How to keep the card title when converting checklist items to cards

Victoria Essenholm

Hello,

I'm using Trello and often convert checklist items into cards. When I do this, I want the new card to keep exactly the same title as the original card (or follow a specific naming logic), but I’m having trouble achieving this with automation.

I tried to create an automation rule with a trigger similar to “when a checklist item is converted to a card,” but I couldn't get it to work as expected. Either the trigger doesn’t seem to fire, or I can’t access the right variables to control the name of the newly created card.

What I’m trying to achieve is:

• When a checklist item is converted into a card, the new card should keep a specific title (ideally the same as the source card, or follow a defined naming rule).

Could you clarify:

1. Whether I can make triggers for when a checklist item is converted into a card.

Thank you for your help!

Lara Demir - Hipporello

Hi ,

Welcome to the community! This is a great question. The "Convert to Card" feature is very handy, but it can be tricky to automate because Trello treats it as a "Card Created" event rather than a checklist event.

To achieve your goal of keeping the original card's title (or a specific naming rule) on the new card, here is how you can set it up:

1. The Trigger Problem
There isn't a direct trigger that says "When a checklist item is converted." Instead, you have to use the "When a card is added to list..." trigger. However, to make sure it only fires for converted items, we need a specific setup.

2. The Recommended Automation Rule
Instead of using the manual "Convert to Card" button, I recommend creating a Card Button or a Rule that does the work for you. This way, you have full control over the variables.

Try this Rule logic:

"When a checklist item is checked in a card, create a new card in list 'Done' with title '{cardtitle} - {checklistitemname}'"

{cardtitle}: This variable pulls the name of the original (parent) card.

{checklistitemname}: This pulls the name of the specific item you just checked.

3. If you must use the manual "Convert to Card" button:
If you prefer the manual way, you can try this work-around, but it's less reliable:

"When a card is added to list 'My List' by anyone, if the card name contains '[Specific Keyword]', rename the card to..."

The limitation: When you manually convert an item, the new card is created with the item's name as the title, and the link to the parent card is lost in the automation's "memory." Butler doesn't inherently know which card the item came from once it becomes a standalone card.

Pro-Tip: The "Parent-Child" Link
If you want the new card to stay connected to the original, use the "Connect" command in your automation:

"...and link the cards together."

This ensures that the new card always has a back-link to the "Source" card where the checklist lived.