Kanban, Containd
The Problem With Flat Kanban Boards
Traditional Kanban boards work well for simple task lists, but they break down when your work has layers. A project has phases, each phase has tasks, and some tasks are complex enough to deserve their own breakdown. On a flat board, you either cram everything into one view or lose track of the structure entirely.
Containd Kanban solves this with a recursive model: any task can be opened as its own board.
How It Works
Projects are root-level items. Each project lives on your home canvas.
Tasks live inside projects. Open a project and you see its tasks laid out spatially.
Any task can become a board. Open a task and you are inside it, looking at its children. This can nest as deep as your work requires.
Breadcrumb navigation keeps you oriented. A tree view shows the entire hierarchy and lets you jump anywhere.
This means you can plan at whatever level of detail makes sense, without flattening your structure or losing the overview.
The Infinite Canvas
Tasks are not locked into columns. They are placed on a pannable, zoomable canvas where you can:
Drag and resize task cards freely.
Create background zones to define named areas like "To Do," "In Progress," and "Done," or any categories that fit your workflow.
Lock background layouts and save them as reusable templates.
Set project-level default templates that apply automatically to new child boards.
Copy and paste tasks within the board.
Change task status inline directly on the card.
Tree View and Search
The tree view shows your entire project hierarchy in a collapsible outline. You can:
Collapse and expand branches.
Drag tasks to reparent them.
Reorder siblings manually.
Apply sorting modes.
Search across all tasks by title, description, type, or date range.
Filter by project, status, priority, tags, and more, and optionally apply those filters to the canvas view.
Calendar and Scheduling
A built-in calendar shows tasks and appointments across four zoom levels: day, week, month, and year. Features include:
Appointment items with start and end times, shown on their actual date.
Deadline, start, added, and end date filters for standard tasks.
Deadline risk indicators based on estimates and your configured working schedule.
Daily summaries for ongoing, due, and upcoming work.
Optional Google Calendar sync for appointment items on web.
Built-In Time Tracking
You do not need a separate time-tracking tool. Containd Kanban includes:
A persistent timer overlay visible while you work.
Up to four concurrent timers with allocation percentages that sum to 100%.
Pause, resume, stop, and stop-all controls.
Per-timer notes that create separate log entries when you switch context.
Recovery for orphaned timers after interruptions.
Statistics and CSV export filtered by date range, project, status, and tags.
Data and Privacy
Browser-local storage keeps your data on your device by default.
CSV import and export let you move data in and out.
Optional account and cloud sync are available when you want cross-device access.
Conflict handling between local and cloud versions instead of silent overwrites.
Optional Connected Features
Signing in unlocks additional capabilities:
Cloud sync for boards, trash, and settings.
Contact-based presence sharing with live availability states and shared timer visibility.
Google Calendar sync for appointment items.
All of these are opt-in. The core experience works fully without an account.
Linked Notes
Task items can link to Simple Hidden Notes, a lightweight notes app, through a PIN-based deep link. Each task can automatically relate to a note collection, giving you a quick way to attach working notes to any task.
Part of a Larger Toolkit
Containd Kanban is part of a family of apps from Next Level Order Engineering. It stands on its own as a planning tool, but it also connects to the broader product lineup. Future updates will support editing inventory lists from the Containd inventory app, making it easier to manage items from a desktop or laptop.
Open Containd Kanban in your browser for free. No installation, no account required. Visit the software page for the link, or subscribe to the newsletter for product updates.
