If you're looking for a Notion formula to make text bold, here's a quick guide that shows you exactly how to do it — with examples.
Whether you're managing tasks or tracking priorities, sometimes you need a bold, eye-catching visual cue — like red text that screams 🔥URGENT🔥 when it matters most.
In this quick tutorial, you'll learn how to create a dynamic reminder column using Notion’s if and style functions.
It’s simpler than it sounds — and we’ve even included an interactive demo so you can try it out yourself.
🧩 Step-by-step Instructions
1. Add a New Formula Column
Click the "+" icon in your database and select Formula as the column type. You can name it something like “Reminder” or “Alert”.
2. Click “Edit Formula”
Open the formula editor to start writing your logic.
3. Use the if Function
Type if and choose the if() function. This helps you create conditional logic—something like “if the status is Urgent, then do this...”
4. Set the Condition
Reference your Status column, then set the condition:
Status == "Urgent"
5. Add the Styled Output
Now, we’ll use the style() function to customize the output. Here's the complete formula:
if(Status == "Urgent", style("🔥URGENT🔥", "b", "red"), " ")
Breakdown of this formula:
Status == "Urgent"→ Checks if the status is “Urgent”style("🔥URGENT🔥", "b", "red")→ Displays bold red text" "→ Ensures the column stays blank when the condition isn’t met
🎨 Bonus: Style and Color Options
You’re not limited to just bold and red! Notion supports several text styles and colors via the style() function.
Style options:
"b"→ Bold"i"→ Italic"u"→ <u>Underline</u>"c"→Code"s"→Strikethrough
Color options:
Text color:
"gray","brown","orange","yellow","green","blue","purple","pink","red"
Background color (by adding _background):
"gray_background","yellow_background","blue_background", etc.
You can mix and match styles and colors for more visual impact.
✨ Pro tip: Always Return a Value
The if() function requires both a true and false return.
If you don’t want anything to display when the condition isn't met, just return an empty string: " ".
🔄 Bonus: Use ifs() to Automate Task Icons
What we covered today is a single-condition formula — when the status is "Urgent", we display bold red text.
But if you want to handle more complex logic, like showing different outputs for multiple statuses, the ifs() function is what you need.
Beyond text, ifs() is also commonly used in Notion to automate things like changing task icons based on status.
For example: 🔴 for Urgent, 🟠 for Important, 🟢 for Done...
👉 Click here to see how to set up dynamic icons using ifs() →