- How to start a Miro board
- The tools you'll use most
- Working with sticky notes
- Organise a busy board with frames
- The catch: 3 editable boards on the Free plan
- Running a workshop in Miro
- Good uses for Miro
- Tips for boards people come back to
- Making diagrams in Miro
- Sharing a board with clients
- My verdict
- Frequently asked questions
To use Miro, create a board from your dashboard, either blank or from a template. Add sticky notes, shapes, text and connectors from the left toolbar, and invite people to edit with you in real time. Use frames to organise sections, and present a board frame by frame in meetings.
Miro is an online whiteboard. You get an endless canvas where you and your team can add sticky notes, diagrams, images and documents at the same time. It's at its best for workshops, planning sessions and mapping out ideas, and it's easy to learn because there are only a handful of tools you'll use most of the time.
How to start a Miro board
- Sign in and click to create a new board from your dashboard.
- Pick a template, such as a brainstorm, mind map or retrospective, or start blank.
- Name the board so your team can find it.
- Click Share and invite people by email, or copy a link.
The tools you'll use most
| Tool | What it's for |
|---|---|
| Sticky notes | Ideas, comments and votes |
| Text | Headings and labels |
| Shapes and connectors | Flowcharts and diagrams |
| Frames | Sections of the board, like slides |
| Pen | Quick sketches and circling things |
| Upload | Images, PDFs and documents |
Working with sticky notes
Sticky notes are the heart of Miro. Press N or pick the sticky note tool and click the board. Each note holds about 3,000 characters, but keep them to a few words, because a board full of paragraphs is impossible to scan. There are 16 colours, so give each person or theme its own colour. For a quick brainstorm, use bulk mode to type several stickies in a row without clicking each time.
Organise a busy board with frames
A board can grow without limits, which is great for ideas and terrible for finding them. Draw frames around each section, such as Problems, Ideas and Next steps, and name them. The frames list lets anyone jump straight to a section, and in presentation mode Miro shows each frame like a slide.
The catch: 3 editable boards on the Free plan
Miro's Free plan lets you invite as many editors as you like, but a free team can only have 3 active boards. That's 3 per team, not 3 each. Only the 3 most recently created stay editable, and older ones become view-only. Once you have 3, you can't create a fourth until you delete one or upgrade.
Two other Free plan limits matter for workshops: there are no private boards, and video calls, voting and the timer aren't included. If you're running a client workshop, check the plan you need before the day, not five minutes before it starts.
Running a workshop in Miro
- Prepare the board beforehand with frames for each activity and clear instructions on each one.
- Assign a sticky note colour to each group or person.
- Share the link and ask everyone to join a few minutes early to test it.
- Use presentation mode to move through the frames together.
- Cluster similar stickies, then ask people to mark their favourites.
- Finish with a Next steps frame listing owners and dates.
Good uses for Miro
- Brainstorming campaign or content ideas.
- Mapping a customer journey or sales process.
- Planning a website with a simple sitemap.
- Running retrospectives with remote teams.
- Collecting feedback on designs with comments.
Tips for boards people come back to
- Put a short 'How to use this board' note in the top-left corner.
- Lock background items, like frames and instructions, so nobody drags them by accident.
- Use templates for repeated sessions so every workshop starts the same way.
- Copy the agreed actions into your project tool afterwards, because a whiteboard isn't a task list.
Making diagrams in Miro
For flowcharts and process maps, draw a shape, then hover over it and drag from one of the small blue dots to create a connected shape or line. Connectors stay attached when you move shapes, so you can rearrange a process without redrawing the lines. Use one shape for steps and another for decisions, and keep text inside shapes short. Templates for flowcharts and mind maps give you a head start if you don't want to begin from a blank canvas.
Sharing a board with clients
When you share a board outside your team, think about what level of access each person needs. Clients often only need to comment, not edit, which stops a well-meaning click moving your whole layout. Miro lets you choose edit, comment or view access when you share. And remember that on the Free plan everyone invited to the team can reach all its boards, so use a separate team for client work if you're keeping things free.
If Miro feels like more than you need, my roundup of Miro alternatives covers simpler and more specialised whiteboards.
My verdict
Start from a template, keep sticky notes short, use colours to tell people apart and frames to organise sections. Present frame by frame in meetings and copy the agreed actions into your task tool afterwards. On the Free plan, plan around the 3-board limit by reusing and clearing boards, and upgrade if you need private boards, voting or a timer. For keeping remote teams aligned, see productivity tips for remote teams.
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Frequently asked questions
Can clients comment on a Miro board without editing it?
Yes. When you share the board, choose comment access so they can add comments without moving anything.
How many boards does Miro's Free plan allow?
3 active, editable boards per team.
Can I invite people to edit my Miro board for free?
Yes. You can invite unlimited editors on the Free plan.
Why has my Miro board become view-only?
Your free team has more than 3 boards, so older ones are locked.
What's the shortcut for a sticky note in Miro?
Press N, then click on the board.
Can I make a private board on Miro's Free plan?
No. Private boards aren't available on the Free plan.
How do I present a Miro board?
Organise it into frames, then use presentation mode to move through them like slides.
