How to add hidden fields in Google Forms?

"add this to a hidden field in Google Forms"- Support forum

This is a common question from people who need to pass a value with the response without showing it. For example, you might track where a customer came from or pass a customer ID and the person filling the form should not see it or change it. Every question in Google Forms is visible and it can be edited. Google Forms does not support hidden fields, but with Formfacade, you can change the appearance from editable to hidden for any question type. Your customers will see the form without that field and its value is still recorded with their response. Even better, you can sync the responses to Google Sheets, so you can sort them by that value.

Let's start. Create your form and follow the steps below.

How to create a link with the value?

  • On the page that opens, name your form, click Create form and click Proceed.
  • You will land on the form's "Edit" tab, with the "Prefill & email" dialog open. It asks "Do you want to prefill this form and send them as email to your contacts?". Click No.
The Prefill and email dialog asking Do you want to prefill this form and send them as email to your contacts?, with No marked
  • Click on "Share" tab
The tabs Edit, Preview, Share and Responses, with Share marked
  • Click Create prefill links under More options
The More options panel on the Share page, with Create prefill links marked
  • Prefill links page will be displayed
  • Click + Create new prefill
The Prefill links page saying No prefilled links yet, with + Create new prefill marked
  • Enter the unique name for the link
  • Enter the value for the field you want to hide
  • Click Create prefill link. The dialog's note says that email and name are replaced by the contact's details when an email is sent. On this link, they stay as you typed them.
The Create prefill link dialog with renewal-0417 under Link name, and Maria Lopez, maria@example.com and C-20417 filled in on the Policy renewal form, with Link name and Create prefill link marked

How to hide a field?

  • Click on "Edit" tab
The tabs Edit, Preview, Share and Responses, with Edit marked
  • In the Edit page, click on the field, then click on the gear icon
  • Field settings page will be displayed
  • Click Answer
  • Change the Appearance to hidden
  • Click Save
The Answer tab of a field, with Answer, Appearance set to Hidden and Save marked
When your customer opens the prefill link, the field is not on the form. Its value is recorded with the response.
If you are using it to hide PII information for HIPAA compliance, use HIPAA form that protects you from accidentally sharing sensitive information.

Summary

If you need a field that your users cannot see, Google Forms does not support hidden fields. With Formfacade, you change the appearance of the field from editable to hidden and your users will not see it. Create your form and complete the steps above. If you have any questions, write to support.

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