Table of Contents

Using Display Rules

Lesley Updated by Lesley

What are Display Rules?

Display rules control how a the fields on a view are displayed. Using display rules, you can hide or show form inputs, change input labels based, add icons, change text and background color depending on which view the rules live on. Display rules are available on form, details, and grid views.

Build Form & Details Display Rules

These rules are checked and triggered both when the view is initially loaded. If the rules are on a form view these rules area also checked when a user changes the value of one of the form’s inputs. 

A display rule is created by defining the conditions (if) that trigger the actions (then):

With a multi-part form, you may want to use display rules to show/hide fields based on fields from an earlier part of the form. For example, let’s say this form is a job application. Different jobs may have different questions associated with them. Based on what job the candidate selects, the application can display different questions. 

In some cases, you may want to show/hide fields based on a field you don’t want to display on the form. You can add that field to the form and then hide it using a display rule. The field, though hidden, can still be used in other display rules!

If - Define Your Criteria

These are the criteria which will trigger your rule’s action(s) when the rule’s criteria is/are true. 

You can add more than one criteria to trigger the action, in which case every criteria must be true.

Then - Define Your Actions

This is the action that triggers when the criteria is/are met:

Show/Hide

Show the input when the criteria is true. Hide the input when it is false.

This option is not available on details views because the record is not being actively edited.

Example

Show the Shipped date field on a form to add an Order record when the Shipped? yes/no field’s value is Yes. This way, if the user changes the value of Shipped? from No to Yes while filling out the form, Shipped date will still appear.

In cases with many display rules on a form, it’s better to define all the rules as show rules or hide rules separately instead of using show/hide or hide/show rules. 
Hide/Show

Hide the input when the condition is true. Show the input when it is false.

This option is not available on details views because the record is not being actively edited.

Example

Show an Other (short text) field input when the choice selected for How did you hear about us? Is Other, allowing the user to add an option only when appropriate. 

In cases with many display rules on a form, it’s better to define all the rules as show rules or hide rules separately instead of using show/hide or hide/show rules. 
Show

Show the input when the criteria is true. This option will hide the input whenever the criteria are not met.

Unlike Show/Hide, this option only performs a single action. If you need the rule to do the opposite when a variable on the page changes, you'll need to add another rule that states the opposite.

Example

On a form to edit an Appointment record, have a rule to show the Appointment date and time field only when the same field’s data is before today, preventing the user from rescheduling an appointment on the same day.

This rule is not needed on views (eg. a Details view) where only static information is displayed. If field inputs are on a view and the value matches other required criteria (eg. yes, it has a value), you do not need a "Show" display rule. That value will automatically display on the view.
Hide

Hide the input when the condition is true. 

Unlike Hide/Show, this option only performs a single action. If you need the rule to do the opposite when a variable on the page changes, you'll need to add another rule that states the opposite.

Example

Hide the Late fee field if Due date is before the current time. This prevents the user from adding a late fee when one was not necessary and is intended for a form where Due date could not be edited.

Rename Label

Change the label of the input when the criteria is true. This is best used for minor aesthetic or usability tweaks.

Example

With a Car or truck? multiple choice field, rename the label for the Mileage field to either Car mileage or Truck mileage, depending on the user’s choice.

Build Grid Display Rules

Using display rules, you can add rules to update the column's display:

A display rule is added by defining the conditions (if) that trigger the actions (then):

If: the condition(s) that will trigger the actions when the condition is true. More than one condition can be added to trigger the action, in which case every condition must be true.

Then: the action to trigger when the condition is met. There are five actions that can be triggered by display rules:

  • Set Text Color: Change the text color to a color of your choice.
  • Set Text Style: Change the text to italic, bold, strikethrough, or a combination of all three.
  • Set Background Color: Change the background color of the cell in the grid to a color of your choice.
  • Display Icon: Displays an icon next to the value in the cell with a color of your choice.
  • Hide Value: Hides the value in that cell in the grid.

Multiple conditions and actions can be added for each rule by using the green "plus" button:

Display rules are shown in the grid view editor's live preview.

Order of Operations

Display rules have a specific order of operations running top to bottom. This means that when the page is loaded these rules start with the first rule at the top and run down the list to the bottom.

Display rules don't stop running when a rule is matched. So if there's a match on the first rule and later there's a match on the third rule, the last rule will take precedence.

Notes & Troubleshooting

  • If you hide a field on a form, any value in that field won't be stored. 
  • If you are hiding a field which does not reappear under the right conditions, make sure you are using Hide/Show - not hide.
  • Similarly, if a display rule appears to be doing the opposite of what you intended, double-check that you did not use Hide/Show when you meant to use Show/Hide - or vice versa.

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