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Set defaults on fields

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Mike_Ball
6 - Interface Innovator
6 - Interface Innovator

Simply the ability to set a default on fields other than numeric

On a date, the obvious is Today

On a string, just set a default value

138 Comments
Amanda_Shipka
5 - Automation Enthusiast
5 - Automation Enthusiast

Iโ€™d like defaults for long text - use case is a checklist of tasks. I know I could make each check a single field but theyโ€™re really not worth their own fields for my use case.

Tyler_Hartgrove
5 - Automation Enthusiast
5 - Automation Enthusiast

It would be great to have a default โ€œTimeโ€ set when choosing the date field. We have a table dedicated to logging employee time off, and when they are filling the form out, it would make it easier and faster for the start time to default to 8:00am and end time to default to 5:00pm. The start and end DATE could still pull from what the current day is. It would help when sending this information to Zapier to correctly interpret what a โ€œfull dayโ€ is.

Ardi_Ghorashy
4 - Data Explorer
4 - Data Explorer

enable making one of the items from the picklist the default value.

Brian_Kuyath
4 - Data Explorer
4 - Data Explorer

Hey everybody! So, I would love this feature too.

When a new user is onboarded into our platform, we have a certain number of steps we want the user to go through to complete their onboarding. We track these steps in a Status column thatโ€™s field type is โ€œSingle selectโ€. The field has four different options, and we want the first option to be the default when a new user is added to the table. As you all know, this isnโ€™t possible in Airtable for the moment. However, it occurred to me that Airtableโ€™s new(ish) Automations feature might be able to solve the problem, and the good news is that it did. :slightly_smiling_face:

Steps to create a default value for a Single select field type using an Automation:

  1. Click Automations (top-right) >> New Automation
  2. Name the automation
  3. Click โ€œChoose Triggerโ€ button
  4. Click โ€œWhen a record matches a conditionโ€ฆโ€
  5. Under Conditions, select โ€œWhen [Status] [is empty]โ€
  6. In the โ€œSelect a tableโ€ field, select the table where the record is created (e.g. Users), and click โ€œRun testโ€ (make sure the test runs successfully, you will need a record with an empty Status)
  7. Click โ€œDoneโ€

Screenshot for reference on the โ€œTriggersโ€ segment (Steps 1โ€“7)
image

  1. Click โ€œAdd Actionโ€
  2. Click โ€œUpdate Recordโ€
  3. Under โ€œRecord IDโ€ click the [+] button
  4. In the dropdown, next to โ€œRecord (from Step 1)โ€, click โ€œContinueโ€
  5. From the list select โ€œRecord IDโ€
  6. Click โ€œChoose Fieldโ€
  7. Click โ€œStatusโ€ (or whatever your field you want to update)
  8. In the Status field, enter the text of the default status (in our particular case, the default status is โ€œOn Deckโ€), and click Run test (make sure the test ran successfully)
  9. Click Done
  10. Last, but not least, make sure to toggle the Automation to ON in the top-right corner.

Screenshot for reference on the โ€œActionsโ€ segment (Steps 8โ€“17)
image

::phew:: That was a lot! And a bit confusing, to be honest. Setting the Record ID (step 10) and entering the default value (step 15) were not clear at all when I was going through this. I hope this helps some of you!

  • B
TFP
6 - Interface Innovator
6 - Interface Innovator

You might be interested in https://miniextensions.com/autofill-default-value-for-airtable-records/ as mentioned earlier by Set defaults on fields

I havenโ€™t found any other automated solution besides Set defaults on fields (but itโ€™s more work, and count towards your automation executions count)

steve_harley
4 - Data Explorer
4 - Data Explorer

me too โ€ฆ this one of the real time-wasters in my current project testing out Airtable; yes i saw the workarounds, and if i had thousands, rather than just a couple hundred records to deal with, it would be worth the effort to build the workaround

Martin_Bernstor
5 - Automation Enthusiast
5 - Automation Enthusiast

Strong upvote here! Would love it for checkbox fields, and should be easy to implement.

Mike_Ball
6 - Interface Innovator
6 - Interface Innovator

I asked this question 5 years ago and still nothing! Pathetic to be honest and a platform that lately spends more time down than up.

So disappointed but looking for an alternative platform

Emre_Baran
4 - Data Explorer
4 - Data Explorer

IT is very disappointing to see this feature was never actions in 5 years. I just started using airtable, thinking it would replace an old spreadsheet I have. This was my first requirement beyond the simple spreadsheet functionality.

Mike_Ball
6 - Interface Innovator
6 - Interface Innovator

Exactly Emre, unfortunately they are way more interested on new functionality than simple issues in the base product. I loved Airtable, told everyone it was the answer to every problem but Iโ€™m completely disillusioned with it now