> For the complete user guide index, see [llms.txt](https://portraitresearch.com/documentation/llms.txt).

# Projects

[Canonical page](https://portraitresearch.com/documentation/documents/projects/)

## Applicability

- **Task:** Understand Project context and manage its contents and lifecycle
- **Access:** Portrait account
- **Audience:** Portrait users organizing ongoing research
- **Surfaces:** web
- **Workflow status:** current
- **Availability:** Production with account-dependent capabilities
- **Content type:** reference
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-09-08

A Project groups supported research, files, companies, charts, and Monitors without making every item implicit input to every workflow. Use this guide to create a Project, verify its context, and understand access, archiving, restoration, and deletion in the web app.

## Before you start

Choose a stable scope: a company group, theme, investment idea, or ongoing decision. You need a Portrait account. If the Project is company-scoped, have the company names or tickers ready.


## Create a Project

1. <span id="1-create-the-project"></span>Click **+** next to **Projects** in the left navigation.

	You can also use **Ctrl + O** (**⌘ O** on a Mac).

2. <span id="2-name-the-scope-and-persistent-instructions"></span>**Name the Project.**

	Choose a name for the company group, theme, or investment idea. Add optional **Research instructions** for recurring requirements.

3. <span id="3-select-companies"></span>**Select companies.**

	The selected companies define the Project's starting universe. Portrait may show editable Monitor suggestions for supported companies; review each suggestion before creating a Monitor.

	- **Manual selection:** search and add company names or tickers.

	- **Help me choose:** describe the type of business, then review the proposed list. Remove any company that does not belong in the intended universe.

Once created, the Project page brings together its **Companies** and **Research**. Use the top-level Charts and Monitors surfaces to find work assigned to that Project. Projects you no longer need can be archived, and restored later from **Settings → Archived projects**.


## Research instructions

Portrait applies Project **Research instructions** automatically to Deep Research and to legacy Chat runs where that workflow remains available. Review them before starting those workflows. Associating an Easel conversation with a Project does not apply these instructions to that conversation.


## Verify and recover

Confirm the Project name, review its company set under **Companies**, and review **Research instructions** under **Settings**. Open one Project item and verify that its Project association is correct. If the scope or persistent instructions are wrong, edit the Project before adding more work. Archive an unused Project; restore it later from **Settings → Archived projects** in the web app.

<span id="share-project-work"></span>

## Projects and sharing

Projects cannot be shared. Portrait supports read-only sharing of individual Deep Research reports and screens within your organization.

A report assigned to a Project cannot be shared. See [Projects and shared reports](https://portraitresearch.com/documentation/documents/sharing/#projects-and-shared-reports) for removing its assignment, moving a shared report into a Project, or organizing your own copy.

## Archive, restore, or delete

Archiving removes the Project from active lists and archives its Monitors. It stops those Monitors' active evaluation and ends their estimated ongoing usage reservations; it also removes an enabled Web source from their configuration. A saved direct link can still open the archived Project.

**Unarchive** returns the Project and its archived Monitors to active use and registers estimated ongoing Monitor usage again. It does not automatically restore a Web source removed during archiving. Review each restored Monitor's sources, signals, delivery settings, and **Settings → Usage** before relying on resumed coverage. Archive is different from pausing notifications on a Monitor.

Permanent deletion is available from **Settings → Archived projects** and cannot be undone. Review the contents before confirming:

| Project content | Effect of permanent Project deletion |
|---|---|
| Deep Research and legacy chats belonging to the Project | Deleted |
| Project Monitors, their updates and summaries, and saved Project charts | Deleted |
| Easel conversations associated with the Project | Retained; their Project association is removed |
| Uploaded files linked to the Project | Retained; the Project links are removed |
| Legacy Project notes linked only to this Project | Deleted |
| Legacy Project notes also linked to another surviving Project | Retained for that Project |

Legacy Project notes are distinct from editable notes in My Library. Deleting a Project is not a way to delete an Easel conversation or remove an uploaded file from My Library. If you need a copy of an affected report or chart, [export it](https://portraitresearch.com/documentation/reference/output-formats/) before deleting the Project.

## Troubleshoot

- If the **+** control is absent, confirm the signed-in account and organization.
- If **Help me choose** proposes an unsuitable company, use manual selection rather than accepting it.
- If an item is missing from the Project, confirm that it was explicitly assigned to this Project.

## Next

[Create a Deep Research report](https://portraitresearch.com/documentation/research/create-a-deep-research-report/)

Use the project context to define a scoped Deep Research request, then inspect the report and its supporting evidence.