# Task answer types

Every task has an answer type that decides how staff complete it. Tick a box, take a photo, enter a number or text, pick an option, record a location, count stock or fill in a form.

For: Admins, Managers · On: Web, iOS, Android · [Help Center](https://www.mays.app/help) › [Tasks & checklists](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists) · Last updated October 3, 2026 · Mays Team

Every task has an answer type that decides how staff complete it: tick a box, take a photo, enter a number or text, pick an option, record a location, count stock or fill in a form.

## The answer types

| Type | Button on the task in the app | What staff do |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Checkbox** | none, they tap the circle | Tap once to mark it done. |
| **Photo** | **Take Photo** | Take a photo with the phone's camera. Photos from the library can't be used. **Retake Photo** replaces it. |
| **Number** | **Enter Value** | Type a number, such as a temperature. A unit, if you set one, is shown next to it. |
| **GPS** | **Capture Location** | Record where they are. Managers can open the spot in Maps. |
| **Multiple Choice** | **Select Option** | Pick one of the options you set. |
| **Text** | **Add Text** | Type a short answer. |
| **Inventory Count** | **Respond** | Enter a count for each item on the list. |
| **Custom form** | **Fill out form** | Fill in a form built under **Tasks → Types**. |

Staff can add a note to any of them before they tap **Submit**. For the steps in the app, see [Completing your tasks in the app](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/complete-tasks-on-mobile).

## Choose the answer type

**In a checklist template:** click the answer type next to the task (it starts as **Checkbox**) and pick another. For a type's settings, hover over the task and click the pencil. See [Creating a checklist template](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/create-a-checklist-template).

![A checklist template's Tasks tab on the web with the answer-type list open next to a task: Checkbox, Photo, Number, GPS, Multiple Choice, Text, Inventory Count and Custom form](https://mays-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/site/help__task-response-types__01-answer-types-template.55d3bf9d0f.png)

**In a one-off task:** pick the **Response Type** when you create it. See [Creating one-off tasks](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/one-off-tasks).

![The Response Type list on the iPhone New Task screen: Checkbox, Photo, Text, Number, GPS Location and Multiple Choice](https://mays-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/site/help__task-response-types__02-answer-types-app.dfbb7bda54.png)

Not every type can be used everywhere:

| Where | Types |
| --- | --- |
| Checklist template | All eight. **Custom form** only for people who can see **Tasks → Types** (admins, by default). |
| One-off task on the web | All eight, but without their settings. **Multiple Choice** and **Inventory Count** need settings, so use them from the app or a template. |
| One-off task in the app | **Checkbox**, **Photo**, **Text**, **Number**, **GPS Location** and **Multiple Choice**. |

## Settings for each type

- **Number:** a **Min Value** and **Max Value** (in the app: a unit, **Min** and **Max**). Mays doesn't check answers against them yet, so staff can enter any number. Put the safe range in the task's name as well, for example *Walk-in cooler temperature (33–41°F)*.
- **Multiple Choice:** the **Options** to choose from. Staff pick one.
- **Text:** in the app you can set a maximum length for a one-off task. Android stops typing at the limit. iPhone shows a counter but lets people go over.
- **GPS:** Mays records where the person was. It doesn't check how far they were from the store.
- **Inventory Count:** the items to count. Click the items button on the task (for example **0 items**) and add each item with its **Unit**, **Min Stock** and **Case Size**.
- **Custom form:** pick which form under **Task Type**. To build forms, see [Building custom forms (Task Types)](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/custom-form-task-types).

## Inventory counts and restocking

While counting in the app, an item under its minimum shows *Below minimum — need (number) more*. When the count is submitted and some items are low:

- Mays adds a task called *Restock Order - (location) - (date)* to that location's list. It's for managers only, lists what to order and works out the number of cases.
- The location's managers get a *Restock Needed* notification.

See [Inventory-count and restock tasks](https://www.mays.app/help/inventory/inventory-count-tasks).

## AI checks and credits

- **Only Photo answers can be checked by AI.** Checks happen when AI photo verification is on for your company. Photos inside a custom form aren't checked.
- **Each check uses AI credits** from the location's balance. No other answer type uses credits. See [AI photo verification](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/ai-photo-verification) and [AI credits](https://www.mays.app/help/account-billing/ai-credits).

## Where you see the answers

- **Web:** **Tasks → Tasks**, then click a task. For inventory counts it shows how many items were below minimum. **Photo** and **GPS** answers can only be changed from the app.
- **App:** open the completed task to see the **Submitted Response**. Managers can tap **Reject Task** to send it back. See [Reviewing and rejecting completed tasks](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/review-and-reject-tasks).
- **Custom forms:** **Tasks → Data** (the **Task Data** page) lists every submission, and **Export CSV** downloads them. See [Task Data: viewing and exporting form answers](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/task-data-export).

## Good to know

- **Checkbox tasks opened from the task's screen** have a **Mark as done** switch, and **Submit** stays greyed out until it's on. (An app that hasn't been updated yet still lets someone submit with the switch off, which saves the task as *not done*.)
- **Barcode fields** in custom forms have a **Scan** button on Android. On iPhone, type the code.
- **Changing a template's answer type** takes effect from the next day's checklists. Tasks already on today's list keep their old type.

## Related articles

- Tasks & checklists: [Creating a checklist template](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/create-a-checklist-template) — Build an opening, closing or cleaning checklist once as a template — groups, tasks and answer types — and Mays turns it into your team's task list in the app.
- Tasks & checklists: [Creating one-off tasks](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/one-off-tasks) — Need something done today that isn't on a checklist? Create a one-off task for one person or the whole location, on the web or in the app, or straight from a chat message.
- Tasks & checklists: [Completing your tasks in the app](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/complete-tasks-on-mobile) — Your checklist lives in the Tasks tab of the Mays app. Tick checkboxes with one tap, take photos, enter numbers, add a note — and fix and resend a task your manager sent back.
- Tasks & checklists: [AI photo verification](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/ai-photo-verification) — Let AI check every photo your team submits on a task. It flags weak photos for the manager to review, or rejects them straight away once you trust it. Each check uses AI credits.
- Tasks & checklists: [Reviewing and rejecting completed tasks](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/review-and-reject-tasks) — Check what your team completed — photos, numbers, notes — on the web Tasks page or in the app, and send a task back with a reason when it isn't done right.
- Account & billing: [AI credits](https://www.mays.app/help/account-billing/ai-credits) — Mays's AI features use AI credits from each location's balance. What uses them, how many your plan adds every month, how to check a balance and how to buy more.
- Tasks & checklists: [Building custom forms (Task Types)](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/custom-form-task-types) — Build your own task forms, like a cash count, a temperature log or a waste log, under Tasks → Types. Staff fill them in the app, and every answer lands in Task Data, ready to export.
- Tasks & checklists: [Task Data: viewing and exporting form answers](https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/task-data-export) — Tasks → Data lists every answer submitted on a custom form, like a cash count or temperature log, one row per submission, and downloads them as a CSV file.
- Inventory: [Inventory-count and restock tasks](https://www.mays.app/help/inventory/inventory-count-tasks) — Add an Inventory Count task to a checklist so staff count a short list of items. Anything under its minimum becomes a Restock Order task for managers.

## Still need help?

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Canonical: https://www.mays.app/help/tasks-checklists/task-response-types