Creating and applying parent pages
Last updated: 8 September 2026 · 5 minute read
Learn how to design repeating elements such as a logo, page numbers or a column structure once and apply them to many pages.
A parent page is a template layer that shows through on the pages it is assigned to. Blocks on a parent are not edited on the page itself; you change the parent and every page using it updates at once. A parent can carry two faces, left and right: in spread view the left face applies to left-hand pages and the right face to right-hand pages.
Steps
- 1
Create a parent page
PagesParent pageNew parent
In the Parent page area of the Pages panel choose New parent. When no template exists yet, the area says so. The new parent appears in the list with its name and the faces it carries: Left, Right or Left + Right.
- 2
Edit the parent
PagesEdit parent
The edit button on the parent row switches the canvas into parent editing. Put the elements that repeat on every page here: the logo, the page number, column rules. While the mode is on, the top bar names the parent you are editing.
To design the two faces separately, switch with Toggle left/right parent in the View menu. In a book layout the inner margins are mirrored, so the two faces are usually mirror images of each other.
- 3
Put a page number on the parent
PagesInsert page number
In master-edit mode, use Add page number. The command inserts a new text block with the number token and also attempts to copy the token to the clipboard. Position and format the new block; no empty text block is needed first.
- 4
Finish editing
PagesFinish editing
Finish editing returns to ordinary page editing. Check the save status and preview the changed master on assigned pages.
- 5
Assign the parent to pages
PagesAssign parent
Select one or more pages in the list, choose Assign parent and pick the template. In spread view the left and right faces match the position of the page within its sheet automatically.
To remove a parent, clear the assignment in the same place. The page's own blocks are untouched.
- 6
Use parent guides
ViewGuides: parent (all pages)
Guides are kept in two scopes: only the page you are on, or the parent, meaning every page. Set columns and margins in the parent scope and they land in the same place on every page.
You switch the scope from the View menu or the Canvas panel; the Canvas panel also has an action that applies this page's guides to all pages.
- 7
Delete a parent
PagesParent page
The delete button on the parent row asks for confirmation. A deleted parent is removed from the pages that use it; those pages carry on with their own content.
Options
Parent page actions and where they live.
| Option | Where | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| New parent | Pages | Creates an empty template layer. |
| Edit parent | Pages | Switches the canvas into parent editing. |
| Left / Right / Left + Right | Pages | Shows which faces the parent carries. |
| Toggle left/right parent | View | Switches between faces while editing. |
| Insert page number | Pages | Places a page-number token in parent text. |
| Assign parent | Pages | Applies the template to the selected pages. |
| Finish editing | Pages | Leaves parent editing. |
| Guides: parent (all pages) | View | Moves the guide scope to every page. |
Result
Parent elements sit under the page content in the publication and in exports. Change the template and every page bound to it updates together; there is nothing to fix page by page.