Project Tracker Template
Juggling five brand deals at once is where deadlines slip and quality drops. This tracker gives every project a single row (status, owner, due date, and next action) so nothing falls through the cracks.
Creator BusinessPDF + CSV5 sectionsfree, no paywall
What you get
- A master project grid with status, client, due date, and value columns
- A clear stage pipeline so you always know what's blocked and what's next
- A 'next action' column that turns a list into a to-do you can actually work
- Editable CSV for Google Sheets or Excel, plus a branded print-ready PDF
How to use this template
- 1. Add every active project. Create one row per live project or brand deal. Include internal content, not just paid work, so the tracker reflects your real workload.
- 2. Assign a stage. Set each project's stage (Brief → In progress → Review → Delivered → Paid) so the pipeline shows where the bottlenecks are.
- 3. Write the next action. For every project, write the single next action and who owns it. A project without a next action is a stalled project.
- 4. Review and re-sort weekly. Once a week, sort by due date, clear anything delivered, and confirm every active project has a fresh next action.
Still choosing the tool you will run this in? Compare two side by side, or read how each profile is built in our review methodology.
What's inside
3 of 5 sections shown; the remaining 2 come with the free download.
What is a project tracker?
A project tracker is a single grid where every piece of work in flight gets one row: the project, the client, the stage it has reached, the due date, the fee, and the one action that moves it forward. Nothing lives only in your head or your inbox.
It becomes necessary around the third or fourth concurrent deal, which is when creators start missing dates they thought they remembered. The tracker also makes your real capacity visible, so you can decline a fifth deal before it damages the four you already have. Most creators keep it in a spreadsheet and review the whole thing on the same day each week.
Active projects
Your single source of truth for everything in flight. Sort by due date and keep the next action filled for every row.
| Project | Client | Stage | Due date | Value | Next action | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube integration | Acme Co | In progress | Jun 24 | $5,600 | Send first draft | You |
| Reel bundle | Bright Labs | Brief | Jul 02 | $1,200 | Confirm hooks | You |
Keeping projects moving
The single most useful column is 'next action'. A project list tells you what exists; a next action tells you what to do. If you can only maintain one field, maintain that one.
When a project stalls in Review, the bottleneck is usually the client, not you. Set a follow-up reminder the moment you send work so a silent week doesn't blow the deadline.
2 more sections and the PDF + CSV are behind the free download.
Tools that help with this
The template does the thinking; these are the products creators run it in. The full software directory has the rest.
Notion AI
Notion AI is an AI writing and productivity assistant built directly into Notion's workspace.
$0/mo
CoSchedule
A purpose-built editorial calendar with task templates and content status tracking for small content teams publishing weekly.
quote only
Planable
Planable is a [social media scheduling](/categories/social-media-scheduling) and collaboration platform built around content approval workflows.
$33/mo
Later
Later is a [social media scheduling](/categories/social-media-scheduling) platform built around visual content planning.
$25/mo
Categories to browse: Social Media Scheduling.
Frequently asked questions
What is a project tracker?
A single list of every active project with its client, stage, due date and next action. It replaces scattered notes and inbox threads with one view you re-sort by due date each week.
How should creators track multiple brand deals at once?
Keep every deal in one tracker with a status stage, a due date, and a single next action per row. The discipline that prevents dropped deadlines is reviewing the whole list on a fixed day each week and re-sorting by due date.
What stages should a creator project pipeline have?
A simple pipeline of Brief, In progress, Review, Delivered, and Paid covers most creator work. The key is defining exit criteria for each stage so everyone agrees when a project moves forward.
Should internal content go in the same tracker as brand deals?
Yes. Your own videos and newsletters compete for the same hours as paid work, so leaving them out makes the tracker lie about your capacity. Put Internal in the client column and treat those due dates as real.
How is a project tracker different from a content calendar?
A calendar answers what publishes when. A tracker answers what state each piece of work is in and who is holding it up. A deal can sit in Review for two weeks without ever appearing on a calendar.