Automate Trello Boards with Butler

How to automate Trello boards with Butler

Quick Answer: Trello Butler is a built-in automation tool. Open a board, click "Automation" in the top menu, and create rules (trigger + action), scheduled commands (time-based), or card/board buttons (manual triggers). Butler is available on all Trello plans with usage limits.

How to Automate Trello Boards with Butler

Butler is Trello's built-in automation engine, available on all plans as of April 2026. It uses natural language-style rules to automate card movements, assignments, due dates, and notifications without writing code.

Automation Types

Rules (Event-Triggered)

Rules run automatically when a trigger event occurs. Open "Automation" > "Rules" and click "Create Rule."

Common rules:

When a card is moved to "Done," mark the due date as complete and add a green label
When a checklist is completed, move the card to the next list
When a card is assigned to someone, set the due date to 3 days from now

Scheduled Commands

Scheduled commands run at specified times. Use cases include:

Every Monday at 9 AM, sort the "To Do" list by due date
Every Friday, archive all cards in the "Done" list
On the 1st of every month, create a card "Monthly Report" in "To Do"

Card Buttons

Card buttons appear on individual cards and execute actions when clicked. Example: A "Start Working" button that moves the card to "In Progress," assigns the current user, and sets a due date.

Board Buttons

Board buttons appear at the top of the board and run batch operations. Example: A "Weekly Cleanup" button that archives all cards in "Done" and sorts all lists by due date.

Building a Rule Step by Step

Go to Automation > Rules > Create Rule
Select a trigger: "when a card is moved to list [In Review]"
Add actions:
- "add member @reviewer to the card"
- "set due date 2 working days from now"
- "post comment: This card is ready for review"
Click "Save"

Practical Example: Bug Tracking Board

Rule 1: When a card is added to "Bug Reports," add label "Untriaged" and mention @tech-lead
Rule 2: When label "Critical" is added, move to top of list and set due date to today
Rule 3: When moved to "Fixed," add checklist "QA Verification" with items: "Reproduced fix," "Regression test passed," "Deployed to staging"
Scheduled: Every Monday at 10 AM, sort "Bug Reports" by due date ascending

Usage Limits (April 2026)

Free: 250 command runs/month per workspace
Standard ($6/user/month): 1,000 command runs/month per workspace
Premium ($12.50/user/month): 6,000 command runs/month per workspace
Enterprise: Unlimited