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sourceDocument: Australia Build workflows
sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/australia/build-workflows

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    - australia

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Australia Build workflows

ft:clusterId :

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workflow :

    - Creator


---

# Nested Playbooks

# Nested Playbooks {#ariaid-title1}

Release version: Australia  
Updated October 16, 2026  
![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 4 minutes to read
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## Summary of Nested Playbooks

Nested playbooks allow you to embed a child playbook within a parent playbook in ServiceNow, enabling better organization and reusability of process steps.
This approach helps avoid duplication by defining reusable sets of activities and improves maintainability and load performance by breaking up large playbooks.
Show full answer Show less  
Child playbooks must be of the Standalone execution type and marked as "nestable" to be used within a parent playbook. Both child and parent playbooks must have matching runtime permissions to function properly.

## Key Features

* **Standalone Child Playbooks:** Child playbooks are manually launched and can be nested only if they are standalone and activated.
* **Restricted Optional Activities:** Optional activities can only be inserted at the parent playbook level; nested playbooks don't support optional activity insertion at runtime.
* **Restart Behavior:** Individual activities or stages within nested playbooks cannot restart independently. Restart behavior is controlled by the parent playbook based on defined rules (Skip on restart, Run always, Skip on first run).
* **Cancellation:** Canceling the parent playbook automatically cancels the nested child playbook, which can also be cancelled via UI or API independently.
* **Data Passing between Parent and Child:** Data transfer is explicit using two activities:
  * **Launch Nested Playbook:** Transfers input data from parent to child.
  * **Set Playbook Outputs:** Returns output data from child to parent.
  Supported input types include String, Multi Line, and Reference. Inputs and outputs must be pre-defined in the child playbook's Inputs \& Outputs tab and mapped accordingly in the parent.
* **User Input Handling:** Parent playbook can collect input from users through a Questionnaire activity before launching the nested playbook, passing responses as inputs to the child.

## How to Build Nested Playbooks

Building nested playbooks involves two steps:

1. Create a standalone child playbook marked as nestable.
2. Create a parent playbook designed to host and launch the child playbook.

## Practical Example

In a budget approval scenario, a parent playbook can launch a nested child playbook to validate budget proposals. The child playbook returns outputs indicating if the budget exceeds limits or if documents are missing. The parent playbook uses these outputs to route the process for director review or to request missing documents, allowing simultaneous branching based on independent child outputs.  
Embed or "nest" a child playbook within a parent playbook to organize your processes and then present the appropriate sequence of steps in the runtime experience. Creating child playbooks that can be used in other parent
playbooks enables you to define sets of activities that can be re-used across multiple playbooks to avoid duplication.
Using nested playbooks can also enable you to break up very large playbooks so they are easier to maintain, and they can load faster in Playbook Designer.

## About nested playbooks {#nested-playbooks__section_hbw_nb3_d3c}

When building child playbooks, they must be of the Standalone execution type. This means that they are launched manually and not with an automated trigger. When you create a new playbook and select the Standalone execution type,
select a check box that allows the playbook to be nested in a parent playbook. The "nestable" playbook must be activated to be visible in the picker for selection as a nestable playbook in a parent playbook.

Permissions

:   Nested (child) playbook must have the same runtime permissions as the parent.

Inserting optional activities
:   In this release, nested playbooks don't support inserting optional activities at runtime. Parent playbooks can still include optional activities, but insertion points are restricted to the parent playbook. Optional activities from
    the parent can't be inserted within a child playbook.

Restarting playbooks
:
    Restart is not supported on individual activities or stages that belong to a nested playbook. A restart of the whole nested playbook can be performed when the nested playbook is restarted from the parent playbook. The restart behavior of the nested playbook from the parent playbook is based on the following restart rules that are defined for the Launch Nested Playbook activity:

    * Skip on restart: The nested playbook is not cancelled and continues to run.
    * Run always: The nested playbook is cancelled, and a new nested playbook is triggered when the launch nested playbook activity starts again.
    * Skip on first run: The nested playbook is only triggered when the parent playbook is restarted. It then follows the Run always rule behavior after subsequent restarts.
    {#nested-playbooks__ul_wr2_rky_23c}

How nested playbooks are affected by cancellation
:   Cancellation of the parent playbook automatically terminates the child playbook. Child playbooks can be cancelled by using the UI or an API.

## Process to build nested playbooks {#nested-playbooks__section_mwj_mc3_d3c}

Building nested playbooks is a two-part process:

1. Build a child playbook that can be nested in a parent playbook. For information about this step, see [Create a nestable child playbook](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/LmpqVLXzOqtkdmb3WxKq2A "Nest a child playbook within a parent playbook to organize your processes. Creating child playbooks that can be used in other parent playbooks enables you to define sets of activities that can be re-used across multiple playbooks to avoid duplication.").
2. Build a parent playbook that can host the child playbook. For more information about this step, see [Create a parent playbook to host a nestable child playbook](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/lF6K3zjzMorhM5os0LP1aQ "After you have created a nestable child playbook, then you can create a parent playbook to host the child playbook.").
{#nested-playbooks__ol_sxp_4c3_d3c}

## Passing data between parent and child playbooks {#nested-playbooks__section_xzz_dyp_xkc}

A nested playbook runs as a separate process from its parent, so data doesn't pass between them automatically the way it does between activities in a single playbook. Two activities move data across the boundary. The
Launch Nested Playbook activity in the parent carries values into the child, and the Set Playbook Outputs activity in the child returns values to the parent.

Inputs into the child playbook
:   Define the inputs on the child playbook, and then map a value to each input on the Launch Nested Playbook activity in the parent. A value can be fixed, or it can come from a data pill for the trigger
    record, the parent table, or an earlier activity. The supported input types are String, Multi Line, and Reference.
:   Define the inputs on the Inputs \& Outputs tab of the child playbook's properties, and then map a value to each input on the nested playbook activity in the parent. A value can be fixed, or it can
    come from a data pill for the trigger record, the parent table, or an earlier activity.

Values from the person running the playbook
:   Add a Questionnaire activity to the parent before the Launch Nested Playbook activity, and then map the answers to the child inputs by using data pills. For more information, see [Questionnaire activity](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/UKgSJ4LaIHMBMp1DbT5i5A "Collects inputs from a user during a playbook run to use later in the playbook.").

Outputs from the child playbook
:   To return values to the parent, the child playbook declares its outputs on the Inputs \& Outputs tab, and a Set Playbook Outputs activity sets their values. In the parent, the
    outputs are then available as data pills, so later activities, experience properties, and conditions can use them. Only activities that start before the target activity appear in the data pill picker.

The child playbook must define its inputs and outputs before you can map data to or from it in the parent.  

## Example: Budget validation {#nested-playbooks__example_budget_validation}

A budget approval playbook launches a child playbook that validates a budget proposal. At the end of its run, the child uses a Set Playbook Outputs activity to return two true or false outputs. One shows
whether the budget is over the limit, and the other shows whether documents are missing.

In the parent, a decision evaluates every branch whose condition is true. When the budget is over the limit, one branch routes the proposal for director review. When documents are missing, another branch requests them. Because the
two outputs are independent, a single child result can start both branches.