Add parent name as a prefix or suffix to subitem names
TL;DR: When a subitem is created, automatically prepend or append its parent item's name (with a connector you choose) to the subitem's own name. The #3 most-used Subitem Automation in the app — used by 9% of all accounts.
What this does
Recipe: "When subitem is created, add name of its parent item as a prefix to its name with this connector."
Every new subitem gets renamed to "[Parent name][connector][original subitem name]" the moment it's created.
Example: parent "Website Redesign" with connector " – "; new subitem "Design" becomes "Website Redesign – Design".
When to use it
- Subitems show up in cross-board reports / dashboards / "My Work" — and need clear identification on their own
- You export subitems to spreadsheets and need parent context preserved
- Multiple parent items have subitems with the same generic name ("Review", "QA") and you need to tell them apart
- Cross-board workflows where the subitem's name carries the project context
Before you start
- Decide your connector — common choices:
–(en-dash with spaces),:(colon-space),/(slash with spaces) - This recipe fires on creation only. Existing subitems aren't renamed.
Set it up (1 minute)
I. Open the Automations Center
To begin configuring the subitem workflow, navigate to your desired monday.com board.
1. Click Integrate (or Automate) in the top right corner of your board to open the automation center.
2. Click Create at the top of the modal to start building a new automation from scratch.
3. In the search field, type "Subitem Automations" to filter the available templates. Click on the Subitem Automations app card from the search results to view its specific recipes.
II. Configuring the Subitem Automation
Next, you will locate the specific recipe that links parent names to subitems and customize how they are separated.
4. Type "prefix" in the template search bar to quickly locate the relevant automation.
5. Click Use template on the card that reads: "When subitem is created, add the name of its parent item as a prefix to its name with this connector."
6. Click the word "Prefix" and select where you want the Parent Item's name to be added as a Prefix or a Suffix to the subitem's name.
7. Click the this connector text input box and type " - " (or your preferred punctuation) to define the separator text inserted between the parent item name and the subitem name.
Connector formatting
The connector acts as a visual divider. For example, using a hyphen with spaces (
-) will format the final result as Parent Name - Subitem Name. You can certainly use any symbols or characters you like!
8. Click the blue Create automation button to save and enable this workflow on your board.
Testing the Automation
Once the automation is active, it's best practice to test it to ensure the formatting looks correct.
9. Navigate to an existing parent item on your board, click into the Add subitem input field, and type a test name (e.g., "Subitem 6").
10. Press the Enter key to create the subitem.
Success: The parent item's name will now instantly populate at the beginning of the subitem's title!
FAQ
Q: Can I put the parent item's name at the end of the subitem instead?
A: Yes. When configuring the automation template, simply select "Suffix" instead of "Prefix" from the dropdown menu. The parent's name will then be appended to the end of your subitem.
Q: Does this automation apply to existing subitems?
A: No, monday.com automations are trigger-based. This specific automation will only append prefixes to subitems created after the automation is turned on.
Common gotchas
- Fires only on creation. If you rename the parent later, existing subitems keep their original prefix.
- Choose your connector carefully. Renaming connectors later is messy — you'd need to manually re-rename existing subitems.
- Doesn't strip duplicates. If the parent name already appears in the subitem name, it'll be doubled.
- Combine with cleanup recipes. Pair with Auto-remove "(copy)" suffix from new subitem names if duplicating subitems creates messy names.
- For per-name targeting (apply prefix only to specific subitem names), the by-name variants live in Smart rules & by-name automations .
Next up
Related
- Create subitems automatically (parent landing — see all defaults-on-creation patterns)
- Sync values between parent & subitem
Still stuck?