> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.cortado.pro/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Notifications
> Stay on top of activity with in-app notifications and customizable email alerts
## Notifications Overview
Cortado keeps you informed in two ways:
* **In-app Notification Center** — a bell icon in the header with real-time activity from your organization
* **Email Notifications** — scheduled summaries and alerts delivered to your inbox
You can use either, or both. The in-app center is always on. Email notifications are fully configurable per notification type.
## Notification Center
Click the **bell icon** in the top-right of the header to open the Notification Center.
### Unread Count
When you have unread notifications, a red badge appears on the bell icon with the count. Once you pass 99 unread notifications, the badge shows "99+".
### Activity Feed
The feed shows recent notifications for new inquiries, quotes, invoices, payments, bookings, and events. Each notification includes:
* An icon and color keyed to the notification type
* A title and brief description
* A relative timestamp (e.g., "5m ago", "2h ago")
* An unread indicator — unread items are highlighted with a colored left border and a bold title
Notifications are grouped by time: **Today**, **Yesterday**, **This week**, and **Earlier**.
### Tabs
Switch between **All** and **Unread** at the top of the panel. The Unread tab shows only notifications you haven't read yet, with the count in parentheses.
### Click-Through
Click any notification to jump directly to the related item — a new inquiry opens the lead, a payment notification opens the invoice, and so on. When you click a notification, it's automatically marked as read.
### Individual Actions
Hover over a notification to reveal action buttons in the top-right corner:
* **Mark as read** (checkmark) — appears only on unread items
* **Archive** (X) — removes the notification from your feed
### Bulk Actions
Two buttons in the header of the Notification Center let you act on everything at once:
* **Mark all as read** — clears all unread indicators
* **Archive all** — removes all notifications from the current view
Archiving a notification doesn't delete the underlying item — it just removes the notification from your feed. You can always get back to the related record through the regular app navigation.
## Email Notifications
Email notifications are configured in **Settings > Communications > Notifications**. They run on a schedule you control and keep you informed by email, even when you're not in the app.
Email notifications require a connected Gmail account. If Gmail isn't connected yet, Cortado will prompt you to connect it from the **Connect Gmail** section before the settings become available.
### Notification Types
Cortado ships with five notification types. Each can be individually enabled, scheduled, and customized.
#### Summary Report
A comprehensive summary of your upcoming events, pending tasks, and active leads. Useful for weekly planning.
#### Overdue Tasks Alert
Get notified about tasks that are past their due date. Good as a daily nudge so things don't slip.
#### Stale Leads Alert
Get notified about leads that haven't been updated recently — helpful for making sure no lead goes cold.
#### Upcoming Events Reminder
A reminder of events happening soon. Typically scheduled daily so you start each day knowing what's on the calendar.
#### Payment Reminders
Alerts about upcoming and overdue payments, so collections don't fall off your radar.
### Scheduling
For each notification type, you control:
* **Frequency** — Immediate, Daily, Weekly, Bi-Weekly, or Monthly
* **Time (Hour)** — the hour of day the notification is sent
* **Day of Week** — for weekly and bi-weekly frequencies
* **Day of Month** — for monthly frequency
### Content Customization
The Summary Report can include any combination of:
* **Events** — upcoming events
* **Tasks** — active tasks
* **Leads** — active leads
* **Payments** — payment status
Toggle each section on or off under the **Content Sections** panel.
### Stage Filters
When the Events section is included in a summary, you can filter by event stage (Upcoming, Complete, Cancelled, Rescheduled, Postponed).
When the Leads section is included, you can filter by lead stage (New, In Progress, Quote Sent, Stale).
Only items in the selected stages will appear in the email — so you can keep summaries focused on what matters.
### Recipients
For each notification type you can control who receives the email:
* **Send to organization members** — enabled by default; delivers to all active team members
* **Additional Recipients** — add any email addresses (even outside your organization) to also receive the notification
Additional recipients are useful for sending weekly summaries to a partner, accountant, or stakeholder who isn't a Cortado user.
### Testing
Once a notification type is enabled, a **Test** button appears on the notification card. Clicking it sends the notification immediately so you can preview what your recipients will see, without waiting for the next scheduled send.
### Saving Changes
Changes to notification preferences aren't applied until you click **Save Changes** at the bottom of the page. **Reset** reverts unsaved changes back to defaults.
## Best Practices
1. **Pair in-app and email** — use the Notification Center for real-time awareness during the day, and email notifications for planning around the calendar week
2. **Schedule the Summary Report for Monday morning** — start the week with a clear view of what's ahead
3. **Keep Overdue Tasks daily** — a short daily alert catches slippage before it compounds
4. **Filter lead stages** — for weekly summaries, filter to New, In Progress, and Quote Sent so the email focuses on active deals
5. **Send yourself a Test** — before turning on a new notification type, send a test to make sure the timing and content look right
6. **Review additional recipients** — if a team member leaves or changes roles, update recipient lists to keep summaries going to the right people
Email notifications rely on a connected Gmail account. If your Gmail connection lapses, notifications will pause until it's reconnected.
See today's priorities on the home dashboard.
Deep-dive into revenue and pipeline metrics.
Manage the tasks that drive overdue alerts.