Get started with Flying Donut in five minutes

From sign-up to your first organized board — this guide walks you through every step so your team can start collaborating immediately.

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Step 1 — Create your account

Head to the sign-up page and create a free account. You can register with an email and password or use Google OpenID Connect for one-click authentication. No credit card is required — the free plan gives you immediate access to create projects and explore the product.

  • Visit flyingdonut.io and click 'Start for free'
  • Choose email/password or sign in with Google
  • Verify your email address to unlock all features
  • You are ready — no trial countdown, no feature walls on the free tier

Step 2 — Create your first project

Click the + button in the top-right corner of the projects page. Give the project a name, choose its visibility (private or public), and select a project type. Not sure which type? Here is a quick guide:

  • Kanban — continuous flow, no time-boxed sprints; great for support teams or ongoing delivery
  • Simple Scrum — traditional sprint-based workflow with a To Do / Doing / Done task board
  • Scrumban — combines the sprint structure of Scrum with a fully customizable Kanban board (recommended for most teams)

You can change the project type later from Project Settings → Admin, so there is no pressure to get it right on the first try. Learn more in the Projects guide.

Step 3 — Organize your backlog

Every project starts with a backlog. Think of the backlog as a prioritized list of everything your team might work on. Flying Donut organizes the backlog into buckets — named groups that help you categorize work by theme, initiative, or any structure that makes sense for your team.

  • A Default bucket is created automatically — rename it to match your first category
  • Add more buckets with the + button in the backlog navigation
  • Create cards quickly by typing a title and pressing Enter
  • Drag cards up or down to set priority — top of the list means highest priority
  • Add details later: descriptions, acceptance criteria, estimates, and attachments

Deep dive: Backlog management guide

Step 4 — Invite your team

Open the project dropdown in the top menu and select Invite to Project. Enter a teammate's email address and choose their role: Follower (view-only), Member (full contributor), or Administrator (full access including project deletion).

  • Invited users receive an email with a link to join
  • If they already have a Flying Donut account, they see the project immediately after accepting
  • New users can create an account and land directly in the project
  • You can change roles later from project settings

Learn about permissions: User roles guide

Step 5 — Start working

With your backlog populated and your team on board, you are ready to start delivering. What you do next depends on your project type:

  • Scrum / Scrumban: Create a sprint, drag cards from the backlog into it, start the sprint, and begin moving work across the board
  • Kanban: Open the board, drag cards from the backlog into your columns, and start moving them through your workflow
  • Either way: Break cards into tasks, assign team members, and watch progress update in real time

Next steps: Sprints · Boards · Cards & tasks

Example: your first week with Flying Donut

Imagine a four-person engineering team starting a new feature cycle. Here is what a typical first week looks like:

  • Monday — The team lead creates a Scrumban project, adds three backlog buckets (Frontend, Backend, Infrastructure), and enters 15 rough card ideas during a planning call
  • Tuesday — The team reviews the backlog asynchronously, reorders priorities, and adds descriptions and acceptance criteria to the top 8 cards
  • Wednesday — A two-week sprint is created. The team drags the top 8 cards into the sprint and starts it. Each card gets broken into 2–4 tasks
  • Thursday — Developers pick up tasks, move them to Doing, and link their first commits via the GitHub integration
  • Friday — The burndown chart shows early progress. The team reviews the board in a 10-minute standup and adjusts priorities for the following week

Common questions

Do I need a credit card to sign up?+
No. The free plan is genuinely free — no card required, no trial expiration.
Can I change the project type later?+
Yes. Go to Project Settings → Admin and switch between Scrum, Kanban, and Scrumban at any time. Your existing cards and sprints are preserved.
How many people can I invite on the free plan?+
The free plan includes unlimited public projects with unlimited members, plus one private project with up to five members.
Is there a mobile app?+
Flying Donut is a responsive web application that works on any modern browser, including mobile browsers.

Ready to set up your first project?

Create a free account and have your team collaborating in minutes — no credit card, no setup fees, no learning curve.

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