What are the four quadrants of the Eisenhower matrix?

Do first: urgent and important. Schedule: important but not urgent. Delegate: urgent but not important. Drop: neither urgent nor important. The matrix puts the two questions on two axes, so every task lands in exactly one quadrant.

How do I tell urgent from important?

Urgent means it has a deadline or a cost in the next day or two. Important means it moves a goal you care about. A useful test: an important task still matters if nobody asks about it, while an urgent one stops mattering once its moment passes.

Where is my list saved?

In this browser’s local storage, on this device only: your tasks are not sent to any server. Clearing site data removes it, and a private window forgets it when closed, so copy or download the matrix to keep a copy.

Why is it called the Eisenhower matrix?

It is named after Dwight D. Eisenhower, who said in a 1954 speech that he had two kinds of problems, the urgent and the important. Stephen Covey turned the idea into the four-quadrant grid in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (1989).

Can I print a blank Eisenhower matrix?

Yes. Press Print with no tasks added and you get an empty four-quadrant worksheet; with tasks added, the printout lists them in their quadrants. Only the matrix prints, not the rest of the page.

Eisenhower matrix: sort tasks by urgent and important

The Eisenhower matrix sorts tasks with two questions: is it urgent, and is it important? Urgent and important tasks you do first; important but not urgent ones you schedule; urgent but not important ones you delegate; the rest you drop. Add your tasks below, drag them (or use each task’s Move menu) into a quadrant, then copy the matrix as Markdown, download it as CSV or print it. The list is kept in this browser only.

Do first (0)

Urgent and important. Do it today, yourself.

Schedule (0)

Important, not urgent. Put a date on it and protect the time.

Delegate (0)

Urgent, not important. Hand it to someone, or batch it into a short slot.

Drop (0)

Neither urgent nor important. Delete it, or park it on a someday list.

The four quadrants

Quadrant	Question	What to do
Do first	Urgent and important	Do it today, yourself.
Schedule	Important, not urgent	Put a date on it and protect the time.
Delegate	Urgent, not important	Hand it to someone, or batch it into a short slot.
Drop	Neither urgent nor important	Delete it, or park it on a someday list.

How to use the Eisenhower matrix

List everything on your plate. Add each task in a few words. Do not sort yet: getting it all down first is what makes the sorting honest.
Ask two questions of each task. Is it urgent (it has a deadline or a cost in the next day or two)? Is it important (it moves a goal you care about)? Drag it, or use its Move menu, to the quadrant that matches.
Act on each quadrant. Do the Do first tasks today, put a date on every Schedule task, hand off or batch the Delegate tasks, and delete the Drop tasks.
Keep a copy. Copy the matrix as Markdown, download it as CSV, or print it. The list also stays in this browser for next time.

Questions

What are the four quadrants of the Eisenhower matrix?: Do first: urgent and important. Schedule: important but not urgent. Delegate: urgent but not important. Drop: neither urgent nor important. The matrix puts the two questions on two axes, so every task lands in exactly one quadrant.
How do I tell urgent from important?: Urgent means it has a deadline or a cost in the next day or two. Important means it moves a goal you care about. A useful test: an important task still matters if nobody asks about it, while an urgent one stops mattering once its moment passes.
Where is my list saved?: In this browser’s local storage, on this device only: your tasks are not sent to any server. Clearing site data removes it, and a private window forgets it when closed, so copy or download the matrix to keep a copy.
Why is it called the Eisenhower matrix?: It is named after Dwight D. Eisenhower, who said in a 1954 speech that he had two kinds of problems, the urgent and the important. Stephen Covey turned the idea into the four-quadrant grid in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (1989).
Can I print a blank Eisenhower matrix?: Yes. Press Print with no tasks added and you get an empty four-quadrant worksheet; with tasks added, the printout lists them in their quadrants. Only the matrix prints, not the rest of the page.

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