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How to Insert Sleek Vertical Divider Lines Between Columns in Notion Workspace

Notion is a popular workspace app that allows you to create databases, wikis, documents and more to organize your work and life. One of its standout features is the ability to create multi-column layouts in pages and databases to display information in a visually appealing way.

If you want to separate those columns with divider lines rather than just whitespace, it can add a nice design touch and further organize the information. Notion doesn’t have built-in column dividers, but they can be added with a simple workaround.

Who This Article is For

This article is designed for Notion users who already understand the basics of the app and know how to:

  • Create a page
  • Add and format columns
  • Insert tables
  • Apply page properties

If you’re new to Notion, I recommend getting a handle on those features first before trying to add vertical column dividers.

The Benefit of Column Dividers

Vertical divider lines between columns can:

  • Visually separate information clearly
  • Make scanning a page with lots of data easier
  • Look sleek and modern
  • Further customize the aesthetics of your workspace

They transform a basic multi-column layout into something that looks professionally designed.

How to Insert Row Dividers in Notion

Notion doesn’t have the ability to add vertical column borders out of the box. But there is a simple workaround that only takes a couple minutes to set up.

Here is the process:

  1. Set up your multi-column layout Add the columns you want your page to have. You can add as many as you want, but I’d recommend no more than 4-5 columns so content doesn’t get too squished.
  2. Insert a 1-row table at the top of the page
  • Click above your columns to insert a table
  • Drag the toolbar to custom size it to 1 row by the number of columns you have
  • Set borders to show on the horizontal lines only
  1. Insert another 1-row table between each column
  • Click between each column to insert another 1-row table
  • Make sure the number of columns matches the existing table
  • Toggle borders to show horizontal lines only
  1. Format the divider tables
  • Set each table row to the minimum height
  • Hide the row number
  • Center vertical alignment
  • Toggle table title and footer off
  • Hide handle
  1. Color the divider lines (optional)
  • Open table properties
  • Select a color for your row divider lines
  • White or light gray works well for a subtle look

Once you drag these divider tables between each column it will look like sleek vertical lines are separating them. The tables blend into the background, only showing the borders.

The end result is a clean multi-column layout with unobtrusive lines separating the content.

Example Column Divider Setup

To see an example Notion page with column dividers set up, take a look below or copy this template into your workspace:

https://www.notion.so/Column-Dividers-Template-3e73b88af8204e29aa0d6bb30e88f28e

Customizing Your Dividers

Once you have your vertical divider tables set up between columns you have a few options to make them work for your specific page design:

Adjust divider width

The more columns you have, the thinner you’ll need to make each divider table to fit. You can customize the width by dragging the row handler on each table.

Add multiple divider rows

You can stack two or three divider tables on top of each other between columns if you want a thicker divider line.

Alternate row background colors

Use alternating background fills on your divider rows to create a subtle stripe pattern.

Change row colors

Pick whatever color you want for your divider rows to match your page aesthetic.

Add icons

Insert icons or emoji into the divider table cells instead of just borders.

Get creative!

You can get really creative with this technique by adding images inside the cells, alternating divider heights, using dashed borders, and more.

Limitations

This workaround to add Notion column dividers works nicely, but there are a couple limitations to note:

  • You lose a little bit of vertical space by adding the divider tables
  • Scrolling can be slightly laggy with tables inserted between many columns
  • Divider lines don’t extend all the way to edges of page

But for most use cases, the benefits are worth those minor limitations!

Conclusion

Adding vertical divider lines between your Notion columns takes your multi-column layouts to the next level. All it takes is strategically placing slim 1-row tables between each column and customizing their borders.

With this easy technique, you can create pages that look like they were professionally designed. Column dividers add both visual interest and improved scannability to complex pages full of data.

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