Lists and checklists

Make bulleted, numbered and check lists, nest items under each other, and indent ordinary paragraphs.

Start a list

Use the list button in the editor bar.
Or type a marker at the start of a line, followed by a space: - for a bullet, 1. for numbering, [ ] for an empty checkbox, [x] for one already ticked.
Or type / and choose Bulleted List, Numbered List or Checklist.

Press Return at the end of an item to start the next one. A numbered list keeps its numbers in order, also when you move an item to another place.

Nest an item, and bring it back out

Press Tab to nest a list item one level in, and ⇧Tab to bring it one level out.

With a keyboard, press Tab to nest a list item one level in, and ⇧Tab to bring it one level out. Without one, use Increase Indent and Decrease Indent in the Aa menu, under the alignment items.

Pressing Return on an empty item also steps one level out. The indent items are greyed out when the cursor is not in a list.

Indent an ordinary paragraph

Increase Indent and Decrease Indent in the Aa menu indent an ordinary paragraph too. Tab only nests list items, so in ordinary text it still types a tab. If your selection takes in both list items and ordinary text, each is indented its own way.

End a list

Press Return on an empty item at the left margin. The marker goes away and the next line is ordinary text. Nothing of the list is carried over: a bulleted list started right under a checklist stays a bulleted list, and every Return in it makes another bullet, never a checkbox.

Tip: To turn list items into another kind of list, or into ordinary text, select them and use Turn Into. Items next to each other are turned together, so they stay one list. See Move and select blocks.

Undo and redo

Stepping back and forward with ⌘Z keeps numbered lists and checklists whole. A list renumbering itself is one step back.

See Also: Write and format · Move and select blocks · Make a task