Am I able to set up recurring tasks in the free version of Trello?

Question

I've been working in the free version of Asana for 4+ years, and have over 50 repeating/recurring tasks set up in there. However, Asana will not be offering those functions in the free version anymore, so I'm looking for a free alternative that has a Kanban board set up and the ability to create recurring tasks. I love Trello's board display, but can't seem to find the recurring task function. However, since I'm on the "14 day trial" of the Premium version of Trello, I want to be sure that once I revert to the basic free version, I'll still have the ability to create and track recurring tasks. (My work will not spring for the paid version of any of these tools, unfortunately). Thanks! :)

cdb · Answer

Hey Jenn,

We're working on some native functionality that might make that easier, but in the meantime, Automation can cover something like what you're asking for in Free!

The making it conditional on marking done for odd groups of days is tricky - but it's pretty easy to create new cards on a cadence, which it sounds like might be close enough to what you're asking for.

If you go to Automation (the lightning bolt-looking icon in the top right when you're on a board, next to the rocket ship), hit Rules, then Scheduled.

Trigger will be "Every 'select days'" and select Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Action will be Create new card, and give it a due date of "today" (since it will end up creating them on Tuesday and Thursday, then setting the due date when it's created).  See the screenshot below for what it should look like!

Best,
- Chris

unknown · Answer

Hi Chris! Thanks for responding...it's been a crazy day around here at work so I'm just now seeing this. I tool a look around and I don't think the tools you mentioned are going to work for me. Here's an example of what I'm looking to do (from my current set up in Asana). I set up a Task, and I want that task to automatically repeat every Tues and Thursday. Once I mark it completed today, it adds a new task to my board for next Tuesday. Does this look like anything I could do in the FREE version of Trello?? (My work is not willing to pay for a tool like this...they want me to use Microsoft Planner, but I'm so used to Asana that I'd really rather find a more Asana-like alternative, LOL. Thanks for taking a look!

cdb · Answer

Hey Jenn!

There are a few ways of doing this, depending on your workflow.  Go to a board, and look in the top right hand corner - there is an "Automation" button that will allow you to set up repeating card copying or generation from scratch based on dates (if you want a new card every time), OR it's also possible to set up rules that move Due dates forward when you mark a card done.

Hit the Rules button and check out the Scheduled and Rules sections - if you can tell me a bit more about your workflow ("i need new cards every Monday" vs "I want to move my Due dates forward when I mark a card Done, and then move the card back to the To Do List") I can recommend a couple of rules that might help!

- Chris from Trello