Building a custom lead form
Turn on Show lead form, then use section 6 of Widget, Customize to set the heading, the submit text and up to 20 fields. Each field's identifier decides whether the answer lands on the lead record or in its custom answers.
Last checked against the running product on 30 August 2026.
The builder is section 6 of the Customize tab, and it only appears once Show lead form is on in section 5. What you build here is exactly what the widget draws.
Write the heading and the button
Form heading takes up to 120 characters and Submit button text up to 40. Leave either empty and the widget uses its own wording.
Decide whether submissions are kept
The Save submissions as leads switch sits under the heading fields. With it off the form is drawn but nothing is stored, and the row says so.
Add and order the fields
Add custom field appends a row. Each row has a label, a type, a Required switch, arrows to move it, and a bin to remove it. A form holds at most 20 fields.
The field types available in the lead form builder Type What the visitor gets Text A single-line box. Email A single line validated as an email address. Phone A single line validated as a phone number. Number A numeric box. Long text A multi-line box. Dropdown A list you define. It needs at least two options. Checkbox A single tick box. Date A date picker. Understand the identifier under each row
Every row shows a small monospaced identifier. It is derived from the label when the field is first created, and it is the key answers are stored under. Four identifiers are special:
name,email,phoneandcompanyland on the lead record's own columns. The row is badged Saved on the lead record, and those are the columns the Leads table and the CSV export show.- Any other identifier is stored as a custom answer alongside the lead, badged Saved as a custom answer.
Relabelling a field never changes its identifier
That is on purpose. Renaming Email to Work email keeps the identifier email, so every address already collected under it stays attached to the right column instead of being orphaned.
Fill in dropdown options
Choosing Dropdown reveals an options editor under the row. Type an option and press Enter or choose Add; remove one with the small cross on its chip. Two options is the minimum. Switching the field to any other type discards the options.
Clear the warnings, then save
An amber block headed This form cannot be saved yet lists anything that would be rejected. It applies the same rules the server does, so clearing it means the save will go through.
- every field needs a label
- every field needs an identifier of letters, digits, dashes or underscores
- two fields may not share an identifier
- a dropdown needs at least two options
- the form needs an email or a phone field, otherwise a submission cannot be saved as a lead at all
Whatever you build, the widget adds the consent checkbox itself and refuses to submit until it is ticked. You cannot remove it, and the server independently rejects any submission that arrives without consent.
Sizes the server enforces on a submission
At most 20 custom answers, an identifier of at most 64 characters, and an answer of at most 500 characters. A form that passes the builder always fits inside these.
If it still does not work
The section is not there
Show lead form in section 5 is off. Turn it on and section 6 opens; note that this also switches Autostart off.
Add custom field is greyed out
The form already has 20 fields, which is the maximum.
The warning about an email or phone field will not clear
The check is on the field type, not the label. A field labelled Email but typed as Text does not count. Change its type to Email or Phone.
Custom answers are not in the CSV export
The export carries the lead record's own columns only. Answers stored under a custom identifier are kept with the lead but are not columns in the file — see Exporting your leads for exactly what the file contains.
Related articles
- ConfiguringSetting up lead capture and consentLead capture is on by default and offers the contact form from the visitor's third message. Nothing is stored until the visitor ticks the consent box, and the server refuses submissions without it.
- ConfiguringCustomising the widget's appearanceWidget, Customize holds six numbered sections: bot identity, theme, chat logo, placement, nine toggles and the lead form. Changes preview live and are written when you save.
- OperatingExporting your leadsExport CSV on the Leads screen downloads every lead in your workspace as a spreadsheet file, optionally filtered to one status, with eleven columns and a UTF-8 byte order mark.