Timeline view guide

Timeline view displays records as horizontal bars showing duration from start to end date, making it perfect for project roadmaps, resource planning, and any workflow where date ranges matter.

This guide covers how to use Baserow’s Timeline view to visualize project durations, track date ranges, and manage Gantt-style timelines with drag-and-drop scheduling.

Paid feature: Timeline view requires Paid plans. Users on the free plan cannot create timeline views.

Learn more about views in general: Views overview

What is Timeline view?

Timeline view shows records as horizontal bars spanning from start date to end date. Unlike Calendar view, which shows events on specific dates, Timeline view emphasizes duration; how long tasks take and how they overlap. This Gantt-style visualization makes project planning and scheduling intuitive.

Timeline view excels at: Project roadmaps and milestones, resource allocation across time periods, multi-phase project planning, campaign timelines with preparation and execution periods, construction or manufacturing schedules, and any workflow where understanding task duration and overlap is critical.

Timeline view showing project tasks with durations

Timeline view vs other view types

Feature Timeline Calendar Kanban Grid
Best for Date ranges/durations Specific date events Status tracking Detailed data work
Visualization Horizontal bars Calendar grid Status columns Spreadsheet rows
Date requirement Start & end dates Single date Optional Optional
Shows duration ✓ Bar length – – Text only
Shows overlap ✓ Visual Partially – –
Drag to adjust ✓ Start/end dates – ✓ Status only –
Time scale Flexible zoom Month/week/day N/A N/A
Premium feature Yes Yes Yes No

Learn more: Calendar view | Kanban view | Grid view

Create a Timeline view

Timeline views require both start and end date fields to display duration bars. This distinguishes Timeline from Calendar view, which only needs one date field.

Prerequisites

Your table must have two date fields:

  • Start date field - When tasks/projects begin
  • End date field - When tasks/projects complete

If you only have one date field, consider adding an end date field or use Calendar view instead.

Create the view

  1. Click the view dropdown at the top-left of the table
  2. Select Timeline from the view type options
  3. Choose Collaborative or Personal permission type
  4. Enter a name for the Timeline view
  5. Select the start date field from your table
  6. Select the end date field from your table
  7. Click Create view

Creating a Timeline view in Baserow

Tasks appear as horizontal bars spanning from start to end date. Records with missing start or end dates may not display properly.

Configure date settings

The Date settings button in the toolbar shows which date fields currently define the timeline.

Change date fields

  1. Click Date settings in the toolbar
  2. Select different start date field from dropdown
  3. Select different end date field from dropdown
  4. Timeline reorganizes with new date configuration

Configuring date fields in Timeline view

This lets you create multiple Timeline views of the same data with different date perspectives (e.g., “Planned Timeline” using planned dates vs “Actual Timeline” using actual dates).

Timeline controls

Scroll horizontally: Click and drag the timeline or use the scroll wheel to move through time periods

Zoom in/out: Adjust timeline scale to show days, weeks, or months depending on your project scope

Today button: Click Today to jump immediately to the current date

Arrow buttons: Use left/right arrows to navigate between time periods

Interact with taskbars

Drag entire bars: Click and drag task bars left or right to reschedule while maintaining duration

Drag bar edges: Click and drag the left edge to adjust the start date, or the right edge to adjust the end date

Hover for details: Hover over any task bar to see a tooltip with dates and key fields

Click to open: Click any taskbar to open the full record in an edit modal where you can modify all fields or add comments

Drag-to-adjust makes rescheduling intuitive; visually move tasks on the timeline instead of manually editing date fields.

Customize timeline display

Configure task labels

Control which fields display alongside task bars on the timeline.

  1. Click Labels in the toolbar
  2. Toggle fields on/off to show or hide them on task rows
  3. Use Hide all or Show all for quick bulk changes
  4. Drag the handle (⋮⋮) to reorder fields
  5. Use the search box to find fields quickly

Customizing labels in Timeline view

Green toggles (switched right) indicate visible fields. Gray toggles (switched left) indicate hidden fields.

Label strategy: Show essential information like task names, owners, and progress indicators. Hide administrative fields. Put the most important fields first for quick scanning.

Apply task colors

Use row coloring to color-code task bars based on field values, making different project phases, teams, or priorities visually distinct.

  1. Click Colors in the toolbar
  2. Click Add condition
  3. Select a field and condition (e.g., “Priority = High”)
  4. Choose a color for matching tasks
  5. Add multiple conditions with different colors

Timeline view with navigation controls

Timeline view toolbar options

The toolbar at the top of the Timeline view provides quick access to common operations:

Filter - Show only tasks matching specific conditions. Useful for viewing specific projects, team members, or date ranges.

Sort - Order task rows by field values (priority, owner, start date). Sorting doesn’t affect bar positions on the timeline; those are always determined by dates.

Share view - Generate public links or embed codes to share timelines externally.

Colors - Apply conditional formatting to task bars (covered above).

Date settings - Configure start and end date fields (covered above).

Labels - Customize which fields appear on task rows (covered above).

Timeline view management

Access view management options by clicking the three-dot menu (⋮) next to the view name:

Learn more: View configuration options

Why use Timeline view?

Timeline view provides duration-based visualization that’s impossible in Grid view or Calendar view. The horizontal bar layout makes task length and overlap immediately visible.

Duration clarity: See how long each task takes at a glance. Long bars indicate extended projects, short bars show quick tasks. This visual length makes planning more intuitive than reading date fields.

Overlap identification: Spot conflicting schedules or resource conflicts where multiple tasks overlap the same time period. Timeline view makes these conflicts visually obvious.

Drag-to-reschedule: Click and drag task bars to adjust start and end dates directly on the timeline. No field editing required; visual scheduling matches mental models for time management.

Scrollable timeline: Navigate across weeks, months, or years by scrolling and zooming. See short-term details or long-term project arcs by adjusting the timeline scale.

Frequently asked questions

What’s the difference between Timeline view and the Calendar view?

Calendar view shows events on specific dates in a monthly grid. Timeline view shows duration bars from start to end date. Use a calendar for events (meetings, deadlines). Use a timeline for tasks with duration (projects, campaigns, development phases).

Can I use Timeline view with only one date field?

No, Timeline view needs start and end dates to show meaningful duration bars. Consider adding an end date field or using a Calendar view instead.

How do I handle tasks without end dates?

Tasks with missing end dates may not display properly on the timeline. Options: (1) Add estimated end dates, (2) Use a formula field to calculate end dates from start dates plus duration, (3) Filter out incomplete records, or (4) manually assign placeholder end dates.

Can I drag tasks to reschedule them?

Yes. Click and drag entire task bars to move them while maintaining duration. Drag the left edge to adjust the start date or the right edge to adjust the end date. These visual adjustments update the underlying date fields immediately.

Why don’t my changes appear for other users immediately?

Timeline views update in real-time when records change. If other users don’t see updates immediately, they may need to refresh their browsers. Collaborative views share configurations, but a browser refresh may be needed to see data changes.

How do I see tasks that overlap?

Overlapping tasks appear as stacked bars in Timeline view. If multiple tasks run during the same time period, they stack vertically in their rows. Use filters or sorts to identify conflicts, or color-code by resource/person to spot over-allocation.

Can I export Timeline view data?

Timeline view doesn’t have direct export. Switch to grid view to access export functionality, or use table export to download all data, including dates. The export contains the same data; only the access point differs.

What’s the maximum timeline duration I can display?

Timeline view can display any date range from days to years. Very long timelines (multi-year projects) may require significant scrolling. Use zoom controls to adjust the scale; zoom out for big-picture views, zoom in for detailed scheduling.

View basics

Timeline features

Other view types

Plans and features

Still need help? If you’re looking for something else, please feel free to make recommendations or ask us questions; we’re ready to assist you.