To include a parent group name in an Affinity layer export filename, create a slice for the child layer and enter a combined name such as Shapes_Circle. Official help documents editable filenames, but does not document an automatic parent-group naming token.

This guide covers exporting individual layer assets on a Mac using the current Affinity desktop app’s Slice Studio. It also identifies the relevant Affinity Designer 2 controls, where the workspace is called Export Persona. The concrete task is to export separate child-layer files whose names retain their group context.

Can Affinity insert the parent group name automatically?

The current Slices panel documentation says that export paths and filenames can use defined tokens or custom user variables. However, it does not identify a token that reads a slice’s parent group name. That leaves insufficient official evidence for an automatic parent-name recipe. Slices panel — Affinity Help Center

Affinity Designer 2’s more detailed token list names document name, document filename, slice name, scale, scale suffix, width, height, and square size. It does not list a parent group token. Its documentation explicitly allows typing a custom filename into the slice’s Filename text box. Slices panel — Affinity Designer 2 Help

The supported route is therefore to supply the group text yourself in each child slice’s export name. Treat that text as manually maintained: the documentation does not establish a live connection between it and the parent group. Do not build a naming setup around an assumed Parent, Group Name, or similar variable.

A custom user variable is also not evidence of automatic hierarchy lookup. Although the current help documents custom variables as available naming components, it does not describe binding one to the name of a containing group. For this task, entering the complete combined filename avoids relying on that unverified behavior.

Decide which layer or group each file should contain

Choose the export content before setting filenames. Affinity distinguishes slices created from items in the Export Layers panel from rectangles drawn with the Slice Tool. An item-based slice exports only content from the layer it was created from; a drawn slice includes content from all visible layers within its area. Item-based slices automatically size to the selected item’s extent. Exporting using the Slice Studio

For separate child assets, select each child layer as the source. Selecting the containing group creates a slice from that group instead. Changing a slice’s filename does not change which source item it exports. The Export Layers panel supports creating slices from artboards, layers, groups, and objects. Export Layers panel (Slice Studio)

The following synthetic example illustrates the naming decision. Assume a document contains two groups, Shapes and Tiles, each with a child layer named Circle. These are proposed names, not measured export results.

Source group Child layer to export Combined export basename Intended PNG filename
Shapes Circle Shapes_Circle Shapes_Circle.png
Tiles Circle Tiles_Circle Tiles_Circle.png

Using the group prefix gives the two otherwise identical child names distinct identities in one export folder. For deeper nesting, choose a consistent rule before naming slices. For example, a Circle layer inside Shapes, inside Collection, could use Collection_Shapes_Circle. This is an editorial naming convention you enter yourself, rather than an Affinity hierarchy expression.

Export child layers with combined filenames on a Mac

1. Open Slice Studio and its panels

Slice Studio is hidden by default in the current desktop app. Open the Studio Manager and turn on Slice Studio; the official help notes that you may need to scroll to find it. Slice Studio

If the required panels are missing, use Window > General > Export Layers and Window > General > Slices. These are the documented Mac menu paths for the panels used in this workflow. Export Layers panel, Slices panel

2. Create a slice from each child item

In the Export Layers panel, select the child layer you want as an individual file and click Create Slice. Repeat for the other child items. Select the actual child rather than its containing group when the required output is one file per child. The generated slices appear in the Slices panel. Export Layers panel (Slice Studio)

For the illustrative document, create one slice from Shapes’s Circle and another from Tiles’s Circle. Before naming them, check their thumbnails and bounds so you know which source each slice represents.

3. Enter the complete export name

In the Slices panel, edit each slice’s export filename to include both the group and child name. Use Shapes_Circle for the first example and Tiles_Circle for the second. The current help identifies the Filename control and documents renaming files within slice export settings; Designer 2’s help explicitly describes typing directly into the Filename text box. Slices panel, Exporting artboards, Designer 2 Slices panel

Keep the example basenames separate from the format choice: enter Shapes_Circle as the name and select PNG as the export format. If the slice already has a customized filename expression under its additional properties, inspect that setup too. Affinity documents filename configuration at the export-format level, so reviewing only the top-level slice label may leave an existing naming rule unnoticed. Slices panel

4. Set the format and export size

Expand the slice entry and choose the required format. You can adjust the selected slice through the Export Options panel or change the format within the Slices panel. Additional formats and sizes can be added with the corresponding + controls. For an initial naming check, use one format and one size per slice to make the output easy to inspect. Exporting slices

5. Export the checked slices

Enable the slices you intend to export and click Export Slices (n). Select the destination folder and click Export. This exports all configured formats and sizes for the checked slices. The destination folder is remembered only for the current editing session. Exporting slices

Inspect the results in Finder. For the example, confirm that both Shapes_Circle.png and Tiles_Circle.png exist, then open them to verify their content and dimensions. Checking one representative pair before naming a larger set can reveal a mistaken source selection or filename setup early.

Which export limitations affect this workflow?

Filename context does not preserve document structure

A name such as Shapes_Circle.png carries group context as text. It does not establish that the output retains Affinity’s editable layer hierarchy. If your deliverable requires layers inside a file, assess that separately from the filename task.

For example, Affinity documents a TIFF option that retains Affinity layers, but those layers are readable only when the TIFF is opened in Affinity. PDF has an Include layers option, with the condition that only named layers are included. Neither setting is documented as generating separate child filenames from parent groups. Export Settings

A vector format can still rasterize content

When exporting PDF, SVG, or EPS, the Rasterize setting controls how unsupported design elements are handled. Unsupported properties rasterizes unsupported elements; Everything rasterizes the design; Nothing leaves unsupported elements out of the exported file. Choose this setting according to the artwork’s requirements and inspect the result. Export Settings

Export scale depends on document DPI

Do not assume that a 1x slice always matches the pixel dimensions you expect. Affinity’s Slice Studio help explicitly links export scaling to document DPI and provides examples where identical document dimensions produce different output dimensions. Check both the size setting and the exported pixel dimensions when preparing consistently sized assets. Exporting using the Slice Studio

Continuous export does not supply missing group text

After an initial Export Slices (n) operation, you can enable Continuous to re-export slices when the document changes. This automates export updates; the documentation does not describe it as deriving parent group names. Review manually supplied prefixes whenever you rename groups or move child items between them. Exporting slices

For this task, keep a simple correspondence between each child item and its slice: choose the correct source, enter a unique combined name, select the required format, and inspect the exported file. That produces filenames with useful group context while staying within the naming behavior Affinity’s official help documents.

Sources