How do I build a custom database or dashboard in MONA?

Quick answer: click New in the sidebar, then Database, to get a Notion-style table you can view as a Table, Board, Gallery, List, Calendar, or Timeline. For a dashboard, ask MONA in chat to build one, then click Save to workspace. Dashboards can read your projects and, if you allow it, update databases, tasks, inventory, and schedules.

Use a database for anything MONA does not track for you out of the box: sample requests, trade accounts, site visits, punch lists, install checklists, a showroom visit log. Products, FF&E schedules, inventory, and tasks already have their own pages: see FF&E schedules and Inventory and samples.

Who can use this

• Databases: everyone on the team except the read-only Accountant seat, on every plan.
• Dashboards: built by MONA in chat, so you need access to Ask MONA. See What can the MONA AI agent do, and how do I ask it for help?.

How do I create a database?

1. Click New in the sidebar and choose Database (Table, board & more).
2. MONA opens an Untitled database with Name, Status (To do, In progress, Done), and Notes columns and three empty rows. Click the title to rename it.
3. Add a column: type a Column name and pick a Type:

4. Click New to add a row, or type into the table. Click a row to open it, fill in its properties, and write notes. Delete page removes a row.

Each column’s menu has Type, Options, No duplicates (a value already in the column is refused, from the table and from MONA), Sort ascending, Sort descending, Hide in view, and Delete property.

How do views, filters, and grouping work?

Click New view (the +) to add a view. Each view keeps its own layout and filters:

• Table: spreadsheet-style grid.
• Board: Kanban, grouped by a Select column.
• Gallery: a grid of cards.
• List: simple rows.
• Calendar: month grid by a Date column (Calendar by).
• Timeline: Gantt bars by a start and end date. Set up dependencies adds a Blocked by relation so bars show what is waiting on what.

In the toolbar, Filter adds conditions (for example, Status is not Done), Sort orders rows, and View settings sets Layout, Group by, and which Properties are shown or hidden.

How do I import a spreadsheet?

1. In the database toolbar, click Import and choose a .csv or .xlsx file (up to 15 MB).
2. In Import a spreadsheet, pick the sheet and choose Add as new rows or Update existing rows. For updates, set Match rows on and decide whether to Also add rows that match nothing.
3. For each column in the file, choose where it Goes to: an existing column, New column…, or Don’t import. A sample value shows next to each.
4. Confirm. Nothing is written before that. You will see Import complete.

Up to 1,000 rows import at a time; a larger file imports its first 1,000 and says so. Coming from Notion, Airtable, or Google Sheets, export to CSV or Excel first.

How do I build a dashboard?

Dashboards (MONA also calls them tools) are interactive pages MONA builds for you: a project status board, a capacity view, a sample tracker with checkout buttons, a budget burn-down.

1. In Ask MONA, describe it: “Create a dashboard of every active project with budget spent, next deadline, and who is on it.” If your Workspace section is empty, Create a dashboard starts that chat for you.
2. When it appears in the panel, click Save to workspace and give it a Name. It now lives in the Workspace section of the sidebar.
3. Click Connect to workspace on the dashboard page and choose what it may do:
   • Workspace (read-only)
   • Save data per project
   • Databases (write cells): add or remove rows and edit cells, never columns
   • Tasks (complete and edit)
   • Inventory (edit and move stock): check out, return, adjust, and sell
   • Schedules (edit lines and groups)
4. To back it with your own data, open the dashboard menu and choose Link a database…. The database header then lists the dashboards it Powers.
5. Click Edit with agent to change it in plain words: “add a column for lead time” or “group by designer.”

The dashboard menu also has Rename, Permissions…, Disconnect from workspace, Download PDF, and Print. A dashboard can never delete tasks or inventory items, or permanently delete schedule lines.

Can MONA build and fill databases for me?

Yes. In any chat, ask:

• “Make a database to track sample requests with vendor, project, date requested, and status, with a board by status.”
• “Add these 40 trade accounts to my Vendors database” (attach the spreadsheet).
• “Mark every Henderson sample returned” or “add a Lead time column.”

MONA creates columns and views, adds and updates rows, imports attached files, and can roll a database back to an earlier version. Inside a database, Ask MONA about this starts a chat about it.

How do I share a database or dashboard?

• Database: open Share and set the link to Can view, Can comment, or Can edit, and choose whether it is visible to your studio or private to you.
• Dashboard: open Share, then Publish to web to put a copy on its own page that anyone with the link can open, no MONA account needed. You can also invite editors; they need a free MONA account, and your team can always edit.

Who can delete rows and databases?

By default, anyone can delete rows and databases they created, and the owner and admins can delete any. Clear every row in a database, Replace a database wholesale, and Delete database rows from inside a tool are owner and admin only. Change any of these in Settings, then Team, then Permissions: see How do I create custom roles and permissions in MONA?.

What it does not do (yet)

• No formula or rollup columns.
• Import reads CSV and Excel only, 1,000 rows at a time. There is no direct Notion or Airtable connection.
• Databases cannot be published to a public web page; share them by link. Dashboards can be published.
• Deleting a database cannot be undone.

Want a hand?

If you have a spreadsheet you live in and want it rebuilt as a MONA database with a dashboard on top, book 30 minutes with the founder at calendly.com/mona-justin/30min and bring the file.

Related articles

• Where do I store files, docs, and notes in MONA?
• What can the MONA AI agent do, and how do I ask it for help?
• How do I create custom roles and permissions in MONA?
• How do I manage tasks and deadlines in MONA?
• How do I import a spreadsheet into Inventory and add my own fields in MONA?

Frequently asked questions

Is a MONA database like Notion or Airtable?

Yes, in the ways designers use them most. You get typed columns, relations between tables, and table, board, gallery, list, calendar, and timeline views with filters, sorts, and grouping. MONA can also read and update every row for you from chat.

Can I import from Notion, Airtable, or Google Sheets?

Export to CSV or Excel first, then use Import in the database. MONA reads .csv and .xlsx files up to 15 MB and imports the first 1,000 rows of a larger file.

What column types are there?

Text, Number, Select, Multi-select, Date, Checkbox, URL, and Relation, plus the Name column on every row. Turn on No duplicates on a column to refuse repeated values.

Can a dashboard update my inventory or schedule?

Yes, if you allow it. When you connect a dashboard to your workspace, you choose whether it can edit database cells, complete and edit tasks, edit and move inventory stock, and edit schedule lines. It can never delete tasks or inventory items or permanently delete schedule lines.

Can I share a dashboard with a client?

Yes. Open Share on the dashboard and use Publish to web. It gets its own page that anyone with the link can open, no MONA account needed. Databases are shared by link from Share instead.

Can MONA build the database for me?

Yes. Ask, for example, make a database to track sample requests with vendor, project, date requested, and status. MONA creates the columns and views, adds rows, imports a file you attach, and edits columns when you ask.

Who can delete rows or a whole database?

By default, anyone can delete rows they added, and the owner and admins can delete any. Clearing every row, replacing a database, and deleting rows from inside a dashboard are owner and admin only. Studios can change this in Settings, then Team, then Permissions.

Where do I find my databases later?

In Library, on the Databases tab. Dashboards are in the Workspace section of the sidebar.