What This Update Actually Is
HubSpot shipped three connected changes to how tasks work inside the CRM. First, tasks now support custom properties, just like Contacts, Deals, or Companies. Second, every task can have up to 30 subtasks tied to it. Third, the task creation UI has been rebuilt as a side panel, which is the same interface HubSpot already uses for other CRM objects.
This is not a cosmetic refresh. The old task creation modal is gone. The new side panel brings tasks onto the same structural footing as every other CRM record type.
A few things are still in beta as of the April 13, 2026 release. Custom property support in workflows ships in April. Viewing custom properties on the Task Index page requires joining the "Tasks app rebuilt on CRM framework" beta. Subtask creation in the Task Index page also requires that beta.
Why HubSpot Shipped This
Tasks in HubSpot were an island. You could create them, assign them, and check them off. That was mostly it. There was no way to add a field for deal stage context, territory, priority tier, or anything else specific to your process. Humans were working around the tool constantly, adding context in the task notes field or keeping a second system just to track task-level details.
The subtask gap was equally painful for teams running multi-step outreach or onboarding sequences. A single parent task like "Complete Q2 discovery call prep" could involve five or six distinct steps. Without subtasks, those steps either lived in one bloated notes field or across a stack of separate tasks with no parent-child relationship.
HubSpot's larger play here is clear: bring every object type, including tasks, into the unified CRM framework. That makes tasks reportable, customizable, and automatable in ways that weren't possible before.
How to Use It Step by Step
Start with custom properties, then configure subtasks. Here's the sequence that works:
- Go to Settings > Properties. Select Tasks as the object type. Create the custom properties your process actually needs. Think about fields like "Task Category," "Territory," "Complexity Score," or any qualifier your team repeats in notes today.
- Go to Settings > Objects > Tasks. Open the task creation form editor. Add your new custom properties to the form so they appear every time someone creates a task. This is how you enforce data capture at the point of creation.
- Create a task anywhere in the CRM (a Contact, Deal, Company, or Project record). The new side panel opens. Scroll down past the standard fields to find the Subtasks section.
- Add subtasks by typing each step directly in the Subtasks section. Each subtask is its own task record with its own properties and permissions. Subtasks can have their own associations to other CRM records, independent of the parent.
- If you use Projects with Gantt View, hover next to any task in the Gantt View to see the "Create Subtask" option. You can also create subtasks from the Task Card inside a project record.
- To add subtasks inside a workflow, open the Create Task workflow action. A Subtasks field now appears inside that action so you can pre-define steps for any task your workflow creates.
- Opt into the "Tasks app rebuilt on CRM framework" beta if you want to view and edit custom properties directly on the Task Index page. This is optional but recommended for any team doing high-volume task management.
What It Touches in Your HubSpot Strategy
This update ripples further than most teams will notice on day one. Here's where it connects.
Properties and data architecture: Every custom property you create for tasks becomes reportable data. That means you can now build dashboards and filtered views around task-level fields. If you've ever wanted to report on task type by rep, or filter your Task Index by territory, that's now possible. This connects directly to how you've structured your broader CRM property strategy.
Workflows: The Create Task workflow action now supports subtask creation. That means your automated sequences can spin up a parent task and a full checklist in a single action. This is a significant upgrade for onboarding workflows, sales cadence automations, and any process that previously relied on multiple separate task actions.
Key Takeaway
Custom task properties make task data reportable for the first time. If your team has never been able to slice task activity by category, territory, or priority, that gap closes now. Build the properties before you build the forms.
Projects and Gantt View: Teams using HubSpot Projects for client work or internal campaigns now have a real breakdown structure. A "Launch Website" project task can have subtasks for copywriting, design review, QA, and publish, all tracked inside HubSpot with their own assignments and due dates.
Portal audit and cleanup: If your portal has a lot of legacy tasks sitting in notes fields because there was no structured property to put things in, this is a good moment to audit and standardize. Humans who inherited a messy task setup now have tools to fix it properly.
If you're not sure where task properties fit in your overall data model, our HubSpot portal audit checklist is a good place to stress-test your current setup before you add new fields.
Key Takeaway
Subtasks are full task records. They carry their own properties, permissions, and CRM associations. The 30-subtask limit per parent task is a beta constraint, not a permanent ceiling, so plan your structure accordingly.
This update is part of a larger April 2026 push to rebuild HubSpot objects on a unified CRM framework. If you want the full picture of what else shipped this month, the April 2026 HubSpot updates roundup connects all the dots.
Who Should Care Most
Not every team will feel this equally. Here's who gets the most immediate value:
- Sales ops and RevOps leaders who have been forced to track task-level data outside HubSpot. Custom properties mean task data now lives in the same system as deal data, contact data, and activity data.
- Sales managers running structured outreach processes. Subtasks let reps work through a multi-step call or meeting prep workflow inside a single parent task instead of juggling five separate items.
- Customer success and onboarding teams who manage complex client handoff checklists. A single onboarding task can now carry every milestone as a subtask, associated to the right Contact and Company records.
- HubSpot admins at companies with 10 or more HubSpot seat holders. The more humans using tasks, the more a standardized creation form matters. Required custom fields at creation prevent sloppy data at the source.
- Project-based businesses using HubSpot Projects to manage deliverables. The Gantt View subtask integration makes HubSpot a more complete project management tool without adding another platform.
George's Take
“Tasks were the last major CRM object that couldn't be shaped to how a business actually works. That gap quietly cost teams hours every week. Now that tasks have custom properties and a real parent-child structure, the question isn't whether to use this. It's how fast you can design the property set that reflects your actual process and stop letting tribal knowledge live in a notes field.”
We've seen this pattern across dozens of portal audits. Humans build clever workarounds inside task notes because there's nowhere structured to put business-specific context. Those workarounds become invisible process debt. This update doesn't just add features. It removes a legitimate excuse for keeping process knowledge out of the CRM.
The real win here is data consistency. When every human on your team fills in the same structured fields at task creation, your reporting gets sharper, your coaching conversations get more specific, and your automation gets smarter. That's the same principle behind shared data being the quiet superpower of HubSpot: the value compounds when the structure is right from the start.
If you want help designing a task property structure that actually fits your process, or if you're not sure how this update interacts with your current workflows and reports, let's look at it together. Book a strategy call with the Sidekick team and we'll map out exactly where custom task properties and subtasks can close the biggest gaps in your HubSpot portal.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a subtask and a regular task in HubSpot?
Subtasks are full task records with the same properties and permissions as any other task. The only difference is that every subtask must be linked to a parent task. Subtasks can still have their own associations to other CRM records like Contacts or Deals. During the current beta, each parent task supports up to 30 subtasks.
How do I create custom properties for tasks in HubSpot?
Go to Settings > Properties, select Tasks as the object type, and create your properties just as you would for Contacts or Deals. To make those properties appear at task creation, go to Settings > Objects > Tasks and add them to the task creation form. This ensures every new task captures the data your process requires.
Will this update break my existing tasks or workflows?
Existing tasks are not deleted or altered. The change is to the creation interface, which is now a side panel instead of the old modal. Existing workflows that use the Create Task action will continue to work. Support for adding custom properties inside workflow task actions is rolling out in April 2026, so check your workflows after that release.
Can I report on custom task properties in HubSpot dashboards?
Yes. Because tasks now share the same CRM object framework as Contacts and Deals, custom task properties are available in HubSpot's reporting tools. You can build filtered views on the Task Index page and include task property data in custom reports. Viewing custom properties on the Task Index page requires joining the Tasks CRM framework beta.
Who gets access to custom task properties and subtasks in HubSpot?
All paid HubSpot subscriptions get access, which includes Starter, Professional, and Enterprise tiers. The core functionality, custom properties, the new side panel, and subtask creation in the CRM, is available to all paid customers. Some features like Task Index page custom property columns require opting into the "Tasks app rebuilt on CRM framework" beta.
Can subtasks in HubSpot be associated with different CRM records than the parent task?
Yes. Each subtask can carry its own CRM record associations independent of the parent task. A subtask can be linked to a different Contact, Deal, or Company than the parent. This makes subtasks flexible for complex processes where individual steps involve different stakeholders or records within the same overall project.
