How to set a due date in Linear on Mac: Shift D and the command bar

The keyboard is the fastest way to set a due date in Linear on Mac. Once you know the key, you can date a whole queue of issues without leaving the list. This page starts with that route, then covers the command bar, the right-click menu, the settings that make dates visible, and the mistakes that cost people time.

Set a due date with ⇧D on the Mac

Start by selecting the issue. You can open the issue in full view, or highlight it in a list or board. Press ↑ or ↓, or J or K, to move the highlight to the right row. Then press ⇧D. Linear opens a date picker, and the day you pick becomes the due date.

The key is Shift, not Command. That detail matters more than it sounds. Linear's June 3, 2021 changelog says the shortcut for setting an issue due date changed from ⌘D to ⇧D. If you learned the shortcut from a 2020 tutorial, your fingers may press the wrong key.

One trap catches almost everyone. If the cursor is blinking inside the title or the description, Shift D types a capital D into the text. Click an empty part of the view so the cursor leaves the text, then select the issue and press ⇧D again.

Watch the picker after you press the shortcut. Linear's 2020 due dates changelog confirms that the date picker opens. I could not open a page that lists the picker's exact controls, so read what is on your screen before you click.

Set a due date from the ⌘K command bar

If the shortcut slips your mind, use the command bar. Press ⌘K to open it, type due, and choose Set Due Date from the results. Linear's Select issues docs say ⌘K opens the command bar. The 2020 changelog also names Set Due Date as a way in.

The command bar helps in two cases. The first is when you cannot remember whether the key is ⌘D or ⇧D. The second is when you want a route that needs no memory at all. The command name stays the same, so searching for it is a dependable fallback. If the command bar is new to you, open the command menu in Linear walks through it.

Set a due date with the right-click menu

Right-click is the third route. Select the issue, then right-click it. Linear's Select issues docs say right-click opens a contextual menu for the selected issues. The 2020 changelog lists right-click as an option too. Look for the due date item in that menu.

The label can change because Linear updates its app often. Read the menu before you click, and do not trust an old screenshot. If you select several issues first, check one result before you assume the rest changed too.

Why older guides tell you to press ⌘D

Linear's due dates changelog from October 22, 2020 says you can add a due date with ⌘D while viewing an issue. It also says the same works with an issue selected on a board or list. Many guides copied that line and never updated it.

Linear's June 3, 2021 entry replaced that key. Since then, ⇧D has been the shortcut for setting a due date. I could not confirm what ⌘D does in Linear today, so do not use it for dates. Use ⇧D instead.

Remove a due date in Linear on Mac

To remove a due date, select the issue and press ⌘⇧D. A third-party ShortcutFoo cheat sheet lists ⌘⇧D as Remove due date in its Issues II section. Linear's own docs did not confirm that shortcut in the pages I checked, so test it on a spare issue first.

If ⌘⇧D does nothing, open the date picker with ⇧D and look for a way to clear the date. I could not confirm the clear control, so read the picker before you choose. Do not delete the issue to get rid of a date. That is a much bigger change than you need.

Show due dates on your list or board

Setting a date does nothing for you if you cannot see it. Linear's Display options docs list due date among the issue properties you can show or hide. The path is Display options, then Issue view, then Display properties. Turn on due date there.

Some properties appear only in certain views, or only when related features are on. If due date is missing after you turn it on, switch views and look again. Start with the Display options control in your list or board view.

Once due date is on, each issue row can carry its date. That makes overdue work easy to spot. It also helps when you want the issues due this week in one glance.

What Linear shows for due dates in notifications

Linear's changelog index lists a November 5, 2026 change. Issue due date notifications now say when an issue is due, for example Due today. Sidebar due dates use a shorter format, such as Oct 9.

I could not open the full November 5 entry, so I cannot tell you every place the new wording appears. Set a test date that is due today, then check the notification text. If it reads differently, check that the app has updated and compare again.

Set due dates on several issues at once

Selecting several issues works the way the docs describe. Shift click selects one issue. Shift with an arrow key extends the selection. Command A selects all issues on the current list or board after filtering. Esc clears the selection. Those keys come from Linear's Select issues docs.

The docs I checked do not say clearly that Shift D applies to every selected issue. Test with two issues first. If only one changes, set the rest one at a time. The selection guide covers more key patterns.

Set a due date while you create an issue

Press C to open issue creation on Mac. Linear's creating issues docs list C for that. Those docs do not show a due date field in the composer, and I could not verify the three-dot menu that some sources mention. Look at the composer for a date option first.

If you do not see a date option, save the issue, then select it and press ⇧D. The same docs say Esc closes the composer and asks whether to save a draft. So if you press Esc midway through a date, check the draft before you move on.

Recurring issues need a first due date

A recurring issue works differently. When you convert an issue to a recurring one, you choose a first due date and a cadence. The next issue is created at 00:01 the following day in the team's timezone, after the due date passes.

The timezone belongs to the team, not to your Mac. If you work in a different zone from your team, the day can seem off by one. Check the team's timezone before you trust the first date you pick.

Common mistakes when setting due dates

• Pressing ⌘D and expecting a date picker. That shortcut is outdated for due dates.
• Typing a capital D into a title because the cursor was still in the text.
• Selecting several issues and assuming every one received the date.
• Looking for the date but leaving due date off in Display properties.
• Trusting ⌘⇧D to remove a date without testing it on a spare issue first.

Mac app and web app: what I could not confirm

This guide follows Linear's public docs and changelog. It does not follow a Mac-only walkthrough, because I found none. I found no menu paths for the date picker in the Mac app, and no version numbers for the desktop app. Linear's changelog is dated, not versioned, so this guide uses dates instead.

I also found no note that due dates behave differently on the web app. Treat these steps as desktop app steps, and test each one once. A quick test costs far less than fixing a batch of issues with the wrong date.

Check the date and sort your work by it

After you set a date, open the issue and read the sidebar. The due date should show there in the short format. If the date is wrong, press ⇧D again. The picker should open again, so you can correct the day.

Dates are only useful when you can sort by them. Filter issues in Linear explains views and saved filters. Keep the views you check each day in one place, so the due dates stay in front of you.