
Spacebar | Quick Look (preview without opening the editor) |
P | Perform Action (call, email, open URL, etc.) |
U | Open Links found in notes |
F | Quick Find (jump to a task by title within the current list) |
Three keys do most of the daily work: D (defer), K (schedule), S (star). Combine with multi-select (⌘-click or ⇧-click) and you can rip through a long list in seconds.
Batch Schedule and Defer
For finer control over many tasks at once, select the tasks first, then use Task > Batch..., Task > Defer..., or the D shortcut. 2Do opens a batch date dialog for the selection, where you can:
- Pick a start date and/or due date.
- Adjust by a relative amount (push everything by 3 days).
- Reset alarm offsets. Useful for shifting an entire project after a delay, or pushing a backlog of overdue tasks onto next week.
Adjusting Priorities in Bulk
Right-click any selection → Task > Priority > Increase Priority / Decrease Priority, or just press = / - (bare keys) when the Task List has focus. Each step moves all selected tasks one level up or down. Or set a specific level directly: bare 0, 1, 2, 3 for None / Low / Medium / High.
Sharing Tasks
The word sharing here means "send a copy of these tasks to somebody else" — not collaborative editing (2Do doesn't offer real-time co-editing of tasks).
Two routes:
- Edit > Copy (
⌘C) — copies a plain-text representation of the selected tasks to the clipboard. Paste into Mail, Messages, Notes, or anywhere that accepts text. - Task > Share — opens the macOS Share menu with the selected tasks pre-bundled. Targets include Mail, AirDrop, Messages, and any app installed that registers a Share extension.
Both work on a single task or a multi-selection. The recipient gets the task content, not a live link, so changes you make to your copy after sharing don't propagate.
Tips
Hover over a single task and click the priority dot to change priority in two clicks — no editor required. Combine with multi-select for instant bulk priority changes.
At the start of a review, drag a small selection onto Today, Scheduled, Starred, or Done instead of opening each task. Those Focus Lists are useful drop targets, not just views.