Trello Templates: Ready-Made Boards for Common Use CasesTrello templates are pre-built boards you can copy and customize to fit recurring workflows, projects, and personal productivity systems. They save setup time, enforce consistency, and help teams adopt best practices quickly. This article explains what templates are, when to use them, how to create and share them, and provides ready-made template examples and customization tips for common use cases.
What is a Trello template?
A Trello template is a board configured with lists, cards, labels, checklists, due dates, attachments, and optionally Power-Ups and automation rules (Butler). When you make a board from a template, the structure is copied but the content (comments, activity history, members) is reset so the new board starts clean.
Key benefits:
- Faster setup for repetitive projects
- Consistency across teams or departments
- Onboarding aid for new team members
- Reusable best practices baked into the board
When to use a template
Templates are most useful for workflows you repeat often or want standardized. Typical scenarios:
- New product launches
- Software sprints and engineering workflows
- Content calendars and editorial planning
- Event planning and checklists
- HR processes like hiring or onboarding
- Sales pipelines and customer success workflows
- Personal productivity (daily/weekly planning, habit tracking)
How to create and manage templates
- Design the board structure: lists, card templates, labels, checklists.
- Add Power-Ups (e.g., Calendar, Custom Fields) if helpful.
- Create Butler automations for recurring actions (move cards on due date, set labels, create checklist items).
- Clean sample content and export any data you don’t want copied.
- Mark the board as a template: Board menu > More > Make template.
- Share the template via link or publish it to your workspace’s template gallery.
Notes:
- Templates are a board setting — only Workspace Admins and board owners can publish workspace templates.
- Keep templates updated; versioning by date in the board title (e.g., “Content Calendar — v2025-09”) helps teams know which to use.
Ready-made template examples and structure
Below are detailed templates for common use cases with suggested lists, card fields, checklists, labels, and automations.
1) Content Calendar (Marketing)
Lists:
- Ideas
- In Progress
- Editing
- Scheduled
- Published Card fields: Title, due date (publish), Custom Field: Content Type, Priority, Author
Checklist (on each card): Research, Draft, Edit, Design, SEO, Schedule, Publish
Labels: Blog, Social, Newsletter, Video, High Priority
Butler ideas: Move to Scheduled when due date set; automatically add checklist when card created in Ideas.
2) Software Sprint (Engineering)
Lists:
- Backlog
- Ready for Sprint
- In Progress
- Code Review
- QA
- Done Card fields: Story points (Custom Field), Assignee, Sprint (Custom Field)
Checklist template: Acceptance Criteria, Test Cases, Deployment Steps
Labels: Bug, Feature, Chore, Blocker
Butler ideas: When card moved to Done, set label Done and post comment with deployment checklist link.
3) Event Planning
Lists:
- To Plan
- Confirmed
- Logistics
- Marketing
- Day-Of Checklist
- Completed Card checklist: Venue booked, Permits, Vendors, Agenda, RSVP list, Materials
Labels: Venue, Catering, Speakers, Sponsors, Urgent
Butler: When card moved to Day-Of Checklist, create checklist items for staff assignments.
4) Hiring Pipeline (HR)
Lists:
- Applicants
- Phone Screen
- Technical Interview
- Final Interview
- Offer
- Hired / Rejected Card fields: Candidate email, Role applied, Interviewers (members)
Checklist: Resume reviewed, References, Background check, Offer letter sent
Labels: Priority, Remote, Relocation required
Butler: When moved to Offer, create checklist for onboarding tasks.
5) Personal Weekly Planner
Lists:
- Today
- This Week
- This Month
- Someday
- Completed Card fields: Due date, Priority label (High/Medium/Low)
Checklist: Steps/subtasks per card
Butler: Move overdue cards back to Today and notify owner.
Customization tips
- Use Custom Fields to capture structured data (URLs, priorities, numeric estimates).
- Use Templates for cards as well — save commonly used checklists inside card templates so each new card includes them.
- Keep labels short and color-consistent across workspace templates.
- Use the Calendar Power-Up for editorial and event timelines.
- Use Butler sparingly; too many automations can make templates hard to debug. Document automations inside a Cards/Checklist called “How this template works.”
- Version your templates by date and maintain a changelog card on the template board so users see what changed.
Sharing and governance
- Publish workspace templates for team-wide access.
- Restrict who can edit templates to avoid accidental changes.
- Provide a short “How to use this template” card pinned at the top of the board.
- Periodically review template usage and retire outdated templates.
Example: Creating a Content Calendar template (step-by-step)
- Create a new board named “Content Calendar — Template.”
- Add lists: Ideas, In Progress, Editing, Scheduled, Published.
- Create card templates for Blog Post and Social Post containing relevant checklists and custom fields.
- Add Calendar and Custom Fields Power-Ups.
- Create Butler rules: when card moved to Scheduled, set publish date to next available slot; when due date arrives, move to Published and add “Published” label.
- Clean sample cards, add a top card explaining usage, then Make template.
Common pitfalls
- Overcomplicating templates with too many lists or automations.
- Forgetting to remove sample content or sensitive data before publishing.
- Not documenting how automations interact, causing surprises for users.
Conclusion
Trello templates are a powerful way to standardize workflows, speed up project setup, and share best practices. Use clear structure, sensible automations, and documentation cards to make templates easy to adopt and maintain. The five sample templates above cover marketing, engineering, events, hiring, and personal planning — adapt them to fit your team and iterate as you learn which conventions work best.
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