Although Notion resembles a simple blank canvas, the all-in-one workspace can be an incredibly complex system with countless uses and applications. But that is what is so great about Notion. Your workspace can be as simple or as complex as you need it to be.

If you are new to Notion, you may be excited about the productive possibilities but still not quite sure where to begin.

So, here are several ways you can use Notion along with templates you can customize to suit your own needs.

How to Duplicate and Use Notion Templates

Before we dive in, here's a quick tutorial on how to duplicate Notion templates if you're unfamiliar with this process:

  1. Click on any template link in this article.
  2. Find the Duplicate button in the upper-right corner of the Notion page (you may be prompted to sign in to Notion to do this).
  3. The template will then be added to your Notion as a separate page that you can edit and drag and drop to anywhere in your workspace.

Now, let's get on with it. What can you use Notion for?

1. Habit Tracker

Habit Tracker Notion

This simple tracker template will help you maintain your desired daily habits. Each row is a new day, each column a separate habit to keep.

Like any of the other templates, this habit tracker is customizable. Once you duplicate it to your Notion, you will be able to change the columns to whatever your daily habit goals are.

Once the month is over, you can drag the whole table into a built-in archive page and then click + Start a new month to create a new table for the next month.

2. Weekly Agenda

Weekly Agenda Notion

The core of any productivity system is a simple to-do list. And Notion's Weekly Agenda template is just that.

You can plan out your tasks for each day of the week, adding subtasks where necessary. To clear the list for the next week, you can either add tasks to the archive for further reference or just delete them.

3. Class Notes

Class Notes Notion

Notion has become quite a popular tool among students for organizing homework and life. It's no surprise then that you can enter lecture and reading notes straight in Notion.

With this template, you can view all your notes from every class together or filter them by class title tags. You can also select the type of note (e.g. lecture, reading, or study guide) and upload files such as PowerPoint slides and lecture recordings.

Related: Notion vs. Evernote: Which One Is Right for You?

4. Reading List

Reading list Notion

This reading list template is useful not just for readers, but consumers of any media type.

On this Notion page, you can add podcasts, YouTube videos, movies, television shows, and of course, books and articles. If you want to see only the movies or books on your list, you can easily filter by media type.

In the table view, there are columns for ratings, authors, URLs, and summaries. Of course, you can add or delete columns as you see fit.

Also, by downloading the Notion Web Clipper Chrome extension, whenever you come across an article on the internet you can quickly save it to this Notion page for reading later, much like the save-for-later apps Pocket and Instapaper.

Download: Notion Web Clipper (Free)

5. Budget Planning

Budget Planning Notion

This simple budget can keep track of your monthly expenses so that you stay on top of your financial goals and steer clear of debt.

There are several columns in this table for expense name, cost, category, date, and comments. Of course, you can add your own columns. The total sum of your expenses is shown at the bottom of the cost column, which you can then compare to your monthly cap.

If you click All Expenses, you can see your expenses with different filters, like by month or by category.

Related: Budgeting Tools to Manage Your Finances and Save Money

6. Blog Post

The Blog Post Notion template

One of the great features of Notion is that you can actually publish your pages straight to the web. Thus, you can conveniently host your own blog with Notion.

This blog post template provided by Notion is fairly straightforward as it's really just a Notion page with text and a couple of images. Use it to get an idea of how your articles could look on the web with images, headings, and hyperlinks.

To publish your post, click Share in the upper-right corner and select Share to web with Public Access turned on.

To create a blog home page, set up a separate Notion page with a gallery view. Then, link your blog posts' pages to the gallery to display the images. Then, share the page on the web.

7. Roadmap

Roadmap Notion template

Whether you work in a team or you're an individual freelancer or student, staying on top of major projects is paramount. Luckily, Notion makes project management intuitive and easy.

Notion's Roadmap template is a simple Kanban project management board with columns for Not Started, In Progress, and Complete. As you work through each task, just drag and drop them to their appropriate status. To view by date, click on the calendar view.

Also, if you're using Notion with your team, you can add tags for which department each task belongs to as well as assign members to each task.

8. Job Applications

Job applications Notion template

Finally, you can use Notion to easily keep track of any job applications. With this template, you'll never forget which jobs you have applied to and which you haven't yet.

The table view is quite handy with columns for position, status, deadline, comments, and a URL to the job description. Or, you can view by stage which shows where each application is in the process.

At the top of the page, you can upload files for your cover letter and resume as well as embed a link to your portfolio so that all your resources are quickly accessible for when you go to fill out and submit your applications.

What to Use Notion For

Notion's blank canvas appearance is slightly deceiving. From habit tracking and project management to blogging and budgeting, the possibilities with the app are seemingly endless.

While all the templates provided in this article are created by Notion itself, there are also dozens of templates created by everyday users in the Notion Template Gallery. So, if you didn't find a worthwhile Notion template in this article, you'll be sure to find several there.