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Prefill from URL (Pro)

With LocalForm Pro active, every question card in the builder gets an extra control: Prefill from URL. Turn it on and the question arrives pre-filled whenever a visitor opens the form with a matching query parameter - handy for a link shared from an email, ad, or CRM that already knows the answer (e.g. ?email=jane@example.com).

Setting it up

  1. Edit a form and open the question you want to prefill.
  2. Tick Prefill from URL at the bottom of the card.
  3. Optionally set a custom parameter name. Leave it blank to use the question's own field name (the database name, editable via the ⋯ menu).

Typing query strings by hand is easy to get wrong, so the builder can do it for you:

  1. Click the Copy prefill link icon next to the existing Copy link button in the top bar (only shown once the form has been saved and has a page).
  2. A panel lists every question that has prefill enabled. Fill in a sample value for each one you want included - dropdowns and multiple choice show a select, checkboxes show their options, rating shows a number field, date range shows two date pickers.
  3. Click Copy link. The form's URL, with a query string built from whatever you filled in, is copied to the clipboard - ready to drop into an email, ad, or CRM merge field.

Fields you leave blank in the panel are simply left out of the link; the form still asks that question normally.

How it behaves

  • Text, Email, Phone, Number, Textarea, Date: the query parameter's value is sanitized and used as-is.
  • Dropdown, Single Choice (radio): the value is only accepted if it exactly matches one of the question's configured options - anything else is ignored and the question renders empty.
  • Checkbox: accepts either a comma-separated value (?interests=music,art) or a repeated array parameter; only values that match a configured option are pre-checked.
  • Rating: only accepted if it falls within the question's configured min/max range.
  • Date Range: uses two parameters, {param}_start and {param}_end (e.g. travel_start / travel_end).
  • Prefilling only sets the question's initial value - a visitor can still change it before submitting, and every normal validation rule still applies on submit.

Notes

  • Without Pro, nothing prefills - the parameter is simply ignored and the question renders empty, same as today.
  • Static text/image blocks and sections have no value to prefill, so they don't get the toggle.
  • Because dropdown, radio, checkbox, and rating values are checked against the question's own configuration, a share link can't be used to force an answer outside the choices you defined.