Notion Database Automation Tips: Auto-Inherit Parent Page Relation Properties in Sub-Items

Problem Background

Notion databases have a feature called sub-items, which lets you create a tree-like hierarchical structure within a database. For more on sub-items, check out the detailed guide on expanding sub-items.

However, when creating sub-items, they cannot automatically inherit the Relation properties from the parent page. You have to manually select them each time, which is quite tedious.

So is there a way to make sub-items automatically inherit the parent page's Relation properties when they are created?

Solution

Method 1: Using Notion Database Automation

Trigger

Select "Page added" as the trigger.

Define Variables

Define a "Variable 1" and assign the sub-item's "parent item's Relation" value to this variable:

Execute Action

1. Edit page properties
2. Select the Relation property
3. Choose "Variable 1"

Final Result

When creating sub-items, they will automatically inherit the parent item's Relation values.

Method 2: Using a Notion Database Button

Method 1 is fully automatic — it runs whenever a sub-item is created. But sometimes you may not want this process to be entirely automated. If you're interested in more automation techniques, check out building spaced repetition tasks with formula variables.

In that case, you can create a database page button. The variable settings are the same as Method 1, except the trigger changes to "When button is clicked."

The result looks like this:

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