Creating Your First Form

FormLayer makes it easy to create beautiful, functional forms in minutes. Here is a step-by-step guide.

Step 1: Open the Form Builder

1. Go to FormLayer in your WordPress admin menu.
2. Click the Add New Form button on the Forms tab.
3. You will be taken to the Template Selection screen.

Step 2: Choose a Template or Start from Scratch

FormLayer offers several pre-built templates to get you started:

• Direct Contact Hub - A standard contact form with name, email, subject, and message.
• Growth Lead Capturer - Optimized for B2B lead generation.
• Service Request Desk - For technical support tickets.
• Product Insight Survey - For collecting user feedback with ratings.

Click Start from Scratch if you prefer to build a form from a blank canvas.

Step 3: Add Fields via Drag & Drop

Once inside the builder:

• The left sidebar lists all available fields, grouped by category.
• Click any field to add it to your form.
• Drag fields to reorder them within the form.
• Each field has its own settings panel where you can customize labels, placeholders, validation, and more.

Step 4: Configure Field Settings

Click on any field in the builder to open its settings. You can configure:

• Label - The field label shown to users.
• Placeholder - Hint text inside the input.
• Required - Toggle whether the field is mandatory.
• Label Placement - Top, left, right, or hidden.
• Default Value - Pre-fill the field.
• Help Text - Additional instructions below the field.

Step 5: Configure Form Settings

Click the Settings tab in the builder to configure:

• Notifications - Email settings for form submissions.
• Confirmations - The message shown after successful submission.
• Custom CSS - Add your own styles to the form.

Step 6: Publish Your Form

Click Save Form to save your work. Once saved, a shortcode will be generated (e.g., [formlayer id="1"]). Copy this shortcode and paste it into any WordPress page, post, or widget to display your form.

Form Settings Overview

Form settings allow you to control how your form behaves, what happens after submission, and how notifications are sent.

Accessing Form Settings

While editing a form in the Form Builder, click the Settings tab at the top of the builder panel. Here you will find the following sections:

Notifications

Control email notifications sent when a form is submitted:

• Enable Notifications - Toggle email notifications on/off.
• To Email - Recipient email address. Supports merge tags like {admin_email}.
• From Name - The sender name shown in the email.
• From Email - The sender email address.
• Reply-To - Optional reply-to address.
• BCC - Blind carbon copy recipient.
• Subject - Email subject line.
• Message - Email body content. Use {all_fields} to include all form data, or individual merge tags like {field_name}.

Confirmations

Configure what happens after a successful submission:

• Confirmation Message - The text shown to users after they submit the form. Default: "Thank you! Your form has been submitted successfully."

Custom CSS

Add custom CSS to style your form. This CSS is applied only to this specific form and is automatically enqueued when the form is rendered.

Available Merge Tags

The following merge tags can be used in notification fields:

Tag	Description
{all_fields}	All form field values
{admin_email}	WordPress admin email
{form_title}	The form name
{site_title}	Your site title
{site_url}	Your site URL
{field_xyz}	Value of a specific field (use the field name)

Standard Fields Guide

FormLayer Free comes with 15+ standard field types to build any form you need.

General Fields

Field	Description	Settings
Name Fields	First, Middle, and Last name inputs. You can enable/disable each sub-field individually.	Placeholder, label per sub-field, required
Email	Email address input with built-in validation.	Placeholder, default value, required
Simple Text	Single-line text input.	Placeholder, default value, required
Mask Input	Text input with a mask pattern (e.g., phone numbers). Default mask: (+1) 000-0000.	Placeholder, mask pattern
Text Area	Multi-line text input with configurable rows and columns.	Placeholder, rows, cols, required
Country List	Dropdown with all world countries, with country flag icon.	Placeholder, default value
Numeric Field	Number input with min/max validation and digit limit.	Placeholder, min, max, digit limit, required
Dropdown	Select dropdown with customizable options.	Options list, placeholder, default value
Radio Field	Radio button group for single selection.	Options list, default value
Checkbox	Checkbox group for multiple selections.	Options list, default values
Multiple Choice	Checkbox-style multiple selection field.	Options list, default values
Section Break	Visual separator to organize form sections with a heading and description.	Label, description text

Advanced Fields (Free)

Field	Description	Settings
Ratings	Star rating widget (1-5 stars). Useful for surveys and feedback forms.	Label, required
Terms & Conditions	Checkbox for accepting terms. Fully customizable label text.	Terms label text, required
GDPR Agreement	GDPR compliance checkbox with optional description text.	Label, description, required
Captcha Protection	Bot protection via hCaptcha (free) or Turnstile/reCAPTCHA (Pro).	Provider selection, theme
Submit Button	Fully customizable submit button with alignment, size, colors, and hover effects.	Label, alignment, size, background color, text color, hover colors, border radius

Managing Entries

FormLayer stores all form submissions as entries in your WordPress database. You can view, manage, and export them directly from your dashboard.

Accessing Entries

1. Go to FormLayer in your WordPress admin menu.
2. Click the Entries tab.
3. You will see a list of all form submissions, organized by form.

Viewing Entry Details

Click on any entry to view its full details, including all field values submitted by the user.

Entry Management Features

• View all submissions in a clean, professional interface.
• Unread count badges - Pro users see unread entry counts directly on the Entries tab.
• Export to CSV - Export your form submissions for use in spreadsheets or external tools.
• Source tracking - Each entry records the source URL where the form was submitted.

Spam Protection with hCaptcha

FormLayer Free includes built-in hCaptcha integration to protect your forms from spam bots.

Setting Up hCaptcha

1. Go to hCaptcha.com and sign up for a free account.
2. Create a new site and obtain your Site Key and Secret Key.
3. In WordPress, go to FormLayer → Settings.
4. Enter your hCaptcha Site Key and Secret Key in the Captcha settings section.
5. Select your preferred theme (Light or Dark).
6. Click Save Settings.

Adding Captcha to a Form

1. Open the Form Builder for the form you want to protect.
2. From the Advanced Fields category, click Captcha Protection to add it to your form.
3. The captcha will automatically use the globally configured site key and theme.
4. Position the captcha field near the submit button for best user experience.

Pro Captcha Options

FormLayer Pro additionally supports Cloudflare Turnstile and Google reCAPTCHA for even more flexibility. These can be configured from the same Settings page after activating Pro.

Using Templates

FormLayer comes with several pre-built templates to help you get started quickly.

Available Free Templates

Template	Category	Best For
Start from Scratch	All	Building a custom form from a blank canvas
Direct Contact Hub	General	Standard contact inquiries with name, email, subject, and message
Growth Lead Capturer	Marketing	B2B lead generation with company details
Service Request Desk	CRM	Technical support ticket creation
Product Insight Survey	Feedback	Customer feedback collection with star ratings

How to Use a Template

1. Click Add New Form on the Forms tab.
2. Browse the available templates in the template selector.
3. Click Use Template on your chosen template.
4. The form builder will load with all fields pre-configured from the template.
5. Customize fields, settings, and styling as needed.
6. Click Save Form when done.

Email Notifications

FormLayer sends email notifications whenever a form is submitted. You have full control over who receives emails and what content they contain.

Enabling Notifications

1. Open the form in the Form Builder.
2. Click the Settings tab.
3. Toggle Enable Notifications to ON.
4. Configure the notification fields as described below.
5. Click Save Form to apply your changes.

Notification Fields

• To Email - Where the notification is sent. Use {admin_email} for the WordPress admin email.
• From Name - Sender name for the email.
• From Email - Sender email address.
• Reply-To - Reply-to address (useful for contact forms).
• BCC - Blind carbon copy recipients.
• Subject - Email subject line.
• Message - Email body. Use {all_fields} to output all submitted data, or use individual field merge tags.

Merge Tags Reference

Merge Tag	Replaced With
{all_fields}	All form fields with their labels and values
{admin_email}	WordPress admin email address
{form_title}	The name of the form
{site_title}	Your WordPress site title
{site_url}	Your WordPress site URL
{field_name}	Value of a specific field (use the field's name attribute)

Custom Styling Controls

FormLayer gives you multiple ways to style your forms, from per-field styling options to custom CSS.

Per-Field Styling

Each field in the Form Builder has its own styling options accessible from the field settings panel:

• Label Color - Set a custom color for the field label.
• Border Radius - Adjust the input field border radius in pixels.
• Container Class - Add a custom CSS class to the field wrapper.
• Element Class - Add a custom CSS class to the input element.

Submit Button Styling

The Submit Button field has extensive styling options:

• Alignment - Left, center, or right alignment.
• Size - Small (sm), Medium (md), or Large (lg).
• Background Color - Custom button background.
• Text Color - Custom button text color.
• Hover Background - Background color on mouse hover.
• Hover Text Color - Text color on mouse hover.
• Border Radius - Button corner rounding.

Custom CSS (Per Form)

You can add custom CSS to any form from the Form Settings panel. This CSS is applied only to that specific form and is automatically loaded when the form is displayed.

Pro Styling Pro

FormLayer Pro unlocks advanced styling controls through the Custom Styling Controls interface, giving you complete control over colors, fonts, spacing, padding, and borders without writing CSS.

Advanced Fields Pro

FormLayer Pro adds 10 powerful field types to the Form Builder, available under the Premium Fields category.

Field	Type	Use Case
Address Fields	Composite	Street, city, state, zip code, country input group
Date / Time Picker	Date	Calendar date and time selection
Website / URL	URL	Website input with URL validation and optional HTTPS-only enforcement
Password	Password	Secure password input with automatic hashing
Hidden Field	Hidden	Hidden input for tracking or passing data
Image Upload	File	Image file upload with preview
File Upload	File	Generic file upload for documents
Phone Number	Tel	Phone input with validation
Camera Field	Media	Capture photos directly from device camera
Rich Text Editor	Editor	WYSIWYG text editor with formatting toolbar

Professional Templates Pro

FormLayer Pro unlocks 6 additional premium templates for advanced use cases.

Template	Category	Description
Course Enrollment	Education	Student registration with course selection and start date
IT Asset Request	IT	Hardware and software request workflow
Expense Reimbursement	Finance	Expense claims with receipt upload
Member Onboarding	CRM	User registration with password and bio
Talent Discovery Portal	HR	Job application with CV upload
Market Trends Survey	Marketing	Industry analysis with sentiment ratings

These templates are fully functional with all Pro fields and can be customized just like the free templates.

Multi-column Layouts Pro

FormLayer Pro enables multi-column form layouts, allowing you to create professional grid-based forms.

Creating Multi-column Layouts

To create a multi-column layout in the Form Builder:

1. Drag fields into the desired positions within the builder.
2. Use the Section Break field to organize your form into logical sections.
3. Pro users can use the column layout controls to arrange fields side by side.

Multi-column layouts are particularly useful for:

• Contact forms with name and email side by side.
• Registration forms with personal details in columns.
• Survey forms with compact option layouts.
• Order forms with item details and quantities.

Mailchimp Integration Pro

FormLayer Pro integrates with Mailchimp to automatically add form submissions to your Mailchimp email lists.

Generating a Mailchimp API Key

To connect FormLayer to Mailchimp, you need an API key from your Mailchimp account. Follow these steps:

Once you have these credentials, you can configure FormLayer:

Setting Up in FormLayer

1. Go to FormLayer → Integrations in your WordPress dashboard.
2. Click the Mailchimp tab.
3. Enter your Mailchimp API Key and default Audience ID.
4. Click Save Settings.

Per-Form Configuration

When editing a form, go to the Settings → Integrations section and enable Mailchimp. You can override the global audience ID and map form fields to Mailchimp merge tags.

Slack & Discord Notifications Pro

FormLayer Pro can send form submission notifications directly to your Slack channels or Discord servers. Both platforms use incoming webhooks — a simple URL that accepts messages.

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Slack Webhook Setup

To receive FormLayer notifications in Slack, you need to create an Incoming Webhook URL.

Once you have the webhook URL, configure FormLayer:

1. Go to FormLayer → Integrations → Slack.
2. Enter your Slack Webhook URL.
3. Toggle Enable and click Save Settings.

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Discord Webhook Setup

Discord webhooks are even simpler — no app creation required.

Once you have the webhook URL, configure FormLayer:

1. Go to FormLayer → Integrations → Discord.
2. Enter the Webhook URL.
3. Toggle Enable and click Save Settings.

What Gets Sent

Both Slack and Discord notifications include:

• Form submission ID
• All field labels and their submitted values
• Source URL where the form was submitted

Google Sheets Integration Pro

FormLayer Pro can automatically sync form submissions to Google Sheets for easy data management and analysis. This requires a Google Cloud Project with the Sheets API enabled and a Service Account.

Creating a Google Cloud Project

Once you have your Service Account JSON key and Spreadsheet ID:

Setting Up in FormLayer

1. Go to FormLayer → Integrations → Google Sheets.
2. Paste the entire contents of your Service Account JSON key file.
3. Enter your Spreadsheet ID and Sheet name (default: "Sheet1").
4. Click Save Settings.

Per-Form Configuration

You can configure different sheets for different forms by enabling the integration in the form settings and specifying a custom sheet name.

Notion Integration Pro

FormLayer Pro integrates with Notion to create database items from form submissions. You will need to create an Internal Integration in Notion and get an Integration Token.

Generating a Notion Integration Token

Once you have these credentials:

Setting Up in FormLayer

1. Go to FormLayer → Integrations → Notion.
2. Enter the Integration Token you copied from Notion.
3. Enter the Database ID from your Notion database URL.
4. Click Save Settings.

Per-Form Configuration

In the form settings, you can enable Notion integration per-form and map form fields to Notion database columns.

Trello Integration Pro

FormLayer Pro can create Trello cards from form submissions, perfect for lead tracking and project management. You will need a Trello API Key and a Token.

Generating Trello API Key & Token

Once you have these credentials:

Setting Up in FormLayer

1. Go to FormLayer → Integrations → Trello.
2. Enter your Trello API Key and Token.
3. Specify the default Board ID and List ID where cards should be created.
4. Click Save Settings.

Per-Form Configuration

In the form settings, you can enable Trello integration per-form and map form fields to Trello card fields (name, description, due date, etc.).

How to Upgrade to Pro

Upgrading from FormLayer Free to Pro gives you access to advanced fields, integrations, premium templates, and priority support.

Step 1: Purchase a License

Visit the FormLayer Pricing page and choose a plan that fits your needs:

• Personal - $49/year for 1 site
• Professional - $99/year for 5 sites (Most Popular)
• Business - $149/year for unlimited sites

Step 2: Download & Install Pro

After purchase, download formlayer-pro.zip from your account dashboard and install it as a WordPress plugin (Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin).

Step 3: Enter Your License Key

1. Go to FormLayer → License in your WordPress dashboard.
2. Enter your license key and click Activate.
3. Once activated, you will receive automatic updates and premium support.

Can I Upgrade Later?

Yes, you can upgrade from Personal to Business at any time from your account dashboard. You will only pay the prorated difference.

Managing Your License Key

Your FormLayer Pro license key is required for automatic updates and premium support.

Where to Find Your License Key

After purchasing FormLayer Pro, you will receive your license key via email. You can also find it by logging into your account on the FormLayer website.

How to Enter Your License Key

1. Go to FormLayer → License in your WordPress admin menu.
2. Type or paste your license key into the input field.
3. Click Activate License.
4. If the license is valid, you will see a success message and the license status will show as active.

What Happens Without a License?

• Your forms will continue to work perfectly.
• You will not receive automatic plugin updates.
• You will not receive premium support.
• You will not get access to new features released after your license expires.

License on Multiple Sites

Your license is valid for the number of sites specified in your plan (1 for Personal, 5 for Professional, unlimited for Business).

Refund Policy

We stand behind FormLayer Pro and want you to be completely satisfied with your purchase.

30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

If you are not satisfied with FormLayer Pro for any reason, you can request a full refund within 30 days of your purchase. No questions asked.

How to Request a Refund

1. Contact us at support@formlayer.net.
2. Include your order number and the email address used for the purchase.
3. Briefly explain the reason for your refund request (optional but appreciated).
4. We will process your refund within 5-7 business days.

What Happens After a Refund?

• Your Pro license will be deactivated.
• Your forms will continue to work, but Pro features will be disabled.
• You will stop receiving automatic updates and premium support.