If you're like us here at monday.com, you work best when things are organized clearly and visually. Well, we want you to take your workflows to the next level with monday workdocs! Workdocs are a central place for you and your team to collaborate, brainstorm, plan, and execute. Drop that notebook, close Google Docs, and toss away all your sticky notes - let's learn how to master monday workdocs together! 📝
What is a monday workdoc?
Think of it as a flexible, multi-media whiteboard where you and your team can record all notes and ideas related to one central topic. By adding individual elements to your workdoc, all of your loose thoughts and ideas can come together in one place, right inside monday.com, where all the rest of your work is stored! With an informal format, it's excellent for working together on notes from a meeting, a group project, brainstorming, recording a sync between teams or teammates, or anything else you might need.
How to add a new workdoc
You can add a new workdoc just as you would add a new board or dashboard! From within the workspace you'd like to create the workdoc in, click "Add" from the left panel, and then select "New workdoc", just like this:
Next, you can type the name of your workdoc into the first field, and select the type of workdoc! Once you have selected a workdoc type, click "Create Doc".
And voila - your blank canvas is ready to go!
Create a workdoc within the File Column
In addition to creating a free-standing workdoc, you also have the option to create a workdoc that exists within an item on your board!
Let's say one of the items on your to-do list is to record meeting notes. By adding a workdoc to the File Column for this item, you can keep your work in context right within the item on your board! No need to flip between platforms or attach external files - everything is already here in the right place!
First, make sure you have a Files Column on your board. Then, click the item's cell within the Files Column and select "New monday Doc", like this:
Now you can click the cell to open up the workdoc whenever you have something to add or edit!
Understanding workdoc types
Just like boards and dashboards, there are three types of workdocs:
- Main workdoc - Main workdocs are visible to anyone who is a team member within your account. A team member can be an admin, a member, or a viewer. To learn more about the difference between each type, check out this article. Anything you will create in this workdoc will be accessible and transparent to your team members.
- Private workdoc - Private workdocs can only be seen by the person who created the workdoc and by the specific team members they invite to join the workdoc. Private workdocs are only for internal users (viewers and team members), meaning that you cannot invite guests to them.
- Shareable workdoc - Shareable workdocs are used when you want to share a workdoc with people outside your team or company, such as clients, interns, or freelancers. You can invite these people as guests within your account in order to collaborate with them. When you invite a guest to a Shareable workdoc, they will only have access to the specific workdoc they have been invited to, and will not have access to any other information within your account. You can also invite viewers or team members to your Shareable workdoc.
How to invite members and change edit permissions
- Invite team members
To invite team members or guests, click the "Share" button at the top-right corner of your screen:
Next, type in the name of the team member you'd like to add, or the email address of a guest you'd like to invite if you've chosen a Shareable workdoc.
You can turn any workdoc members into owners by clicking the grey crown icon beside their name to turn it blue! An owner is, by default, the person who created the workdoc and someone who the creator has crowned an additional owner. Like a board, only the workdoc owner can crown other owners and delete or duplicate the workdoc.
- Edit permissions
There are two different types of edit permissions that you can implement in your workdoc:
- Only workdoc owners - Only workdoc owners (members with a blue crown beside their name) can make edits to the doc.
- Everyone who has access to this workdoc - Every account member with access to this workdoc can make edits. This means that if it is a Main workdoc, anyone with access to the workspace it was created in can make edits. If it is a Private or Shareable workdoc, any member of the workdoc will be able to make edits.
You can change these permissions easily by clicking the "Share" button and then selecting one of the two options at the bottom of the pop-up window, as shown in the image above.
How do they work?
Workdocs are essentially gridded whiteboards that allow you to create a collage of free-standing elements in one central location. The elements, kind of like items, can be duplicated, moved, deleted, or edited. You can add an element by clicking any of the icons in the toolbar, or by using keyboard shortcuts!
To add an element using your keyboard, you can either type a '/' or click the plus sign. Next, you will see a drop-down menu, from which you can select an element to add to your workdoc. No need to touch your mouse - you can begin typing the name of an element as if you were using a search bar, and click 'Enter' on your keyboard to select!
Each element is essentially a horizontal line or several lines within the document. They are flexible, and can be transformed into other types of elements, moved up or down, duplicated, deleted, and more, with the use of the drop-down menu! To access the menu, hover to the left of an element and click the arrow that appears. Next, you can select an action from the menu!
Elements can be moved by clicking the 6 dot menu to the left of the element, and dragging and dropping them within the document!
Elements can be anything from types of text, such as bullet points, headings, quote formatting, dividers, and checklists, to media such as images and videos! Let's take a look at some elements in the next sections.
Add and customize your text
There are a few ways to add and customize text! Besides using the '/' on your keyboard, as discussed in the previous section, you can add text right from the workdoc's header! Click the arrow beside the text button to select a type of text from the drop-down menu! You can even add bullets or a numbered list using their respective icons in the header.
Once you have text added, you can customize it however you want! Just highlight any line or piece of text, and a floating toolbar will appear. From this toolbar, you can change the text type, format, color, alignment, and even add a hyperlink.
'@ mention' team members
Collaborate seamlessly with your team members by '@ mentioning' them anywhere within your workdoc! Just type a '@' symbol on your keyboard to open up a list of all team members who have access to your workdoc. Once you select a teammate, they will be notified right away with a Bell Notification.
Embed boards
Need to reference a board while working in your document? Embed the board directly into your workdoc as a widget so that your content and data stay up-to-date and aligned at all times!
To embed a board, you can click the board icon in the toolbar header, or add it using the plus sign or keboard '/' shortcut, like this:
Now, you just have to choose a board. You can select one from the suggested list of recent boards, search for one in the search bar, or even create a new board.
The board is fully functioning, allowing you to view and update everything right from within your workdoc! You can even view the board in full screen, rename, or filter the widget.
Embed widgets
Add dimension and visual context to your workdoc by embedding widgets. You can choose from any of our 40+ widgets including the Timeline Widget, Gantt Widget, Numbers, and even the beloved Llama Farm.
To add a widget, click the widget symbol in the toolbar header, or add it using the plus sign or keboard '/' shortcut, like this:
You'll be given a list of popular widgets to choose from, or you can click "+More widgets" to open up the Widgets Center, where you can view all options.
Now you can choose which boards you want to connect to the widget. You can select several boards from the list of recently used boards or you can search for them in the search bar. When you're ready, click "Done".
And you're ready to go! You can interact with your widget just as you would on a dashboard, and can rename it, filter it, and open up the settings menu to customize it exactly as you want!
Add an image or video
Adding an image or video is similar to adding text. You can do so using the '/' keyboard shortcut and typing either "image" or "video", or by clicking the respective icon in the workdoc's header.
You can also drag and drop images from your desktop right into your doc, or copy and paste them from anywhere.
Once you've added your image or video, you can resize it by clicking and dragging a corner. Just release the click as soon as you're happy with the image's size! To edit the media, hover over it and click the pencil icon that appears at the top right corner of the element. Now you should see a floating toolbar below your image! From here, you can switch the image or video, change alignment, or open up additional settings.
To edit or annotate the element, double-click the image or video to open it up in full-screen editing mode.
From the toolbar, you can add updates, download, print, delete the image or video, and more. You can even get more information on your file with the vertical menu on the right side of your screen:
Save as a template
Now, you have the option to save your monday workdoc as a template, just as you would a board! When saved as a template, the doc will be easily accessible in your template center. Everyone in your account will be able to use the saved template to create a new doc.
Once the doc is saved as a template center, you can access it anytime! Access your template center from your Workspace by clicking "Add" and "Choose from templates" within the panel. Once inside the template center, search for the name of your saved doc template and choose to create a new workdoc as a main, private, or shareable doc:
Add Updates
One of our favorite monday.com features appears in monday workdocs as well! You can add updates as annotations on images or within the text of your workdoc! You can even view them in a concentrated Updates Section on your workdoc, just like you would have in each item on your board.
- Add updates to images
To add updates to your images, first double-click the image to open it in editing mode, and then click the speech bubble at the left side of your toolbar:
Next, click anywhere on your image to annotate in that spot! You'll activate a pop-up window where you can type and format your update exactly how you would on your board, including '@ mentioning' your team members!
To view all of the updates on your file at once, click the "Updates" icon in the vertical menu on the right side of your screen. Each update will be marked with a number, coordinating to the same number on the original image or video! That way, you can easily understand which updates relate to each aspect of your image. This is great for collaborating on designs or graphics, for example!
- Add updates to the body of your workdoc
To add updates to the body of your workdoc, click the speech bubble on the right side of the workdoc's header to open up the Updates Section, like this:
From the Updates Section, you can begin typing an update, just as you would within an item on your board! 
You can tell the difference between general updates and annotations by checking if there is a header above the update. If it says "Update on file", you know it was added to a specific spot on a file within your workdoc. There will be an image of the file within the update, as well. If you click this image, you will open up the file and the update in full screen.
- Notifications
Just like the Updates Section on your board, all updates will appear in the Inbox of anyone who is a member of this workdoc! Notifications will also be generated in the Bell Notifications Center every time someone replies to updates you wrote, a team member '@ mention's you, or you were invited to join a workdoc!
Duplicate, delete, or archive your workdoc
Absolutely in love with your workdoc's format and want to use it as a template for another doc? You can duplicate it by opening the 3-dot menu and selecting "Duplicate Doc":
You can also delete or archive your doc by opening the 3-dot menu and selecting "Delete/Archive Doc" and then choosing from the two options.
Create new items
Workdocs are all about real-time collaboration and turning words into work. And what better way to connect your work documents to your workflow than to turn your text into items on any board as you type!
To turn text into an item, highlight your text and click the "Create items" icon in the toolbar, as shown below:
Choose the board you'd like your item to be created in by selecting one of your recently visited boards or searching for another board in the search bar.
Next, choose from the list of groups on your selected board.
Now, you'll see a message at the top of your screen letting you know that your item or items have been successfully added to the board you've selected.
If you have any feedback or questions, please reach out to our team by using our contact form. We're available 24/7 and happy to help!
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