Updated Oct 17, 2025

Step-by-Step Guide: Building an Asana Clone with Adalo

Table of Contents

This comprehensive tutorial walks you through building a fully functional project management app using Adalo’s no-code platform. You’ll create an application with task boards, team collaboration, project tracking, and status management—all without code. By the end, you’ll have a working app with list and board views, comments, attachments, and role-based permissions.

Why Build a Project Management App Without Code

Project management software helps teams organize, prioritize, and track tasks across a project’s lifecycle. By streamlining execution and improving visibility, it addresses common issues like missed deadlines, scattered workflows, and unclear accountability.

Traditional custom development can cost tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars and take months. With no-code app builders, you can deliver a functional prototype in weeks—without hiring developers or learning to code.

Who Benefits from Building Custom PM Apps

Small teams with unique workflows that off-the-shelf tools don’t fit
Entrepreneurs validating ideas before funding custom development
Departments needing specialized tracking without heavy IT support
Consultants/agencies creating white-label client solutions
Non-technical founders with deep domain expertise

Understanding Asana’s Core Features for Replication

Before building, identify the essentials that make PM apps effective (tasks, ownership, due dates, collaboration, and multiple views).

Essential PM Features to Include

Task Management

Create/edit tasks with descriptions
Due dates and priorities
Assign to team members
Subtasks
Attachments
Status (To Do, In Progress, Done)

Project Organization

Multiple projects
Tags and custom fields
Project templates
Search and filter

Collaboration

Comments and @mentions
Activity feeds
Notifications
Team directory

Visualization

List view
Kanban board view
Calendar view
Basic dashboard metrics

Prerequisites & Initial Setup

Step 1: Create Your Adalo Account and Project

Visit Adalo.com and sign up for a free account.
Click Create New App.
Choose Mobile App, Web App, or Responsive App.
Name your app (e.g., TaskFlow, ProjectHub).
Select Start from Scratch.

The pricing page lists current plan features and record limits—verify live details before publishing.

Step 2: Configure Your App Theme

Pick a primary and secondary color.
Choose a clean font (see Adalo’s plans/features for available fonts).
Set default button styles and corner radius.
Click Continue to enter the builder.

Step 3: Plan Your Information Architecture

Map user journeys:

Team Members – Sign up → View assigned tasks → Update status → Comment → Log out
Project Managers – Create project → Add tasks → Assign team → Monitor progress
Admins – Manage members → Set permissions → Review analytics → Configure settings

Designing Your Database Schema

Adalo’s built-in relational database supports complex PM relationships.

Step 4: Enhance the Users Collection

Add properties:

Full Name (Text)
Profile Image (Image)
Job Title (Text)
Department (Text)
Phone Number (Text)
User Role (Text: Member, Manager, Admin)
Status (Text: Active, Away, Offline)
Timezone (Text)
Date Joined (Date & Time – Automatic)

Step 5: Create the Projects Collection

Add properties:

Project Name (Text, required)
Description (Text – Multiline)
Project Key (Text)
Start Date / Target End Date / Actual End Date (Date)
Status (Text: Planning, Active, On Hold, Completed, Archived)
Priority (Text: Low, Medium, High, Critical)
Project Color (Text – Hex)
Created Date (Date & Time – Automatic)
Budget (Number, optional)

Step 6: Create the Tasks Collection

Add properties:

Task Name (Text, required)
Description (Text – Multiline)
Task ID (Text – Auto-generated)
Status (Text: To Do, In Progress, In Review, Completed, Blocked)
Priority (Text: Low, Medium, High, Urgent)
Due Date (Date)
Estimated Hours / Actual Hours (Number)
Progress (Number 0–100)
Tags (Text – comma-separated)
Created Date (Date & Time – Automatic)
Completed Date (Date & Time)
Is Recurring (True/False)
Recurrence Pattern (Text)

Step 7: Create the Comments Collection

Add properties:

Comment Text (Text – Multiline – required)
Created Date (Date & Time – Automatic)
Edited (True/False)
Last Edited (Date & Time)

Step 8: Create the Attachments Collection

Add properties:

File (File)
File Name (Text)
File Type (Text)
File Size (Number)
Uploaded Date (Date & Time – Automatic)

Step 9: Define Relationships

Projects ↔ Users

Project Owner: Many Projects → One User
Team Members: Many-to-Many (Users ↔ Projects)

Tasks

Project: Many Tasks → One Project
Assigned To: Many Tasks → One User
Created By: Many Tasks → One User
Parent Task: Many → One (for subtasks)

Comments

Task: Many Comments → One Task
Author: Many Comments → One User

Attachments

Task: Many Attachments → One Task
Uploaded By: Many Attachments → One User

Building User Authentication

Step 10: Welcome Screen

Logo image
Heading: “Manage Projects Without the Chaos”
Subheading: “Collaborate with your team, track progress, and deliver on time”
Buttons: Get Started → Sign Up, Already have an account? Log in → Login

Step 11: Sign Up Screen

Form (Users) – Sign Up
Fields: Email, Password, Full Name, Job Title
On submit: Create & log in user → Link to Dashboard
Footer link to Login

Step 12: Login Screen

Form – Login (Email, Password)
On submit: Log in → Link to Dashboard
“Forgot Password?” flow
Footer link to Sign Up

Creating the Dashboard & Navigation

Step 13: Main Dashboard

Top Bar: logo (left), profile image (right)
Navigation (icons + labels): Dashboard, My Tasks, Projects, Team, Settings
Greeting: “Welcome back, [Full Name]” and today’s date
Metrics (counts): Active Projects, My Open Tasks, Due Today, Overdue
Recent Activity: list of recently modified tasks → Task Detail

Step 14: Side Navigation

Custom list styled as left sidebar
Items: Dashboard, My Tasks, Projects, Team Directory, Calendar, Settings
Highlight current screen; make it reusable across screens

Building the Projects Interface

Step 15: Projects List

Top Bar: “Projects” + + New Project
Filters: Status; Sort: Name/Created/Due; Search by name
Project list cards: Name, Status badge, Owner, Due Date, Progress bar, Team size
Tap → Project Detail

Step 16: Create Project

Form (Projects): required name, description, key, dates, status, priority, color
Team selection (multi-select Users); set Logged-in User as Owner
Create Project → Add members → Go to Project Detail

Step 17: Project Detail

Header: Name, Status, Priority, Progress, Due date countdown, Owner & Team avatars
Tabs: Tasks (default), Timeline, Team, Files
Tasks tab: + Add Task, list (Project = Current), sort & filter

Creating the Task Board

Step 18: List View

Filters: Status, Assigned To (All/Me/User), Priority, Due Date range
List items: Complete checkbox, Priority icon, Task Name, Project (if cross-project), Assignee, Due Date (overdue highlighting), Status badge, comment/attachment counts
Bulk actions: update status, change assignee, set due date

Step 19: Kanban Board View

Adalo doesn’t include native drag-and-drop Kanban by default, but you can build a functional board:

Screen: Board View
Horizontal List for status columns (To Do, In Progress, In Review, Completed)
Each column: Vertical List of Tasks filtered by status & project
Card actions: Move to next status, Edit, Delete; tap → Task Detail
Column footer: + Add Task (pre-sets column status)

Tip: Check the Marketplace for Kanban components with drag-and-drop.

Step 20: Task Detail

Header: Task Name, Task ID, Project
Inline edits: Status, Priority
Assignment & timing: Assignee, Due Date, Estimated/Actual Hours, Progress slider
Description & Tags
Subtasks (list where Parent Task = Current) + + Add Subtask
Comments (list by Created Date desc) + composer with @mentions
Attachments (file list) + + Upload File

Step 21: Task Forms (Create/Edit)

Form (Tasks): name, description, project, status (default To Do), priority (default Medium), assignee, due date, estimated hours, tags
Optional Parent Task (inherit Project)
Buttons: Create Task / Save, Cancel

Implementing Collaboration

Step 22: Comments System

Text area + Comment
On submit: create Comment (Task = Current, Author = Logged-in) and notify assignee/watchers
@mentions: dropdown of team members; highlight in UI
Allow edit/delete own comments (time-bounded if desired); optional emoji reactions

Step 23: Notifications

Request push permission on first login; store status on User
Triggers: assignment, due soon, @mention, status change, completion
In-app center: Notifications collection (text, type, related task, read, created date); bell icon with unread badge

Thoughtful notifications can improve engagement; impact varies by audience and implementation.

Step 24: Team Directory

Searchable list of Users (project-scoped or global)
Show: avatar, name, title, department, status
Sort by name/department/status → User Profile

Step 25: User Profile

Header: large avatar, name, title, department, contacts, status
Stats: Projects count, Active/Completed tasks, on-time rate
Lists: Member’s projects, active tasks, recent activity

Advanced Features

Step 26: Calendar View

Calendar component (or Marketplace option)
Events: tasks by Due Date (color by priority/project)
Views: Month/Week/Day/Agenda
Filters: My tasks, team tasks, by project/user

Step 27: Global Search

Search input
Sections: Projects, Tasks, People
Search fields: names/descriptions/tags/job titles
Filters: Type, Date range, Status, Priority

Step 28: File Attachments

Upload File → create Attachment (Task = Current, Uploaded By = Logged-in)
Display: type icon, name (download/view), size, uploaded by/date, delete (authorized)
Preview: images inline/lightbox; PDFs via viewer/webview; others as downloads

Step 29: Recurring Tasks

Fields: Is Recurring, Recurrence Pattern, End Date
When completing a recurring task: duplicate, set next due date, reset status
UI: “Make this a recurring task” checkbox → pattern & end date options

Step 30: Task Templates

Task Templates collection: template name, default fields, checklist items
“Save as Template” on Task Detail; “Use Template” on task create
Pre-fill form, allow edits, then create

Workflow Automation

Step 31: Status Change Actions

To In Progress: set start date, notify owner, prioritize
To In Review: notify reviewer, stop time tracking
To Completed: set completion date, compare est vs actual, update project %
To Blocked: flag urgent, prompt blocker notes, notify owner

Implement via conditional actions on status updates.

Step 32: External Integrations

Use Zapier or Make to connect:

Slack (task created/completed)
Google Calendar (due dates)
Gmail (create tasks from emails)
Google Sheets (reporting)
Time trackers (log hours)

Step 33: Automated Reminders

Overdue: daily summary to assignees/owners
Due soon: morning reminders (24h window)
Inactive: no updates in 7 days → nudge assignee

(Use external schedulers like Zapier if needed.)

Roles & Permissions

Step 34: Role-Based Access

Admin: all access, team management, delete projects, app settings
Manager: create/manage owned projects, assign tasks, see team tasks, reports
Member: view assigned projects, create/edit own tasks, limited reporting

Step 35: Permission Checks

Delete buttons: only Admin or creator
Edit Project: owner or Admin
Assign Task: only to project team members
Settings: Admin only
Reporting: scope by role (member/manager/admin)

Publishing Your PM App

Step 36: Pre-Launch Checklist

Test all flows: auth, projects, tasks, comments, attachments, notifications, profiles
Legal pages: Privacy, Terms, Data Protection, Contact
App settings: name/description, icons, splash, status bar, orientation
Analytics: enable and track signups, task creation, completion rate

Step 37: Publish as Web App

Click Publish → Web App.
App available at yourappname.adalo.com.
For a custom domain (see pricing): add domain, update DNS, allow propagation, enable SSL.

Learn more: Publishing web apps.

Step 38: Publish to App Stores (iOS & Android)

iOS (Apple App Store)

Join the Apple Developer Program (annual fee).
In Adalo: Publish → iOS → upload assets (icon, screenshots), metadata, privacy URL.
Generate IPA and submit via App Store Connect.
Review times vary; many submissions complete within a few days.

Android (Google Play Store)

Create a Google Play Developer account (one-time fee).
In Adalo: Publish → Android.
Generate an AAB (Android App Bundle) for submission.
Upload to Google Play Console; review times vary.

Learn more: Publishing to native app stores.

Step 39: Launch as a Progressive Web App (PWA)

PWAs can be installed from the browser and work across devices. Push notifications are supported on most modern platforms (including iOS 16.4+ with Web Push), subject to implementation and browser support.
Optimize for: responsiveness, offline UX (where possible), “Add to Home Screen,” and fast loading.

Benefits of No-Code for PM Apps

Rapid prototyping: ship an MVP and iterate — Adalo Preview & Publish
Cost efficiency: less custom plumbing and faster changes — No-code overview
Lower technical barriers: model your data visually — Relational data explained

Why Adalo Works Well for Project Management

Built-in relational DB: Users ↔ Projects ↔ Tasks ↔ Comments/Attachments — Database basics
Cross-platform publishing: iOS, Android, and web — Publishing
Marketplace components: calendars, charts, inputs — Marketplace

Cost & Resources

Adalo: check current plans/limits — https://www.adalo.com/pricing
Apple Developer Program: $99/year — https://developer.apple.com/programs/
Google Play Developer: $25 one-time — https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/6112435
Zapier / Make: automation platforms — https://www.adalo.com/integrations/zapier · https://www.make.com/

Additional Resources

Adalo Help Center — https://help.adalo.com/
Adalo Marketplace — https://www.adalo.com/marketplace
External Collections — https://help.adalo.com/integrations/external-collections-with-apis
Custom Actions — https://help.adalo.com/integrations/custom-actions
Optimize Performance — https://help.adalo.com/performance/optimize-app-performance
Xano Integration — https://www.adalo.com/integrations/xano
Airtable Integration — https://www.adalo.com/integrations/airtable
Publishing Guides — https://www.adalo.com/features/publishing
Kanban Basics — https://businessmap.io/kanban-resources/kanban-tutorial/beginners

‍Note: This Asana-style build is a prototype using Adalo’s UI and database. For real-time collaboration, advanced reporting, granular enterprise permissions, and large-scale data or automation, integrate external services (e.g., Xano, Airtable, custom APIs) via External Collections / Custom Actions and handle heavy processing server-side. Always performance-test on real devices and validate your data privacy posture (e.g., GDPR/CCPA) before publishing.