In-app notifications
The bell in the header opens Notifications, grouped by age: Today, Yesterday, Last 7 days, and Older.
- Mark all read clears the unread state in one go, or mark individual items read.
- Show more loads older notifications.
- When there's nothing left, you'll see "You're all caught up."
- Notification settings at the bottom jumps to the settings page.
- Open a notification to go to the task, comment, or page it points at.
You'll see notifications for things like workspace invites, tasks assigned to you, mentions, comments and replies, comment likes, project and goal shares, and task updates.
Notification settings
Settings → Notifications ("Control how and when you receive notifications") has two master switches:
| Setting | Effect |
|---|---|
| In-app notifications | Master toggle for notifications |
| Email notifications | Receive emails for important updates (ex: task assigned) |
Under those, a Team collaboration section controls which events send email. These are only editable while both master toggles are on:
Task Assignments · Tagged in Comments · Task Comments · Comment Likes · Project Shares · Goal Shares · Team Invites · Task Updates · Project Updates
Changes aren't live until you press Save Changes.
A note on tuning these
The default set is reasonable for a small collaborative team and noisy for a solo user. If you work alone, turning off Task Comments, Comment Likes, and Task Updates removes almost all email without costing you anything — nobody else is generating those events.
If you're being interrupted but don't want to go silent, turning off Email notifications while leaving In-app notifications on is usually the right move. You keep the full record in the bell menu and read it when you choose to, rather than when it arrives.
Weekly snapshot
The weekly snapshot is a summary email covering your previous week. It's configured separately, at Settings → Weekly snapshot.
| Toggle | Default | Sent |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly snapshot emails | On | Monday, around 8am US Eastern |
| Team Health digests | On | Friday, to admins and owners |
Choosing what's in it
What to include has three sections you can switch on or off:
- Metrics grid
- Trend charts
- Written summary
Within those, pick your metrics — Balance score, Tasks completed, Focus sessions, Break recharge, Routines, Avg mood, Avg sleep — and your charts — Balance score trend, Tasks per day, Mood trend, Deep work per day.
One section is always included: Worth trying this week. It's the only part of the email that suggests a change rather than reporting a number, which is why it isn't optional.
Previewing before you commit
Rather than waiting a week to see what you've configured:
- Preview last week's digest renders it inline, with Refresh to regenerate.
- Send me a sample delivers a real copy to your inbox so you can see how it renders in your mail client.
Common questions
How do I stop all email from Onward?
Turn off Email notifications in Settings → Notifications and Weekly snapshot emails in Settings → Weekly snapshot. They're independent switches — turning off one leaves the other running.
Why are the team collaboration toggles greyed out?
They require both In-app notifications and Email notifications to be on. Turn the masters on and the individual toggles become editable.
Can I get push or desktop notifications?
Onward's notification settings cover in-app and email. There are no separate push or desktop channel toggles on this page.
When exactly does the weekly snapshot arrive?
Monday, around 8am US Eastern. Team Health digests go out Friday to workspace admins and owners.
Who receives the Team Health digest?
Admins and owners of the workspace. Its contents depend on what members have chosen to contribute under their own privacy settings.
My settings changes didn't stick.
The notifications page requires Save Changes. Navigating away first discards them.