Migration guide
Migrate from Notion to Planoda
Notion is a brilliant docs tool whose databases buckle as a tracker. This guide moves your task databases into Planoda for fast, purpose-built tracking — while you keep Notion for the long-form wikis it does best.
Updated
Should you move?
Notion is a brilliant docs-and-wiki tool, and you should keep it for exactly that. Where it strains is as a tracker: large databases slow down, there are no real cycles or estimates, and 'status' is a property you maintain by hand. Move only your task databases to a purpose-built tracker, keep the wikis in Notion, and link the two — each does what it's genuinely best at.
Migration in short
- Migrating from Notion to Planoda is a 7-step path: export, map, import, verify, then cut over.
- Start by exporting from Notion — Export from Notion, then map every field to its Planoda equivalent.
- 9 Notion concepts map onto Planoda fields (issues, workflow states, cycles, estimates, labels, and more), previewed before anything is written.
- Run both tools in parallel for a short overlap, reconcile the counts, then make Planoda the system of record — no work is left behind.
Step by step
How to move from Notion
Export from Notion
Open the database as a table, then Export → CSV (or Markdown & CSV) to pull every row with its properties. Export each task database separately so property mappings stay clean.
Map database properties
Translate Notion properties to Planoda fields: Status → workflow state, Select → priority or label, Person → assignee, Date → due date. The importer previews each column so you can confirm before writing.
Decide what stays in Notion
Keep long-form docs, specs, and wikis in Notion and link them from issues. Only the trackable task databases need to move — Planoda issues carry rich-text descriptions for the rest.
Import into Planoda
Drop your cleaned export into the CSV importer, or push records through the public REST API for large or incremental loads. The importer previews the mapping and flags any rows that need attention before anything is written.
Verify the imported data
Spot-check a sample of issues against the source: titles, assignees, states, priorities, comments, and links. Run a count reconciliation so the totals match before you trust the new workspace.
Run both tools in parallel
Keep the old tool read-only for a short overlap window while your team learns the new workflows. Route all new work into Planoda so nothing is created in two places.
Cut over and archive the source
Once the team is comfortable and open work is in sync, freeze the source tool, export a final backup, and make Planoda the system of record. Update bookmarks, integrations, and team docs.
Field mapping
What maps to what
How Notion concepts map onto Planoda.
| Notion | Planoda |
|---|---|
| Task database | Project / Team |
| Database row | Issue |
| Sub-item | Sub-issue |
| Status property | Workflow state |
| Select / Multi-select | Priority / Label |
| Person property | Assignee |
| Date property | Due date |
| Relation | Issue relation / Link |
| Page body | Issue description (rich text) |
Pro tips
Make the move smoother
Export Markdown & CSV (not CSV alone) when task pages contain meaningful body content.
Migrate one database at a time so each property→field mapping is unambiguous.
Keep Notion for wikis and link out from issues — don't try to recreate long-form docs in the tracker.
Common pitfalls
What to avoid
The mistakes that actually trip teams up moving off Notion.
Trying to move the whole Notion workspace: only the task and project databases belong in a tracker — moving wikis and docs over recreates the very thing Notion does better.
Exporting CSV alone when task pages have real body content: use Markdown & CSV so page bodies land in the issue's rich-text description instead of being lost.
Migrating all databases at once: a single mixed export blurs the property→field mapping, so move one database at a time and confirm each mapping in the preview.
Recreating cross-database relations as plain text: import related databases together so relations map to issue relations or links rather than becoming orphaned references.
FAQ
Migrating from Notion — FAQ
A note from the founder
“I'm building Planoda in the open and putting my name on it. No borrowed logos, no invented stats — just the work, shipped and auditable. If it doesn't earn your trust, tell me.”
Dmitrii Selikhov is the founder of Planoda and a lead full-stack engineer with 15+ years building developer tools and leading teams as a technical lead, software architect, and CTO.
Still deciding?
Make the switch
Leave Notion behind this weekend.
Bring your Notion export — we'll match every workflow, field by field.