ClickUp Task Name based on Custom Field Value (via ClickUp Automations)

Want to create a ClickUp Task Name based on a Custom Field Value via ClickUp Automations? We got you!

In this tutorial, we’ll show you an example ClickUp automation that will allow any ClickUp beginner to use the ClickUp Custom Field value to generate a Task Name, dynamically.


So you’re using custom fields in ClickUp and you have a custom field called, let’s say “John Doe”.

You want to have that custom field value move into your task name (maybe you have a form being created or you’re just creating tasks manually), and it’s frustrating to have to go to the custom field to get some information, and then go to the task name to get other information.

Well lucky for you, there’s an automation you can set up inside ClickUp, to do just that!

Let’s dive in.

First: Turn on the Automation ClickApp

To set up this Automation, or any Automation in ClickUp, you’ll need to make sure the Automation ClickApp is turned on.

If you’re an admin on the account, you can find that by going to the ClickApp Settings > Automation module > toggle on.

“When a Task is Created, Create New Task”

Once your ClickApp is turned on, you’re going to go to the automations area and “add a new automation”.

For this particular example, we’re going to create the automation to say “when a task is created, create a new task”.

Simple, right? The key here is, that when the new task is created – we want to duplicate the elements from the original task into the new task.

When bringing in all the original elements, we’re just going to make sure to put the task name behind the name custom field you’re looking to add.

Then you can continue by adding the same list, template, task description, name custom field, etc.

(Due dates, unfortunately, do not transfer over here. So it’s best to do this structure if you do not have due dates being applied or if you’re applying them separately in a different step.)

Basically, all we’re doing here is using the create a task option to effectively make a close copy of the original – but we are reformatting where the data shows up by using the dynamic field options that are available.

Layla walks through this with screenshots starting at 00:53.

Archive the Original Task

Once we’ve added all of the original elements, we’ll continue to scroll down to add the action of “archive task”.

Some ClickUp users get confused here, on whether or not the “archive task” action is referring to the original task, or the one they are creating. We’re here to tell you: it’s referring to the original task.

(As a rule of thumb, any additional actions, whether it is “delete task”, “change assignees”, etc., it’s always referring to the original task.)

So we’re going to tell our automation to archive the original task, when the new task is created, and click save.

Layla goes into detail here starting at 02:24.

A Few Things to Keep in Mind

If you are implementing this automation at a time where it’s not during the task creation, you’d want to change the automation trigger from “when task created” to “when custom field changes”. Then any time the custom field changes, we would have this application of creating a new task.

Note: with this method where we’re editing an existing task, we run into the issue where we see the original name show up in front of the the new task name. So we definitely encourage you to do one or the other. (Either edit an existing task OR create a new task.)

And that’s it! This is how you can automate the custom field, pulling it into the task name, whether it’s at the time of creation or the time of editing.

We hope you found this short tutorial helpful, and if you have any questions, leave a comment here or find us on the YouTube channel and join the discussion.

Until next time, enjoy the process!

Related Resources

How to Use ClickUp Automations YouTube Playlist

10 BEST ClickUp Automation Examples for Small Businesses [with Examples]

 

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