# Pipelines and stages

> Build the stages an opportunity moves through, and the custom properties collected along the way.

Source: https://help.clockworkcrm.com/sales/pipelines
Last updated: 2026-09-28

A pipeline is the sequence of stages an opportunity moves through. Every opportunity belongs to
one pipeline, and sits in one stage of it at a time.

You can create more than one pipeline, so different kinds of business can follow different stages.

## Managing pipelines

Go to **Sales → Pipelines**. **List Pipelines** on the left shows every pipeline with its colour.
**Search** finds a pipeline by name. Selecting a pipeline opens it on the right.

![The pipelines list with a pipeline open, showing its name, colour, properties and stages](https://clockworkcrm.blob.core.windows.net/public-internal/docs/sales/pipelines-list.png?v=86cda758)

Changes to a pipeline, its stages and its properties are kept only when you select **Save** at the
foot of the pipeline.

## Adding a pipeline

1. Select **Add Pipeline** at the foot of the list.
2. Enter a **Name**, up to 100 characters. It is required.
3. Choose a colour. The colour marks the pipeline on the list, on opportunity records and in the
   pipeline pickers.
4. Add the pipeline's properties and stages, as below.
5. Select **Save**.

## A pipeline's settings

| Section | What it holds |
|---|---|
| **General Details** | The pipeline's **Name** and colour |
| **Properties** | The custom properties shown on every opportunity in the pipeline, whatever its stage |
| **Stages** | The pipeline's stages, in order |

## Stages

Every pipeline has three stages that are always there and cannot be changed:

| Stage | Meaning |
|---|---|
| **Open** | The first stage. An opportunity is live and has not reached a stage of your own yet |
| **Won** | The opportunity closed as won |
| **Lost** | The opportunity closed as lost |

Your own stages sit between **Open** and the two closing stages, in the order shown.

| To | Do this |
|---|---|
| Add a stage | Type its name into **Stage Name**, up to 100 characters, and select **Add Stage** or press Enter. It is added at the end, with a random colour |
| Rename a stage | Click its name, type the new name, and press Enter or click away. Names are cut to 100 characters |
| Change a stage's colour | Click the colour swatch at the start of the stage |
| Reorder stages | Drag a stage up or down |
| Choose a stage's properties | Select the **Manage Properties** button next to the stage. The number on it is how many properties the stage has |
| Delete a stage | Select the bin icon next to the stage and confirm |

A stage's colour is used for its column on the board, on the stage bar of an opportunity record,
and on the pipeline funnel on the dashboard.

A deleted stage is removed from the board, the stage bar and the stage pickers, and its properties
go back to the available list. In the board and list filters it is listed with **(Archived)** after
its name.

## Properties on a pipeline and its stages

Custom properties can be attached to a pipeline and to individual stages, so different information
is collected at different points in the deal.

Both use the same picker, with two lists:

- **Selected Properties**: the properties in use. Untick one to remove it. Drag them to set the
  order they appear in.
- **Available Properties**: the properties not yet used in this pipeline. Tick one to add it.

A property can be used once in a pipeline: either on the pipeline itself or on one of its stages.
Once it is selected, it leaves the available list for the rest of the pipeline.

| Attached to | Where it is collected |
|---|---|
| **Pipeline** (the **Properties** section) | On every opportunity in the pipeline, whatever its stage |
| **Stage** (**Manage Properties**, then **Stage Properties**) | When an opportunity reaches that stage, and shown at every later stage |

When an opportunity is added or moved, the form shows the pipeline's properties and the properties
of the stage it is going to, along with those of any earlier stages. Moving an opportunity forward
several stages at once asks for the properties of each stage it passes. Moving it to **Won** or
**Lost** asks for the properties of the stages it has not yet reached, and for closing notes. The **Move** dialog also
asks for the close date.

![Moving to Won: an earlier stage's required property, then the closing fields](https://clockworkcrm.blob.core.windows.net/public-internal/docs/sales/sale-close-dialog.png?v=2b68053d)

Properties themselves are created at **Sales → Properties**. See
[Custom properties](https://help.clockworkcrm.com/sales/properties).

## Moving between pipelines

An opportunity can be moved to a different pipeline with **Move**, on its record or in the list's
actions menu. You choose the stage it goes into in the new pipeline, and fill in that pipeline's
properties. See [Moving an opportunity](https://help.clockworkcrm.com/sales/opportunities#moving-an-opportunity).

## Related

- [Opportunities](https://help.clockworkcrm.com/sales/opportunities), the records that run through a pipeline
- [Custom properties](https://help.clockworkcrm.com/sales/properties), the fields a pipeline and its stages collect
- [Board and list views](https://help.clockworkcrm.com/sales/board-and-list), moving opportunities between stages