Confused by Updating fields in a base

We can only update the name and description of a field directly at this time I’m afraid (https://airtable.com/developers/web/api/update-field)

We can create new field options by updating records directly with ‘typecast: true’ though (https://airtable.com/developers/web/api/update-record), and so a workaround could be that you create a record with that value and then delete the record, or update a record with that value then clear it

Here’s the URL one might use and the payload if we were creating a new option by updating a record:

https://api.airtable.com/v0/{baseId}/{tableIdOrName}/{recordId}

{
    "fields": {
        "Select": "New value"
    },
    "typecast": true
}

Hello,


 

You're on the right track with using HTTP calls to interact with the Airtable API. However, you cannot directly update the structure of your Airtable base (like adding a new choice to a single-select or multi-select field) using the standard record update API.

The Airtable API allows you to update the values of existing fields for specific records. To modify the available options within a single-select or multi-select field, you would typically need to use the Airtable API's Schema endpoint, which has different authentication and usage patterns compared to the data/record endpoint.

Here's a breakdown of what you CAN do with the standard record update API and how to approach your specific need:

What you CAN do with the Record Update API:

You can update the value of a single-select or multi-select field for an existing record. For example:

Single Select: If your "singleselect" field already has options like "Option A", "Option B", you can update a record to have the value "Option A" or "Option B".
Multi Select: If your "multiselect" field has options like "Choice 1", "Choice 2", "Choice 3", you can update a record to have the values ["Choice 1", "Choice 3"]


Best Regards

The answer above from @laura563 is missing the key piece of information that you can’t add brand new options to a field without enabling the “typecast” function. (In Make, they call this option “Smart Links”.)

- ScottWorld, Expert Airtable Consultant

Hey there thank you.

Got this fixed through using this
 

{
 "records": [
   {
     "fields": {
       "Name": "Ferry Building",
       "Visited": false,
       "Visited_testsing": "test4"
     }
   }
 ],
  "typecast": true
}