Mark a work item type as default

POST/api/v2/workspaces/{slug}/projects/{project_id}/work-item-types/{pk}/mark-default/

Make a type the project's default. New work items get the default type when the request supplies no type_id.

Exactly one type per project is the default. Marking a new one clears the flag on the previous default, so promoting a type takes a single request. You don't need to demote the old default first. A project can never have zero defaults or two.

The request has no body. The type is identified by {pk} in the path, and the response is the updated type.

is_default is not writable through create or update. Moving the flag also changes another row, so it has its own endpoint instead of being part of a PATCH.

This call works in either work item type mode. It sets the default for this project only. For a type the project owns, is_default moves too. For a type shared from the workspace, only is_default_in_project changes, and the workspace default stays where it is.

Path parameters

slug:requiredstring

The workspace slug. It appears in your Plane URLs. In https://app.plane.so/my-team/projects/, the slug is my-team.

project_id:requiredstring (uuid)

The project the type belongs to.

pk:requiredstring (uuid)

The id of the work item type to make the default.

Body parameters

None. Send the request without a body.

Response shaping

fields:optionalstring

Comma-separated list of fields to return. Fields you don't request are left out of the response instead of coming back as null, so a missing key means you didn't ask for it and null means the value is null. id is always included, whether or not you name it.

Pass all to get every requestable field. An unknown field name returns 400 with the list of valid names and the closest match, so a typo is caught instead of being silently ignored.

Requestable here: created_at, description, external_id, external_source, governance_mode, id, is_active, is_active_in_project, is_default, is_default_in_project, is_epic, level, logo_props, name, project_ids, rollout, updated_at, updated_by_id.

See Sparse fields.

Scopes

projects.work_item_types:write

Errors

Status	Code	Cause
`400`	`invalid_request`	The request could not be processed as sent.
`401`	`unauthorized`	Missing or invalid credentials.
`402`	`payment_required`	The feature this endpoint belongs to isn't enabled on your plan, or is switched off.
`403`	`forbidden`	Your role or token scope can't update work item types.
`404`	`not_found`	No such type, project, or workspace, or the type belongs to another project.
`406`	`not_acceptable`	The `Accept` header asks for a representation the API can't produce.
`413`	`payload_too_large`	The request body is over the size limit.
`415`	`unsupported_media_type`	The `Content-Type` isn't one this endpoint accepts.
`429`	`rate_limited`	Throttled. Honor the `Retry-After` header before retrying.

Mark a work item type as default

bash

curl -X POST \
  "https://api.plane.so/api/v2/workspaces/my-team/projects/4af68566-94a4-4eb3-94aa-50dc9427067b/work-item-types/d1e7a4c9-2b58-4f36-9a0e-7c3b5d81f240/mark-default/" \
  -H "X-Api-Key: $PLANE_API_KEY"

python

import requests

response = requests.post(
    "https://api.plane.so/api/v2/workspaces/my-team/projects/4af68566-94a4-4eb3-94aa-50dc9427067b/work-item-types/d1e7a4c9-2b58-4f36-9a0e-7c3b5d81f240/mark-default/",
    headers={"X-Api-Key": "your-api-key"},
)
print(response.json()["is_default"])  # True

javascript

const response = await fetch(
  "https://api.plane.so/api/v2/workspaces/my-team/projects/4af68566-94a4-4eb3-94aa-50dc9427067b/work-item-types/d1e7a4c9-2b58-4f36-9a0e-7c3b5d81f240/mark-default/",
  {
    method: "POST",
    headers: {
      "X-Api-Key": "your-api-key",
    },
  },
);
const data = await response.json();

Response200

json

{
  "id": "d1e7a4c9-2b58-4f36-9a0e-7c3b5d81f240",
  "name": "Bug",
  "description": "Something is broken and needs a fix",
  "logo_props": {
    "in_use": "icon",
    "icon": {
      "name": "AlertCircle",
      "background_color": "#EF5974"
    }
  },
  "is_epic": false,
  "is_default": true,
  "is_active": true,
  "is_active_in_project": true,
  "is_default_in_project": true,
  "level": 0,
  "governance_mode": "any",
  "rollout": "none",
  "project_ids": ["4af68566-94a4-4eb3-94aa-50dc9427067b"],
  "external_id": null,
  "external_source": null,
  "created_at": "2026-01-14T09:24:03.117482Z",
  "updated_at": "2026-01-15T11:37:10.117482Z",
  "updated_by_id": "16c61a3a-512a-48ac-b0be-b6b46fe6f430"
}

The response only shows the type you promoted

The previously default type is demoted in the same operation, but it is not included in the response. If you are holding cached type objects, refresh the whole set with List work item types after promoting, or your cache will briefly show two defaults.

The default type is protected

Once a type is the default, it cannot be deleted or deactivated with "is_active": false. Both rules exist because a project always needs a type for untyped work items. To retire the current default, first promote a replacement with this call, then delete or deactivate the old one.

Mark a work item type as default ​

Path parameters ​

Body parameters ​

Response shaping ​

Scopes ​

Errors ​

Mark a work item type as default

Path parameters

Body parameters

Response shaping

Scopes

Errors