Notion allows you to reuse databases, saving time and effort in recreating them.
This feature is especially useful when you use a set of databases frequently. Take your weekly activity tracker, for example — It is easier to duplicate your it instead of making one from scratch each Monday.
Furthermore, duplicating in Notion helps in protecting data from unintended edits. You can create an editable, shareable version of a database that’s locked and secured in another Notion folder.
Simply duplicate it and move it to a shared folder in your workspace for your team’s access. Even if someone accidentally edits or deletes the database, you have a backup to pull it back from.
This guide walks you through the process of duplicating a Notion database.
1. Open the database in Full view
You can duplicate the database directly from the page by clicking the six-dots icons and selecting the Duplicate option, as demonstrated in the below image.
However, we will demonstrate the process of duplicating the database in the full view because it’s the most common mode of accessing Notion databases.
Go to the page containing the database and click the Open as full page icon to open the database in the full view mode.
2. Click the three-dots icon at the top-right and hover over the Duplicate option
You may want to duplicate the database with or without existing content based on the purpose of duplication - Notion supports both.
If you wish to retain only the columns of the database, without content, select the “Duplicate without content” option.
In some cases, you may need to include the existing data to save time on redoing columns.
For example, your Notion budget tracker might contain columns with a single select property type that accepts a preset value. Groceries, for instance, would be a recurring expense every month. Retaining content in the duplicate tracker would save time and effort as you would not have to come up with the list again.
In our example, we will go with the Duplicate with content option.
3. Edit the duplicate version
You have successfully duplicated the database, available on the same Notion page as the original database.
Access it by clicking the page name from the breadcrumbs.
Here's what the page looks like with the original database and its duplicate version. You can rename it or edit its content, if required.
How to duplicate a Notion database without data?
Click the three-dots icon at the top-right of the database page in full view and select Duplicate without content option under the Duplicate drop-down.
The duplicate database would be on the same page, with the original's column names and properties, but without the content.
