Mark a work item type as default

POST/api/v2/workspaces/{slug}/projects/{project_id}/work-item-types/{pk}/mark-default/

Promote a type to the project's default — the type new work items get when the request supplies no type_id.

Exactly one type per project is the default. Marking a new one clears the flag on the type that held it, so promotion is a single request rather than a demote-then-promote pair. There is no way to have zero defaults, and no way to have two.

There is no request body. The type is identified by {pk} in the path, and the response is the updated type.

is_default is deliberately not writable through create or update. Moving the flag has a side effect on another row, so it gets its own endpoint instead of hiding inside a PATCH.

This write requires project mode

If the workspace manages types at the workspace level, this returns 409 work_item_types_managed_at_workspace. Promote the type on the workspace surface instead. See Work item type modes.

Path Parameters

slug:requiredstring

The workspace slug. It appears in your Plane URLs — in https://app.plane.so/my-team/projects/, the slug is my-team.

project_id:requiredstring (uuid)

The project the type belongs to.

pk:requiredstring (uuid)

The id of the work item type to make the default.

Body Parameters

None. Send the request without a body.

Scopes

projects.work_item_types:write

Errors

Status	Code	Cause
400	validation_error	The request could not be processed as sent.
401	unauthorized	Missing or invalid credentials.
403	forbidden	Your role or token scope can't update work item types.
404	resource_not_found	No such type, project, or workspace — or the type belongs to another project.
409	work_item_types_managed_at_workspace	The workspace manages types at the workspace level. Use the workspace surface.
429	rate_limited	Throttled. Honor the Retry-After header before retrying.

Mark a work item type as default

curl -X POST \
  "https://api.plane.so/api/v2/workspaces/my-team/projects/4af68566-94a4-4eb3-94aa-50dc9427067b/work-item-types/d1e7a4c9-2b58-4f36-9a0e-7c3b5d81f240/mark-default/" \
  -H "X-Api-Key: $PLANE_API_KEY"

import requests

response = requests.post(
    "https://api.plane.so/api/v2/workspaces/my-team/projects/4af68566-94a4-4eb3-94aa-50dc9427067b/work-item-types/d1e7a4c9-2b58-4f36-9a0e-7c3b5d81f240/mark-default/",
    headers={"X-Api-Key": "your-api-key"},
)
print(response.json()["is_default"])  # True

const response = await fetch(
  "https://api.plane.so/api/v2/workspaces/my-team/projects/4af68566-94a4-4eb3-94aa-50dc9427067b/work-item-types/d1e7a4c9-2b58-4f36-9a0e-7c3b5d81f240/mark-default/",
  {
    method: "POST",
    headers: {
      "X-Api-Key": "your-api-key",
    },
  }
);
const data = await response.json();

Response200

{
  "id": "d1e7a4c9-2b58-4f36-9a0e-7c3b5d81f240",
  "name": "Bug",
  "description": "Something is broken and needs a fix",
  "is_active": true,
  "is_default": true,
  "is_epic": false,
  "level": 0,
  "logo_props": {
    "in_use": "icon",
    "icon": {
      "name": "AlertCircle",
      "background_color": "#EF5974"
    }
  },
  "created_at": "2026-01-14T09:24:03.117482Z"
}

Response409

{
  "type": "https://api.plane.so/errors/work_item_types_managed_at_workspace",
  "title": "Work Item Types Managed At Workspace",
  "status": 409,
  "code": "work_item_types_managed_at_workspace",
  "detail": "Work item types are managed at the workspace level for this workspace."
}

The response only shows the type you promoted

The previously default type is demoted in the same operation, but it is not included in the response. If you are holding cached type objects, refresh the whole set with List work item types after promoting, or your cache will briefly show two defaults.

The default type is protected

Once a type is the default it cannot be deleted, and it cannot be deactivated with "is_active": false. Both are the same guard from two directions: a project always needs somewhere for untyped work items to land. To retire the current default, promote a replacement first — this call — and then delete or deactivate the old one.