Notion import

The web import copies a Notion workspace into a new mddb workspace. The notion-import command writes the same content to a directory without a running server.

Import from the web app

Organization owners and admins can import. The import creates a new workspace named after the Notion workspace and makes you its admin.

Create a Notion integration

1. Open Notion's new integration form.
2. Name it, for example mddb import, select the workspace to import, select the Internal type, and save.
3. In the Access tab, select Edit access and choose the pages to import.
4. In the Configuration tab, clear Update content and Insert content. The import only reads.
5. Next to Internal Integration Secret, select Show and copy the secret.

Start the import

1. In mddb, select Import from Notion in the sidebar or the workspace menu.
2. Paste the secret and select Start Import.

A banner shows progress. It reports the pages, databases, records, assets, and errors when the import ends. Cancel Import stops a running import. The import runs on the server, so you can keep working.

Notion content maps to mddb nodes

Pages become pages, and databases become tables. The import keeps the page hierarchy, nested blocks such as lists, toggles, and columns, icons, and covers. It downloads images, files, and videos next to the page that uses them.

Notion property	mddb column	Value
title	text	Plain text
rich_text	markdown	Bold, italic, and links as Markdown
number	number	Unchanged
select, status	select	With options
multi_select	multi_select	With options
date, created_time, last_edited_time	date	Unix timestamp
checkbox	checkbox	Unchanged
url	url	Unchanged
email	email	Unchanged
phone_number	phone	Unchanged
relation	relation	mddb IDs of the related records
rollup	rollup	Value cached from Notion
formula	formula	Value cached from Notion
files	text	Paths of the downloaded files
people, created_by, last_edited_by	text	Comma-separated names
unique_id	text	PREFIX-123 format

The Notion API does not expose database views. Imported tables have no saved views, so mddb shows them as plain tables. The command line can add views from a manifest.

Export with the command line

Install the command with Go:

go install github.com/maruel/mddb/backend/cmd/notion-import@latest

Preview what the integration can read. The dry run prints JSON and writes nothing:

NOTION_TOKEN=ntn_your_secret notion-import -dry-run

Export into <output>/<workspace>/:

NOTION_TOKEN=ntn_your_secret notion-import -workspace notion-export -output ./export

The command writes files only. It does not create an mddb workspace, register members, or commit to Git. Use the web import to bring content into a running server.

Flag	Default	Effect
-token	NOTION_TOKEN	Notion integration secret. Required.
-workspace	none	Name of the output directory. Required except with -dry-run.
-output	./data	Parent directory of the export.
-database	all	Comma-separated database IDs to import.
-page	all	Comma-separated page IDs to import.
-views	none	View manifest YAML file.
-include-content	true	Fetch page blocks.
-max-depth	0	Maximum block nesting depth; 0 means unlimited.
-dry-run	false	Show what would be imported, without writing.

Exports rerun incrementally

The export writes notion_id_mapping.json beside the nodes. A second run into the same directory reuses its mddb IDs, so references between nodes stay valid. It rewrites nodes.jsonl and each table's data.jsonl.

Add views with a manifest

version: 1
databases:
  - notion_id: "0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef"
    views:
      - name: All tasks
        type: table
        default: true
        sorts:
          - property: Due
            direction: asc
      - name: By status
        type: board
        group_by: Status
        filters:
          - property: Status
            operator: not_equals
            value: Archived

version must be 1. Each view needs a name and a type: table, list, gallery, board, or calendar. mddb does not render calendar views yet. Fields name properties by their column name.

Field	Effect
default	Opens this view first.
columns	List of property, optional width, and optional visible.
sorts	List of property and direction, asc or desc.
filters	List of property, operator, and value; or nested and and or lists.
group_by	Groups records by a property.
hidden_groups	Group values to hide.

Filter operators are equals, not_equals, contains, not_contains, starts_with, ends_with, gt, lt, gte, lte, is_empty, and is_not_empty.