How to make a field's data be unique, must be unique to add record

[Nick_Truch]

Hi,
I’m creating a table to track playlists and their curators. To stop me from adding duplicate records by mistake is it possible to set a requirement/validation on a field that all data must be unique.

To be more specific, I’m currently using Knack.com where I can set a field to ‘Must be unique’ and I am using this on the ‘Playlist Link’ url field. This means when I’m adding a new record it would tell me if I’ve already created it - thus avoiding duplicates.

I understand the Primary Field (the first column) is automatically set like this. But having the url as the primary field is not ideal as I’m assuming it will show up in the various views as the main field. Or I may need more than one field to be unique.

Is this possible in AirTable … my fingers are crossed. Many thanks for reading my post.

Best wishes
Nick

[ScottWorld]

Unfortunately, this is a very basic feature of most database systems, but it is missing from Airtable. (And no, the primary field does not have this feature either.)

You may want to email support@airtable.com and request it as a feature. The Airtable product team rarely listens to users’ feature requests, but you might as well get your voice thrown into the mix.

Some workarounds:

1. If you only want to trap for uniqueness at the time of adding a new record (not editing a record), you can use this form to prevent duplicates from being added into your system:

miniExtensions

Prevent Duplicate Airtable Records in miniExtensions Form

Optional settings to require a unique field value. If the entry is valid, the record will be created/updated. If it's invalid, the user will get an error.

2. If you know JavaScript, you could automate your own custom JavaScript via Airtable Automations to clear out any URLs (or put an error message into another field) if you add a new URL or edit a URL that already exists.

3. For a no-code way of doing the same thing as #2 above, you could use Integromat. Note that I am a professional Airtable consultant and a Registered Integromat Partner, and the Integromat link contains my personal referral code. If you have a budget for your project, I can help you set this up… feel free to contact me through my website at scottworld.com.

4. You could also MANUALLY SEARCH for duplicates (after the fact) by using the DeDupe app.