Field Types

Fields define the schema of your tables. Each field has a type that determines what kind of data it stores and how it behaves. This guide covers every available field type.

Text Fields

Single Line Text

A short text value, ideal for names, titles, identifiers, and other brief strings.

  • Max length: No hard limit, but designed for single-line content
  • Use cases: Names, titles, SKUs, short descriptions
  • Can be primary field: Yes

Long Text

Multi-line text with optional rich formatting support (bold, italic, lists, links).

  • Supports markdown: Yes
  • Use cases: Descriptions, notes, comments, detailed content
  • Can be primary field: Yes

Numeric Fields

Number

Stores integers or decimal numbers. Configurable precision and formatting.

Configuration options:

  • Decimal places -- 0 to 8
  • Allow negative -- toggle negative values
  • Number format -- standard, comma-separated, or custom

Examples:

  • Quantity: 42
  • Price: 19.99
  • Temperature: -5.3

Rating

A star rating from 1 to a configurable maximum (default 5). Displayed as stars in the grid.

Configuration options:

  • Maximum value -- 1 to 10
  • Icon -- stars, hearts, thumbs, flags
  • Color -- customize the icon color

Use cases: Priority scoring, satisfaction ratings, quality grades

Auto Number

Automatically generates a sequential integer for each new record. The value is assigned on creation and never changes, even if earlier records are deleted.

  • Starts at: 1 (auto-incrementing)
  • Read-only: Yes -- cannot be manually edited
  • Use cases: Invoice numbers, ticket IDs, sequential order numbers

Selection Fields

Single Select

Choose one option from a predefined list. Each option has a name and a color.

Configuration:

  1. Click the field settings
  2. Add options with names and optional colors
  3. Reorder options by dragging

Use cases: Status (Active/Inactive), Priority (High/Medium/Low), Category

Multiple Select

Choose one or more options from a predefined list. Same configuration as Single Select, but allows multiple values per record.

Use cases: Tags, skills, categories, labels

Date and Time Fields

Date

Stores a date with optional time component.

Configuration options:

  • Include time -- toggle to include hours and minutes
  • Date format -- ISO (YYYY-MM-DD), European (DD/MM/YYYY), US (MM/DD/YYYY), etc.
  • Time format -- 12-hour or 24-hour
  • Time zone -- use the field-level time zone or the user's local time zone

Use cases: Due dates, event dates, birthdays, deadlines

Created Time

Automatically records the date and time when the record was created. Read-only.

  • Auto-populated: Yes
  • Editable: No
  • Format: Configurable (same options as Date)

Last Modified Time

Automatically updates to the current timestamp whenever the record is modified.

  • Auto-populated: Yes
  • Editable: No
  • Watches: All fields (updates on any change)

User Fields

Created By

Automatically records the user who created the record. Displays the user's name and avatar.

  • Auto-populated: Yes
  • Editable: No

Last Modified By

Automatically records the last user who modified the record.

  • Auto-populated: Yes
  • Editable: No

Boolean Fields

Checkbox

A true/false toggle displayed as a checkbox. Unchecked records have a value of false (or null).

Use cases: Completed/not completed, active/inactive, approved/pending, opt-in/opt-out

Contact Fields

Email

Stores an email address with format validation. Clicking the value opens the default email client.

  • Validation: Basic email format check (contains @ and domain)
  • Use cases: Contact email, billing email, notification address

Phone

Stores a phone number. Clicking the value initiates a call on supported devices.

  • Format: Accepts any format; recommended to use international format (e.g., +37060000000)
  • Use cases: Contact phone, mobile, office number

URL

Stores a web address. Clicking the value opens it in a new browser tab.

  • Validation: Basic URL format check
  • Use cases: Website, LinkedIn profile, documentation link

File Fields

Attachment

Upload one or more files to a record. Supports images, documents, PDFs, and other file types.

Features:

  • Multiple files per record
  • Image preview in grid view and record detail
  • Drag and drop upload
  • File size limit: Configurable per workspace
  • Cover image: The first image can be used as a cover in Gallery and Kanban views

Use cases: Product photos, documents, contracts, receipts

Relationship Fields

Link to Another Record

Creates a relationship between records in two tables. This is one of the most powerful field types -- it lets you build relational data models.

Relationship types:

  • Many-to-many -- records on both sides can link to multiple records
  • One-to-many / Many-to-one -- one record on one side links to many on the other

Setup:

  1. Add a Link field to your table
  2. Choose the target table (can be in the same base or a different base)
  3. A symmetric link field is automatically created in the target table

Example:

  • A "Projects" table links to a "Tasks" table
  • Each project can have many tasks; each task belongs to one project
  • Clicking a linked record opens it in a popup

Tip: Link fields create structured, queryable relationships. For informal references in notes and documentation, you can also use [[wiki links]] in Long Text fields — see the Second Brain guide for details.

Lookup

Displays a field value from a linked record. Requires an existing Link field.

Setup:

  1. Add a Lookup field
  2. Select the Link field to look through
  3. Select the field from the linked table to display

Example:

  • Table "Orders" links to "Customers"
  • A Lookup field on Orders can display the Customer's "Email" or "Phone"

If the link is many-to-many, the Lookup returns multiple values (one per linked record).

Rollup

Aggregates values from linked records using a summary function. Requires an existing Link field.

Setup:

  1. Add a Rollup field
  2. Select the Link field
  3. Select the field to aggregate from the linked table
  4. Choose an aggregation function

Available aggregation functions:

  • SUM -- total of all values
  • AVERAGE -- mean of all values
  • MIN -- smallest value
  • MAX -- largest value
  • COUNT -- number of linked records
  • COUNTA -- number of non-empty values
  • AND -- true if all values are true (for checkboxes)
  • OR -- true if any value is true
  • ARRAY_JOIN -- concatenate text values
  • ARRAY_UNIQUE -- deduplicated values
  • ARRAY_COMPACT -- non-empty values

Example:

  • Table "Projects" links to "Time Entries"
  • A Rollup on Projects using SUM on "Hours" shows total hours per project

Count

Counts the number of linked records for a Link field. This is a simpler alternative to a Rollup with COUNT.

Computed Fields

Formula

Creates a computed value using an expression that references other fields in the same table. Formulas update automatically when referenced fields change.

Example expressions:

  • {Price} * {Quantity} -- multiply two number fields
  • IF({Status} = "Active", "Yes", "No") -- conditional logic
  • CONCATENATE({FirstName}, " ", {LastName}) -- combine text

See the Formulas guide for the full function reference.

Interactive Fields

Button

Adds a clickable button to each record. When clicked, it can trigger an automation workflow.

Configuration:

  • Label -- text displayed on the button
  • Color -- button color/style
  • Action -- the automation to trigger on click

Use cases: Approve/reject workflows, send notification, generate document, trigger external API call

Field Settings

All field types share these common settings:

Field Name

The column header displayed in views. Field names must be unique within a table.

Description

Optional help text that appears when hovering over the field name. Useful for documenting what the field is for.

Default Value

Some field types support a default value that is automatically filled when a new record is created.

Required (Validation)

Mark a field as required to prevent records from being saved with an empty value. Supported on: Single Line Text, Long Text, Number, Single Select, Multiple Select, Date, Rating, Attachment, Link, User.

Unique (Validation)

Enforce that all values in the field are unique across all records. Supported on: Single Line Text, Long Text, Number, Date.

Primary Field

Each table has one primary field that serves as the record's display name. The primary field value is shown when the record is referenced from other tables (via Link fields). Most text and select field types can be set as the primary field.