When to use selection fields
Use a selection field whenever you want to limit users to a fixed set of choices instead of letting them type whatever they like. They're great for:
- Yes/no questions — "Is the area cordoned off?", "PPE worn?"
- Categorising things — "Type of hazard", "Severity", "Trade involved"
- Confirmations — "I've read the RAMS"
- Anything where consistency matters — so you can filter and report on the answers later
Two field types cover this: Dropdown for picking one option from a list, and Checkbox for a simple ticked or unticked answer. Both live in the field palette of the Form Builder.
For looking up real records like employees, suppliers and projects, see Looking up real records on a form instead.
Dropdown
A Dropdown field shows the user a list of choices. They pick one. Use it when there are between two and roughly twenty options that don't change often.
Setting up the choices
When you drop a Dropdown field onto the canvas, the right-hand settings panel shows a section for the list of choices.
- 1
Click Add option to add a new choice.
- 2
Type the Label — the text the user will see in the dropdown.
- 3
Repeat for each choice.
- 4
Drag any option up or down to change the order — useful for putting the most common answer at the top.
The settings you can change
Like every field, a Dropdown has the standard settings:
- Label — the question the user is answering
- Helper text — a small description below the field
- Required — tick to force the user to pick something before submitting
- Default value — pre-selects an option when the form opens
- Placeholder — shown when nothing is selected, e.g. "Choose one..."
Real-world examples
Dropdowns work well for things like:
- Weather conditions on a daily inspection — Dry, Light rain, Heavy rain, Frost, Snow
- Hazard severity on a snagging sheet — Low, Medium, High, Critical
- Type of plant on a tool check — Excavator, Dumper, Telehandler, Scaffold tower
- Reason for variation on a change request — Client request, Design change, Site condition, Other
If your list grows past twenty items or changes regularly (like a list of subcontractors), use an entity picker instead — it'll search a live list rather than a hard-coded one.
Checkbox
A Checkbox field is the simplest selection of all — a single tick box that captures a yes or no answer.
The settings you can change
- Label — the text shown next to the checkbox
- Required — tick to force the user to tick the box before submitting (useful for terms acceptance)
- Default value — pre-ticks the box when the form opens
- Helper text — extra context below the field
When to use a Checkbox
Checkboxes are great for:
- Yes/no checks on a safety walk — "Edge protection in place?", "Welfare facilities clean?"
- Confirmations on a handover form — "Snag list complete?"
- Acknowledgements — "I have read the daily briefing"
A required checkbox is a quick way to capture a soft sign-off. For something more binding, where you want a recorded mark with the date and time, use a Signature field instead.
Combining selections with conditional logic
Both Dropdowns and Checkboxes work brilliantly with conditional logic — you can hide or show other fields based on what the user picks. Common patterns:
- Show an "Other reason" long text field only when the user picks "Other" from a Dropdown.
- Show a follow-up section only when an "Issue found" Checkbox is ticked.
- Make a Notes field required only when the Status Dropdown is set to "Rejected".
This lets you build forms that adapt to what the user is telling you, rather than asking everything up front.
Next steps
- Adding basic fields — for text, number and date inputs.
- Looking up real records on a form — for picking from your company's employee, supplier and project lists.
- Showing fields only when needed — for the show/hide conditions that act on dropdown and checkbox values.