How To Update Progress Feature Works in Primavera P6 And How to Update Progress as Planned Quickly P6

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN/SEARCH TITLES

Primavera P6: How to Update Progress Easily
Quick Guide: Apply Actuals vs. Update Progress in P6
Update Activities Faster in Primavera P6
Primavera P6 Progress Update with Highlighted Tasks
Learn Update Progress in Primavera P6 Step-by-Step
Primavera P6 Shortcuts for Quick Progress Updates
Selective Activity Updates in Primavera P6
Primavera P6: Update Milestones & Resource Activities
Efficient Progress Tracking in Primavera P6
Primavera P6: Best Way to Keep Your Schedule Updated

DESCRIPTION

Keeping your project schedule up to date is critical for successful project management, and Primavera P6 offers powerful tools to do just that. In this guide, we’ll show you how to use the Update Progress feature in Primavera P6, compare it with Apply Actuals, and explain how to selectively update highlighted activities to save time and improve accuracy.

Understanding Update Progress vs. Apply Actuals

In Primavera P6, both Update Progress and Apply Actuals are used to record project progress, but they work differently:

Apply Actuals updates the entire project based on the actual dates you set. This method doesn’t allow you to update specific activities selectively — it applies changes across the full schedule.
Update Progress, on the other hand, gives you precise control by letting you choose individual or highlighted activities to update. This is especially useful when some parts of your project are ahead or behind schedule while others are on track.

VIDEO TUTORIAL

How to Use Update Progress in Primavera P6

1️⃣ Select Your Activities

Open your project in Primavera P6 and select the activities you want to update. You can do this manually or by creating a filter to highlight specific tasks.

2️⃣ Highlight Activities (Optional)

If you need to focus on certain tasks, create a filter or use the Spotlight tool to highlight them. This helps ensure only the targeted activities are updated.

3️⃣ Go to Update Progress

Navigate to Tools → Update Progress in Primavera P6.

4️⃣ Set the Data Date

Enter the new data date up to which you want to update the schedule. For example, if you want to update progress up to January 31, set the data date to 31-Jan.

5️⃣ Choose Selected or Highlighted Activities

In the Update Progress dialog, choose to update either selected activities or all highlighted activities. This is the key difference from Apply Actuals.

6️⃣ Apply Updates

Click Apply. Primavera will calculate and update the progress for the chosen activities. Completed tasks will show actuals, while others will adjust their schedule percent complete.

7️⃣ Check the Gantt Chart

Review your updated schedule in the Gantt chart view. Activities you updated will reflect new progress data, making it easy to track what’s been done and what’s left.

Why Update Progress Matters

By using Update Progress with selected or highlighted activities, you can:

Save time when updating large projects
Update only what’s necessary without affecting the entire schedule
Keep better control over planned vs. actual progress
Avoid marking milestones or activities without resources as complete unintentionally (a common issue with Apply Actuals)

Bonus Tip: Highlighting Activities

To highlight activities effectively, use filters in Primavera P6. Create a filter for specific criteria (e.g., activities behind schedule) and enable the highlight option in the current layout. Once highlighted, you can quickly update their progress with the Update Progress tool.

For a detailed tutorial on highlighting activities, check out our YouTube channel: Planning Basics — just search for “Highlight Activities Primavera P6.”

CONCLUSION

Updating project progress in Primavera P6 doesn’t have to be tedious. By mastering Update Progress and using filters to highlight activities, you’ll streamline your updates, improve schedule accuracy, and gain better insight into your project performance.

If you found this guide helpful, please share it and subscribe to our channel for more tutorials on planning, scheduling, cash flows, dashboards, and project monitoring.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

For a comprehensive understanding, we recommend exploring our dedicated tutorials on Primavera P6 relationships. These tutorials are accessible through our Planning P6 Tutorials Dictionary (REV-003). Simply search for keywords like “relationship” or “Primavera P6 integration” to access relevant content.