Nested Collections in Zoho Notebook

Nested Collections in Zoho Notebook

Zoho Notebook

Nested Collections

Complete Guide - Web  •  Mac  •  iOS  •  Android

Overview

Nested Collections in Zoho Notebook let you go beyond a plain list of notecards. Instead of scrolling through an endless stack, you can group related notecards into collections and organise them into sub-collections - creating a clean, multi-level hierarchy that keeps your notebook structured and easy to navigate.

Why Use Nested Collections?

Whether you are a student managing coursework, a professional juggling multiple projects, or simply someone who likes tidy notes - Nested Collections offer a structured way to keep everything in its place, all within a single notebook.


 🔍

Access Your Notes Faster
Organise notes and groups in a hierarchy to locate information instantly. Create subcategories for specific topics so you can drill down directly to what you need - no endless scrolling.

 ⚡

Streamline Your Workflow

Group related notes and create sub-collections for a more detailed system. Organise by priority or project phase so you always focus on the most important tasks.


 🗂️

Clutter-Free Organisation
A hierarchy-based structure keeps your notebook visually clean. Reduce noise and stay focused on the task at hand without creating additional notebooks.


Use Cases

Here are a few real-world examples of how Nested Collections can transform the way you take notes:

Project Organisation

Group all project-related notecards under a single parent collection, then break them down by type:

Project Alpha

  • Research Notes
  • Meeting Notes
  • Tasks

Study & Learning Materials

Organise notes by subject and drill down into specific topics:
  1. Biology
    > Cell Structure
    > Genetics

  2. Physics
    > Mechanics
    > Optics

Content Planning

Structure ideas, drafts, and references within a single notebook:

  1. Blog Ideas
    > Drafts
    > Published
    > References


Nesting Levels

Nested Collections support up to 5 levels of hierarchy. 


ℹ️  Free plan users can create only 1 level of collection. Deep nesting (Levels 2–5) is available only on paid plans.


Creating & Managing Collections

The following sections walk you through all the key actions — creating, editing, sharing, and deleting collections across all supported platforms.

Web

Create a New Collection

1

Open the Notebook where you would like to create a collection

2

Click the (+) icon in the menu bar and select Collection.

3

Enter the desired name for the Collection.




Create a Sub-Collection (Nested Collection)

1

Click on the collection you want to nest another collection inside.

2

Click the (+) icon in the menu bar and select Collection.

3

Enter the desired name for the 'Collection'.

4

Repeat the same steps inside any sub-collection to add further levels of nesting (up to Level 5 for paid plans).

Move a Note card or Collection

1

Click on the note card or collection you want to move. Click the Move to option at the top-right corner, then select the notebook containing the collection where you want to move the notes.

2

Inside the notebook, select the collection where you want to move the notes.


Alternatively, you can create a new collection by selecting the desired notes and clicking the Create Collection option at the top-right corner.

Share a Collection

1

Navigate to the collection in your notebook.

2

Right-click the collection and choose Share > Add Members.

3

Type the email address of the person you want to share with and click 'Share''. You can add multiple recipients.

4

Choose a permission level: View, Edit, or Share.

5

Click Share. The recipient receives an email notification with access to the collection and all its sub-collections.

Rename a Collection

1

Locate the collection you want to rename.

2

Right-click the collection and choose Rename.

3

Edit the name and press Return to save the change.

Delete a Collection

1

Right-click the collection you want to delete.

2

Select 'Move to Bin' from the context menu.

3

A confirmation dialog appears. Click 'Move to Bin' to proceed. The collection and all its contents - including any sub-collections and note cards are moved to Trash.

Mac App

Create a New Collection

1

Open Zoho Notebook on your Mac. In the left sidebar, click the notebook where you want to create a collection.

2

Click the (+) icon at the top pane and select Collection from the menu.

3

Right-click the collection, choose Rename, enter the desired name, and press Return to save.

Create a Sub-Collection (Nested Collection)

1

Click on the collection you want to nest another collection inside.

2

Click the (+) icon at the top pane and select Collection from the menu.

3

Enter a name for the sub-collection and press Return. It now appears nested under the parent collection.

4

Repeat the same steps inside any sub-collection to add further levels of nesting (up to Level 5).

Move a Note card or Collection

1

Click on the note card or collection you want to move. Hold Command and click to select multiple items.

2

Drag and drop the selected item(s) into the destination collection. Alternatively, right-click and choose Move, then select the destination from the list.

Rename a Collection

1

Locate the collection you want to rename.

2

Right-click the collection and choose Rename.

3

Edit the name and press Return to save the change.

Share a Collection

1

Navigate to the collection in your notebook.

2

Right-click the collection and choose Share > Add Members.

3

Type the email address of the person you want to share with and press Return. You can add multiple recipients.

4

Choose a permission level: View, Edit, or Share.

5

Click Share. The recipient receives an email notification with access to the collection and all its sub-collections.


ℹ️  Recipients must have a Zoho account to collaborate on shared collections.

Delete a Collection

1

Right-click the collection you want to delete.

2

Select Trash from the context menu.

3

A confirmation dialog appears. Click Delete to proceed. The collection and all its contents — including any sub-collections and note cards  are moved to Trash.


ℹ️  Deleted collections can be recovered from Trash before they are permanently removed. Go to Trash in the sidebar, find the collection, and click Recover.

iOS Mobile App

Create a New Collection

1

Open Zoho Notebook on your iPhone or iPad and tap the notebook where you want to create a collection.

2

Tap the (+) icon at the bottom-right corner and select Collection.

3

An Untitled collection will appear. Long-press it and tap Set Title to enter a name, then tap Done to save.

4

Long-press a notecard, select Move, choose the notebook, and tap the collection name to move the notecard into it.


The 'Add Collection' (+) icon will be displayed as shown in the GIF below for users on the updated iOS 26 version.



For previous versions it will be available in the top panel as depicted in the screenshot below: 


Create a Sub-Collection (Nested Collection)

1

Tap the collection you want to nest another collection inside.

2

Tap the (+) icon at the bottom-right corner and select Collection.

3

Enter a name for the new sub-collection and tap Done. It now appears nested inside the parent collection.

4

Open any sub-collection and repeat the same steps to add further levels (up to Level 5).


ℹ️  You can create up to 5 levels of nested sub-collections. For free users, only 1 level is allowed.

Move a Notecard or Collection

1

Long-press the notecard or collection you want to move until the action menu appears.

2

Tap Move from the menu. A list of available notebooks and collections is displayed.

3

Tap the destination collection. The item is relocated immediately.

Rename a Collection

1

Long-press the collection you want to rename.

2

Tap Rename from the action menu.

3

Clear the existing name, type the new one, and tap Done to save.

Share a Collection

1

Navigate to the collection you want to share inside the notebook.

2

Tap the More Options (⋯) button at the top-right of the collection view.

3

Tap Share Collection from the action menu.

4

Type the email address of the recipient. Add multiple recipients if needed, and choose a permission level — View, Edit, or Share. You can also use the Collection Link to share access.

5

Tap Share. The recipient gets an email notification with access to the collection and all its sub-collections.

Delete a Collection

1

Long-press the collection you want to delete until the action menu appears.

2

Tap Delete from the menu.

3

Tap Trash again to confirm. The collection, its notecards, and all nested sub-collections are moved to Trash.


ℹ️  To restore a deleted collection on iOS, go to Settings > Trash, find the collection, and tap Restore.

Android App

Create a New Collection — Method 1: Group Existing Notecards

1

Open the Zoho Notebook app and navigate to the notebook where you want to organise your notecards.

2

Long-press a notecard and then tap additional notecards to select multiple cards.

3

Tap the More Options (⋮) icon in the top-right corner.

4

Choose the Collection option and create a new collection. The selected notecards will be grouped under it.

Create a New Collection — Method 2: Create Directly

1

Open the Zoho Notebook app and navigate to the required notebook.

2

Tap the (+) icon on the top bar and select Collection.

3

Once created, add new notecards inside the collection, or move existing notecards using the Move to option available in each notecard.


Sharing Collections

Zoho Notebook makes it easy to share an entire collection — along with all the note cards inside it - with teammates, classmates, or anyone you collaborate with.


What gets shared?

Points to Remember

  • All note cards inside the shared collection

  • All nested sub-collections within it
  • Any updates to the collection reflect for all shared users in real time.

  • Access permissions (View / Edit / Share) depend on your sharing settings

  • Recipients need a Zoho account to collaborate


Info
Tip: Share a parent collection for full access, or share only a specific sub-collection to keep certain content private.


Sync Across Devices

Any collection or sub-collection you create, rename, move, or delete on one device automatically syncs to all your other devices - Android, Mac, iPhone, iPad, and the web app. Your custom sorting order also syncs, so your hierarchy looks the same everywhere.


ℹ️  Ensure you are signed in to the same Zoho account on all your devices and that you have an active internet connection for sync to work. Changes made offline are synced as soon as you reconnect. You can also fetch the collections using the Search feature across all platforms. 


Tips for Organising with Nested Collections


💡

Use Clear, Descriptive Names

Name each collection so it is immediately obvious what is stored inside. For example, 'Work > Q2 Projects > Client A' is much easier to scan than generic labels like 'Folder 1'.


💡

Group First, Refine Later

Start by moving related notes into a top-level collection. Once the collection grows, create sub-collections inside it to break things down further. There is no need to plan the perfect structure upfront.


💡

Share at the Right Level

Share a parent collection to give access to everything inside it. Share only a specific sub-collection when you want to limit access to a portion of your notebook.


Frequently Asked Questions


Q: Can I create collections inside other collections?

A: Yes! You can nest collections within collections up to 5 levels deep. Free plan users are limited to 1 level.

Q: Will deleting a collection delete the notecards inside it?

A: Yes. Deleting a collection removes all notecards and sub-collections within it. They are moved to Trash and can be recovered before permanent deletion.

Q: Can I move notecards between collections?

A: Absolutely. Use the Move to option (drag-and-drop on Mac, or the Move option on iOS and Android) to relocate notecards between collections at any time.

Q: Can I organise notebooks using collections?

A: Collections are designed for organising notecards within a notebook. Nested Collections for Notebooks is on our roadmap and will be supported in a future update.

Q: Does organising notecards into collections affect their content?

A: Not at all. Collections only change how notecards are grouped. The content of each notecard remains completely unchanged.

Q: Does sharing a collection share everything inside it?

A: Yes. When you share a collection, all notecards and nested sub-collections within it become accessible to the recipient based on the permission level you choose.

We're Here to Help!

Have questions? Ran into something unexpected, or have suggestions to make Nested Collections even better?
We'd love to hear from you. Reach us at support@zohonotebook.com - our team is always happy to help.

Happy Note-taking :)