Google Tasks gains a feature it should've already had

(Image credit: Android Central)

What you need to know

• Google Tasks will let you star important items in your to-do lists.
• You can then view and sort your starred tasks.
• Stars will be available on all Workspace and G Suite accounts, but will take 15 days to roll out fully.
• This feature first appeared in an APK teardown last August.

Google will soon allow you to mark specific Tasks with a Star in order to highlight their importance. A feature long available in Google Drive and competing app Microsoft To Do, it'll give Tasks users a way to designate certain tasks as higher priority within the same list.

Starred tasks will also appear in a pinned Starred view. On mobile, it'll appear as a Star icon to the left of My Tasks; on desktop, you'll find the "Starred" menu option under My Tasks in the drop-down menu.

"We hope this update makes it easier for you to prioritize your tasks and quickly navigate to important tasks across your projects," Google said in its announcement post (opens in new tab).

Google says the feature will come to all Google Workspace, G Suite Basic, and G Suite Business accounts. The feature rollout began on June 8 but will take 15 days to arrive to all accounts; so you may not receive the option until June 23.

Google has been testing the feature for nearly a year, around the time it first implemented a new UI that made it easier to switch between lists on mobile. Later that August, XDA Developers spotted code referencing Starred tasks as an unreleased feature. It's unclear why this feature has taken so long to implement, given Google already had a similar feature in place on Google Drive.

We consider Google Tasks to be one of Google's most underrated apps, and the addition of prioritizing specific tasks will only make it more useful for owners of the best Android phones.

Michael spent years freelancing on every tech topic under the sun before settling down on the real exciting stuff: virtual reality, fitness wearables, gaming, and how tech intersects with our world. He's a semi-reformed Apple-to-Android user who loves running, D&D, and Star Wars. Find him on Twitter at @Michael_L_Hicks.