Kanban board template: 6 layouts with columns and WIP limits

A kanban template has four parts: columns, WIP limits, swimlanes and card fields. Columns show workflow steps, and limits cap how much work each step may hold.

Swimlanes are horizontal rows that separate types of work, such as urgent and normal. Card fields are the details written on each item.

Each template below is drawn as a board with example cards. The Excel workbook holds all six, which suits anyone searching for a kanban board template Excel users can open. Our guide to a free kanban board covers where to host them.

The cycle time formula in H2 is =IF(G2="","",G2-F2+1). A COUNTIF on the Status column, compared with each limit, flags a column that is over.

The simple kanban board has three columns: To do, Doing and Done. It is the right template when you are new to kanban or the work has few steps.

A team workflow template splits Doing into the real steps work passes through. It suits any small team that hands work from one person to another.

The two dates give you cycle time. The blocked flag shows where work waits, and our guide on why limiting WIP makes teams faster explains why the limits matter.

A shared digital template matters more as teams spread out. In 2025, 35% of employed people in the US did some or all of their work at home on the days they worked, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics American Time Use Survey.

A software development template separates analysis, build and testing so you can see where code waits. Teams that release continuously often use it.

Review is often the first column to fill. If it does, the fix is to review sooner, not to raise the limit.

A personal kanban template uses a few columns and a tight limit to stop you starting too many things. It suits individuals managing their own work or home tasks.

The idea comes from Jim Benson's personal kanban approach, described in his 2011 book Personal Kanban with Tonianne DeMaria Barry. The Waiting column makes dependencies on other people visible.

A tight Doing limit protects focus. Psychologist David Meyer, whose task-switching research the American Psychological Association summarizes, has said that even brief mental blocks from shifting between tasks can cost as much as 40% of someone's productive time.

A service desk template tracks requests from arrival to resolution, with classes of service for urgent items. It fits IT, facilities and customer support teams.

The Waiting for customer column matters. Without it, tickets blocked on outside answers look like slow internal work.

A content production template follows a piece from idea to publication, and it shows where drafts pile up. Marketing and editorial teams use it.

Adapt a template by mapping your real workflow first, then renaming columns to match. A template is a starting point, not a standard.

1. 1

   List the steps work really passes through, including waiting.

2. 2

   Make one column per step, and merge steps that nobody can tell apart.

3. 3

   Set WIP limits slightly below the current average load, so they create gentle pressure.

4. 4

   Keep card fields to what the next person needs.

5. 5

   Review after two to four weeks.

If work sits in one column, lower the limit before it. If the board feels empty and people wait, raise limits or remove a column. See kanban board examples for how real layouts change.

An illustrative team of four counts its open work on a Monday: 9 items in progress and 5 in review.

The rule above is to start slightly below current load, so the team sets In progress to 7 and Review to 4. While In progress holds 7, nobody starts new work. They help finish or review instead.

After three weeks the team checks two things: did items wait less, and did anyone sit idle because of a limit? If items still wait in Review, lower In progress again. If people were idle, raise that limit by one.

1. 1

   Too many columns. The most common mistake is copying a template with too many columns. Every extra column adds a handoff and another place for work to wait.

2. 2

   No WIP limits. A second mistake is leaving out WIP limits. Without them, the board shows work but does not control it.

3. 3

   Waiting kept out of sight. A third is hiding waiting. Add a visible column or flag for blocked work, so delays show up on the board and in your measures. Our flow metrics tools page describes how to track them.

For the wider picture, read the kanban pillar guide and kanban project management.

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  A column that is always empty, or always full.

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  Cards that skip a column, which means the step is not real.

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  A blocked flag on more than a few cards at once.

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  People keeping a side list because the board does not fit their work.