Weekly status update template
Fewer status meetings.
A weekly status update template gives your team one place to report progress, blockers, owners and next steps. Download the Word version for a short written update, or use the Excel project status report template to track several workstreams. The files include examples you can replace with your own project details.
- Download the weekly status update template (Word)
- Download the project status report template (Excel)
- Download the project status report template (CSV)
Fields to include
Keep the report short enough to update regularly. The project status update template below works for a team email, shared document, or weekly project review. Use a clear status label and make every blocker point to a decision or owner.
| Field | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Project or workstream | The project and specific area covered | Website launch — checkout |
| Reporting period | Start and end dates for this update | Sep 21–25, 2026 |
| Overall status | Green, yellow, or red, with a short reason | Yellow — review date at risk |
| Progress this week | Completed work or a verifiable milestone | Payment test passed on staging |
| Next steps | The next concrete actions | Run accessibility review |
| Owner | One person coordinating each action | Jordan Lee |
| Blocker or decision needed | What is stuck and who can help | Legal approval needed; Priya to confirm |
| Due date | Expected date for the action or decision | Sep 29, 2026 |
| Change since last update | New risk, scope shift, or date change | Review moved by two days |
A status color alone is not a useful update. Add one sentence explaining what changed and what the team should do next. If there is no blocker, say “None this week” so readers know the field was considered.
Filled-in example
Project: Website launch — checkout
Reporting period: September 21–25, 2026
Overall status: Yellow — the launch review may move if legal approval is late.
Progress: Payment testing passed on staging. The support team reviewed the revised help text.
Next steps: Jordan will complete the accessibility review by September 29. Priya will confirm legal approval by September 28.
Blocker: Final approval for the refund wording is pending.
Decision needed: Can the launch team use the current wording if approval is not in by Tuesday?
Change since last update: The review moved from September 30 to October 2 to allow time for approval.
This fictional status update email sample names the risk, owner and decision date. Replace the sample project, people and dates with details your team has confirmed. A project status report sample should make it easy to spot what needs attention without implying that a color replaces the explanation.
How to use the template
- Set the reporting window. Choose a consistent day and define which dates the update covers. A weekly cadence makes changes easier to compare.
- Ask owners for concise inputs. Request completed work, next steps, blockers and decisions. Ask for observable outcomes instead of general phrases such as “making progress.”
- Review the status. Set the overall label based on the project's agreed criteria. Include the reason and explain any change from the last report.
- Name the next action. Give each action one owner and a due date. If a decision is needed, state who can make it and by when.
- Share and revisit. Send the update to the people who need it, then use the next reporting cycle to close or revise open items.
For a manager, this can replace a round-robin meeting when the team only needs to share progress. See templates for managers for related routines. If a live conversation is needed to resolve a decision, use the update to prepare for the discussion and follow through with meeting templates and follow-through. For expectations and ownership, see how to hold your team accountable.
Choose the right format
Use the Word file when you need a readable weekly status update email or a short narrative for a project channel. Use the Excel workbook when several projects or owners need filtering and a history of weekly reports. The CSV is a simple starting point for importing into a spreadsheet. These are standalone files; they do not connect to project-management or email services.
People often search for a project status report template Word file when they want a document to circulate, or a project status report template Excel file when they need sortable rows. This page includes both styles. If you need a project status report template PPT or PowerPoint, copy the summary fields into your existing slide deck: project, status, progress, risks, decision and next steps. A presentation is useful for a review meeting, while a sheet is easier to keep current between reviews. The workbook can also be adapted as a weekly status update template Excel file, with a new row or tab for each period.
Variations by role or industry
A consultant weekly status report template can separate client-facing milestones, open client decisions and work the consultant owns. Keep internal estimates or sensitive notes out of a version sent to the client. A software project may include release, testing and dependency fields. A nonprofit team may track program delivery, upcoming events and decisions needed from leadership. A sales or customer success team can report account work and next customer commitments, while keeping private customer information in its approved system.
Managers can ask each owner to submit the same small set of fields before deciding whether a meeting is needed. Executives may prefer a one-line headline plus exceptions and decisions. For daily work, adapt this into a daily status update template with only today's completed work, today's priority and any urgent blocker; don't make people repeat a full weekly narrative every day.
Run async status updates
Async status updates work when the team agrees on a shared location, a deadline, and a clear path for urgent blockers. Ask people to post by a set time, tag the person who can unblock them, and state when an issue needs a live discussion. Review the updates and schedule a meeting only when the group needs to decide or solve something together. This keeps a written update from becoming a second meeting everyone must attend.
Or skip the typing
Or skip the typing: Teriara drafts this from the conversation, in early access. You review and edit what is drafted before anything is sent. Learn about Teriara's follow-up drafts and decide whether that workflow fits your team.
Frequently asked questions
How to make a status report template?
Start with the reporting period, overall status, progress, next steps, owners, blockers, due dates and decisions needed. Keep only fields your readers use to act or make a decision. The table above and downloadable files give you a starting structure.
How to do the status update?
Report what changed during the period, what comes next, and what is blocked. Name an owner and date for each action or decision, and explain the reason behind any red or yellow status. Share it in the place your team has agreed to check.
How to run async status updates?
Set a regular deadline and ask everyone to use the same fields and shared location. Make urgent blockers visible to the person who can help, and move complex decisions to a conversation. Review updates consistently so people can see that posting them is useful.
How to make a status report sample?
Use a fictional or approved example with a project, dates, clear progress, one blocker, an owner and a next step. Mark it as an example and replace names, dates and project details before sharing. The sample on this page shows how to turn a status label into an actionable update.
How to request status update?
Send a short request that names the reporting period, response deadline and fields to include. For example: “Please send progress, next steps, blockers, owner and due date for this week by Thursday at 3 p.m.” If you need a reply after an interview, use a separate interview follow-up email template rather than this project report.
Explore Teriara's early access for follow-up drafts from conversations.