If you’re using Pipedrive to manage your sales process and the default pipeline stages aren’t cutting it, you’re not alone. Maybe your sales cycle is weird, your product’s a bit different, or you just want to ditch the “Won/Lost” language. Whatever the reason, this guide will walk you step by step through setting up custom pipeline stages that actually fit the way you work. No jargon, no hype—just what you need to get it done and avoid the common pitfalls.
Who Should Read This
- Small business owners setting up sales tracking for the first time.
- Sales managers tired of forcing a square peg into a round pipeline.
- Anyone who’s inherited a messy Pipedrive setup and needs to fix it.
If you don’t already have a Pipedrive account, you’ll need one. The rest is pretty simple.
Step 1: Understand What Pipeline Stages Actually Are
Before you start clicking around, let’s get clear on what pipeline stages do—because this is where most people mess up.
- Pipeline: A visual way to track deals as they move through your sales process.
- Stage: One step in that process (like “Qualified,” “Proposal Sent,” “Negotiation,” etc.)
Every deal moves left-to-right through your pipeline, one stage at a time, until it’s either won or lost.
Pro tip:
Don’t obsess over having the “perfect” stages. You’ll change them as you go, and that’s fine. Start simple.
Step 2: Map Out Your Real-World Sales Process
Before you touch Pipedrive, sketch out (on paper, a whiteboard, whatever) the actual steps your team follows to close a deal. Don’t copy generic templates unless they fit.
Ask yourself: - How does a new lead come in? - What’s the first real action a salesperson takes? - Where do deals typically get stuck? - What’s the last thing that happens before a deal is won or lost?
Example: 1. Lead Inbound 2. Discovery Call 3. Needs Analysis 4. Proposal Sent 5. Negotiation 6. Won/Lost
If you just guess or wing it, you’ll end up with a pipeline nobody uses—or worse, one that hides your real problems.
Step 3: Log In and Find Your Pipelines
- Log in to your Pipedrive dashboard.
- On the left sidebar, click on “Deals.”
- At the top, you’ll see your current pipeline name (like “Sales Pipeline”). Click the drop-down if you have more than one.
- Click the small gear icon (“Edit pipeline”) next to the pipeline name.
You’re now in the editing view. Here’s where you can add, rename, reorder, or delete stages.
Step 4: Add, Rename, or Delete Stages
To Add a Stage
- Click the “+” (plus) button next to the last stage in your pipeline.
- Enter the name of your new stage (keep it short and clear—think “Demo Scheduled” not “Initial Outreach and Discovery Call”).
- Hit Enter or click “Save.”
To Rename a Stage
- Hover over the stage name you want to change.
- Click the pencil/edit icon.
- Type the new name and hit Enter.
To Delete a Stage
- Hover over the stage name.
- Click the trash/delete icon.
- Confirm you really want to delete it.
Warning:
Deleting a stage will move any deals in that stage to the first stage by default. It’s easy to lose track of stuff if you aren’t careful.
To Reorder Stages
- Click and drag the stage to its new position.
- Drop it in place.
What works:
- Fewer stages are usually better. Aim for 4–7.
- Use clear, action-based names.
What doesn’t:
- Vague stages like “Follow Up” or “Ongoing” that don’t actually mean anything.
- Having a stage for every minor action (“Left Voicemail,” “Sent Email,” etc.)—that’s what activities are for.
Step 5: Set Stage-Specific Settings (Optional)
Pipedrive lets you get a bit fancy with stages, but don’t feel like you have to tweak everything right away.
- Rotting Deals: You can set how many days a deal can stay in a stage before it turns yellow (to alert you it’s stalled). Useful if deals tend to get stuck at certain points.
- Stage Probabilities: Assign a % chance of winning for each stage. This helps with forecasting, but don’t overthink it—just use rough estimates for now.
How to set: 1. In the pipeline editing view, click the three-dot menu (“...”) on a stage. 2. Choose “Edit stage.” 3. Adjust probability or rotting settings as you like.
Honest take:
If you’re just getting started, skip this. You can always come back and fine-tune once you have some real data.
Step 6: Add or Edit Pipelines (If Needed)
If you have totally different sales processes (for example, one pipeline for new business, another for upsells), you can create multiple pipelines.
- In the Deals view, click the pipeline name at the top.
- Click “+ Add new pipeline.”
- Give it a name and add stages as above.
Caution:
Don’t create a new pipeline just because you sell different products. Only do this if the sales process itself is truly different. More pipelines = more complexity.
Step 7: Test Your Pipeline With Real Deals
Move a few test deals through your new stages. Ask questions like: - Does each stage make sense? - Is anything missing or redundant? - Are deals getting stuck somewhere?
Get feedback from your team—they’re the ones who have to use this every day. If people are ignoring certain stages, it’s probably a sign they’re not useful.
Step 8: Iterate and Improve
No pipeline is perfect out of the gate. Expect to adjust your stages as you learn what works and what doesn’t.
- Review your pipeline every few months.
- Remove stages nobody uses.
- Rename stages that cause confusion.
- Don’t be afraid to simplify.
Ignore:
All the “best practice” templates out there unless they genuinely fit your process. Your sales pipeline should reflect how you actually sell, not how someone else thinks you should.
Pro Tips and Common Mistakes
- Keep it simple. More stages = more clutter and less clarity.
- Use activities for micro-steps. Log calls, emails, and tasks as activities, not pipeline stages.
- Don’t hide flaws with fancy pipelines. If your process is broken, no amount of tweaking stages will fix it.
- Train your team. Even the best pipeline is useless if nobody knows how to use it.
- Backup before big changes. If you’re making major edits, export your deals first. Accidents happen.
Wrapping Up
Setting up custom pipeline stages in Pipedrive isn’t rocket science, but it’s easy to overcomplicate. Start with what you know, keep it lean, and don’t be afraid to fix things as you go. The best pipelines aren’t the most detailed—they’re the ones your team actually uses. Make changes, see what works, and remember: simple usually wins.