Custom Fields in HighLevel

Updated: February 6, 2026  | 
Author: Bill Stilwell

This post covers what Custom Fields are, the available field types, how they connect to forms, how they enable segmentation in Smart Lists, how they power context-aware workflow conditions, and the difference between Custom Fields and Custom Values.

Reading time: about 5 minutes.

What Are Custom Fields in HighLevel?

Custom Fields are additional data fields added to contact records beyond HighLevel’s default fields. The default contact fields cover the basics: first name, last name, email address, phone number, and physical address.

Custom Fields extend the contact record with any additional data points the specific business needs to track.

A roofing company might add custom fields for roof age, insurance claim status, and roof type. A dental practice might add fields for dental insurance provider, last appointment date, and treatment plan stage.

A real estate agent might add fields for buyer budget range, preferred neighborhood, and pre-approval status.

Create Custom Fields at Settings, then Custom Fields in the sub-account.

Custom Fields vs. Custom Values

This is the most important distinction to get right before building either system.

Custom Fields are contact-level – the data stored in a Custom Field is specific to each individual contact. Contact A’s Industry field might say “Healthcare.” Contact B’s Industry field might say “Construction.” Different contacts have different field values.

Custom Fields are used to personalize communication and segment contacts based on their individual attributes.

Custom Values are sub-account-level – the data stored is the same for all contacts in the sub-account. The business name, address, and booking link are the same regardless of which contact is receiving an email.

Custom Values are used to insert the business’s own information into templates, not contact-specific data.

An email that opens “Hi [Contact First Name], as a [Contact Industry] business owner…” uses a default contact merge tag (first name) and a Custom Field merge tag (industry). An email footer that includes the business phone number uses a Custom Value.

Both appear as merge tags but pull from completely different data sources.

Available Field Types

HighLevel provides multiple Custom Field types to match the data being collected. Text fields accept any free-text input – best for open-ended data like notes or specific identifiers.

Text Area is a multi-line text field for longer input.

Number fields store numerical values. Phone and Email fields store additional contact phone numbers or email addresses beyond the default ones.

Date and Date/Time fields store date information – contract start dates, renewal dates, last service dates.

Monetary fields store financial values. Checkbox fields are boolean – true or false, yes or no.

Single Dropdown shows a list of options where one can be selected. Multi-Select Dropdown allows selecting multiple options from a list.

Radio shows visible button options for single selection. File Upload allows attaching a file to the contact record.

Choose the field type that matches both the data being stored and how it will be used. Dropdown fields are better than text fields for values that should be standardized – “Healthcare” and “healthcare” and “health care” as text entries all represent the same thing but filter differently.

A dropdown with “Healthcare” as the single option ensures consistency.

Creating Custom Fields

Creating a Custom Field is straightforward. In Settings, then Custom Fields, click to add a new field.

Enter the field name – clear and descriptive (“Lead Source,” “Insurance Claim Status,” “Preferred Service Type”). Select the field type.

For dropdown and multi-select fields, enter the available option values. Save.

The field immediately appears on contact records as an editable field in the Custom Fields section. It is also immediately available in form mapping, Smart List filters, workflow conditions, and merge tag selectors throughout the platform.

Connecting Custom Fields to Forms

Form fields created in the Forms Builder can be mapped to Custom Fields. When a contact submits the form, the value they entered in the form field is saved to the corresponding Custom Field on their contact record automatically.

This is how lead forms capture business-specific data beyond basic contact information. A consultation request form that asks “What type of service are you looking for?” can map that dropdown selection to a “Service Interest” Custom Field.

Every contact who submits the form has their stated service interest stored in their record – available for segmentation, personalization, and routing without manual data entry.

Form field mapping is configured in the form builder when adding or editing a field – select the Custom Field to map to from a dropdown list of available Custom Fields. The mapping must be explicitly configured – adding a Custom Field to Settings does not automatically create a form mapping.

The form must be updated to include the mapped field.

Using Fields for Personalization

Custom Field values are available as merge tags in email and SMS templates. The merge tag syntax is similar to the default contact field syntax – {{contact.custom_field_name}} or accessible through the merge tag browser in the email editor or SMS action interface.

Personalization with Custom Fields goes beyond the basic “Hi [First Name]” level that every system supports. An email that says “Hi [First Name], given your work in [Industry] I thought you’d find this relevant…” uses the Industry Custom Field to personalize the message in a way that actually demonstrates understanding of the contact’s context.

Effective Custom Field personalization requires high data quality – if many contacts have empty or incorrect Custom Field values, the personalized merge tag either shows as blank or shows the wrong value. Custom Fields are only useful for personalization when they are consistently populated.

Building forms that capture the field value at the point of contact creation is the most reliable way to ensure consistent field population.

Using Fields in Smart Lists

Smart Lists filter contacts based on criteria – and Custom Field values are among the most powerful filter types. A Smart List with the filter “Industry equals Real Estate” includes every contact whose Industry Custom Field is set to “Real Estate.” As new contacts are added with that field value, they automatically appear in the Smart List.

Custom Field-based Smart Lists enable precise audience targeting for campaigns. An email campaign about a specific service type goes to a Smart List filtered by “Service Interest equals [that service type].” The campaign reaches exactly the right contacts without manual list creation – the Smart List dynamically maintains the correct audience as field values are updated.

Using Fields in Workflow Conditions

Workflow Builder’s If/Else branching conditions can evaluate Custom Field values. When a contact reaches a condition step in a workflow, the condition checks the contact’s specific field value and branches accordingly.

“If Service Interest equals Emergency Repair, route to the emergency repair sequence.

Otherwise route to the standard service sequence.”

Custom Field conditions make workflows context-aware. The same workflow can handle different contact types differently based on their stored attributes – without requiring separate parallel workflows per contact type.

This is one of the most powerful and underutilized aspects of Custom Fields in HighLevel.

Updating Fields Manually

Beyond form submissions and automated workflow updates, Custom Field values can be edited directly on a contact record. Open the contact, find the Custom Fields section in the contact detail view, and edit any field value.

This is useful for updating information gathered during a call, correcting an incorrect value, or adding data that cannot be captured through a form.

Workflow Builder also includes an Update Contact Field action – allowing workflows to set or update a Custom Field value automatically when a certain condition is met. This enables progressive data enrichment: as contacts move through the sales process or trigger certain events, their Custom Field values update to reflect their current status.

What Can You Do With It?

• Extend the contact record with any data point relevant to the business: HighLevel’s default fields do not cover everything. Custom Fields fill the gap – adding industry, service type, budget range, renewal date, or any other contact attribute the business needs to track.
• Capture business-specific lead data through forms automatically: Form field mapping populates Custom Fields from lead submissions – capturing service interest, company type, or any qualifying information at the point of lead capture without manual data entry.
• Segment contacts precisely with Smart Lists based on contact attributes: Custom Field filters in Smart Lists create precisely targeted campaign audiences – “contacts in the Healthcare industry who haven’t booked in 90 days” – from stored contact data.
• Create context-aware automations that branch based on contact attributes: Workflow conditions using Custom Fields route contacts to the appropriate sequence, pipeline, or communication based on who they actually are – not just when they entered the system.
• Personalize communication beyond first name using contact-specific attributes: Custom Field merge tags in emails and SMS enable meaningful personalization – “as a [industry] business…” or “given your interest in [service type]…” – that generic first-name personalization cannot achieve.

Key Definitions

Use Cases by Industry

Home Services – Service Type and Lead Source Tracking

A home services company creates two Custom Fields: “Service Interest” (dropdown: Roofing, HVAC, Plumbing, Electrical, Landscaping) and “Lead Source” (dropdown: Google Search, Google Ads, Facebook, Referral, Door Hanger, Other). Every intake form includes both fields.

The Service Interest field drives Smart List segmentation for targeted campaigns – roofing season promotions go to contacts with Service Interest = Roofing. The Lead Source field populates marketing attribution – the owner can see which channels generate leads by filtering contacts by Lead Source in Smart Lists.

Result: Two Custom Fields create the foundation for audience segmentation and marketing attribution without any additional tools. Campaign targeting and lead source analysis both run on the stored field data.

Real Estate – Buyer Profile Tracking

A real estate agent creates Custom Fields for buyer profile data: “Budget Range” (dropdown: Under $300K, $300K-$500K, $500K-$750K, Over $750K), “Pre-Approved” (checkbox: yes/no), “Preferred Area” (text field), and “Timeline” (dropdown: Immediately, 1-3 months, 3-6 months, 6+ months).

The Pre-Approved checkbox filters Smart Lists for buyers who are ready to move – urgent follow-up workflows apply to pre-approved buyers with an Immediately timeline. Budget Range filters listing match emails – buyers under $300K receive different listing recommendations than buyers over $750K.

Result: Each buyer’s profile is stored in Custom Fields at lead capture. Follow-up intensity, listing match emails, and workflow routing all operate from the stored profile data – automatically, without manual sorting or re-segmentation.

Legal Services – Matter Type and Referral Source

A law firm creates Custom Fields for “Matter Type” (dropdown: Personal Injury, Business Law, Estate Planning, Family Law, Criminal Defense) and “Referral Source” (dropdown: Current Client, Former Client, Attorney Referral, Online Search, Social Media).

Matter Type routes intake workflows – each practice area has a different intake process and attorney assignment. Referral Source tracks which attorney referral relationships are generating the most new matters – informing the firm’s referral relationship investment decisions.

Result: Intake routing is automatic based on Matter Type. Referral attribution is stored per contact. Both data points are available in Smart Lists for segmentation and reporting – no manual tracking system needed.

Who Is This For?

How to Create and Use Custom Fields

Step 1: Navigate to Custom Fields

Settings, then Custom Fields. Review existing fields if any exist.

Click to add a new field.

Step 2: Create the first field

Enter the field name. Select the field type.

For dropdown fields, enter the available options. Save.

Step 3: Create all needed fields

Create all Custom Fields needed for the business’s CRM requirements before building forms – adding a field after a form is deployed requires updating the form.

Step 4: Map fields to forms

In the Forms Builder, add form fields for each Custom Field to be collected from leads. Map each form field to the corresponding Custom Field in the field mapping settings.

Step 5: Test form-to-field mapping

Submit a test form. Open the resulting contact record.

Verify all Custom Fields populated correctly with the submitted values.

Step 6: Create Smart Lists using Custom Field filters

Build Smart Lists that filter contacts by Custom Field values. Use these Smart Lists as campaign audiences for targeted sends.

Step 7: Add Custom Field conditions to workflows

In key Workflow Builder sequences, add If/Else conditions based on Custom Field values for context-aware routing.

Step 8: Use Custom Field merge tags in templates

In email and SMS templates, insert Custom Field merge tags where personalization should reflect contact-specific attributes.

Step 9: Maintain field quality

Periodically audit contact records for empty or incorrect Custom Field values. Update the forms to better capture missing data.

Remove unused fields from Settings to keep the field list clean.

How Does It Connect to HighLevel?

• Contact Management: Custom Fields extend Contact Management with business-specific data. The contact record is where Custom Fields are stored and displayed – each contact has the full set of Custom Fields with individual values.
• Forms Builder: The Forms Builder maps form submission data to Custom Fields. The mapping is configured per form field – each form field can populate a specific Custom Field on the contact record.
• Smart Lists: Smart Lists support Custom Field filters. Contact attribute segments – by industry, service type, budget range – are built on Custom Field values stored per contact.
• Workflow Builder: If/Else conditions and Update Contact Field actions in Workflow Builder use Custom Fields for context-aware branching and automated field updates.
• Custom Values: Custom Values are the companion feature for sub-account-level data. Custom Fields store per-contact data; Custom Values store per-business data. Both appear as merge tags but serve different purposes.

Common Questions

What are Custom Fields in HighLevel?

Additional contact-level data fields beyond the defaults. Store business-specific attributes – industry, service type, contract date – on individual contact records for segmentation, personalization, and workflow conditions.

Where do I create Custom Fields in HighLevel?

Settings, then Custom Fields. Created fields appear on contact records and are available in forms, Smart Lists, workflows, and merge tag selectors throughout the platform.

What types of Custom Fields are available in HighLevel?

Text, text area, number, phone, email, date, date/time, monetary, checkbox, single dropdown, multi-select, radio, and file upload. Choose the type matching the data being stored and how it will be used.

What is the difference between Custom Fields and Custom Values in HighLevel?

Custom Fields = contact-level data (different per contact). Custom Values = sub-account-level data (same for all contacts – business name, address, etc.).

Both are merge tags but pull from different sources.

Can Custom Fields be used in forms in HighLevel?

Yes. Form fields map to Custom Fields in the form builder settings. Form submissions automatically populate the mapped Custom Field on the contact record.

Can Custom Fields be used in Workflow Builder conditions?

Yes. If/Else conditions can check Custom Field values for context-aware branching. “If Industry equals Healthcare, take this path; otherwise take this path.”

Can Custom Fields be used in Smart List filters in HighLevel?

Yes. Smart List filters include Custom Field conditions for dynamic contact segmentation based on stored attributes.

To Wrap It Up

Custom Fields are the data layer that makes HighLevel’s CRM actually fit the specific business using it. The default contact fields store contact information.

Custom Fields store business context – the attributes that determine how each contact should be treated, what they need, and which automations and campaigns are relevant to them.

The businesses that use Custom Fields well build segmented audiences, context-aware workflows, and personalized communication that feels relevant to the recipient. The businesses that skip Custom Fields send the same message to everyone, route every contact through the same workflow regardless of their situation, and miss the personalization opportunities that Custom Fields would have enabled.

The setup investment is small: create the relevant fields, map them to the intake forms, and build the Smart Lists and workflow conditions that use them. The return – precise segmentation, relevant automation, meaningful personalization – compounds over time as more contacts accumulate in the system with their Custom Field data populated.

1. Navigate to Settings, then Custom Fields and identify what data the business needs to track per contact
2. Create the key fields with the appropriate types – dropdown for standardized values, text for open input, date for dates
3. Open the main lead intake form and map form fields to the newly created Custom Fields
4. Submit a test form and verify the Custom Field values appear on the contact record
5. Create a Smart List using a Custom Field filter – verify it shows the right contacts
6. Add an If/Else condition based on a Custom Field value to one key workflow
7. Insert a Custom Field merge tag into one email template for personalization
8. Test the full flow: submit a form, verify the field populates, verify the workflow branches correctly, verify the email personalizes correctly

Define Custom Fields before building forms, workflows, and Smart Lists – not after. Adding a Custom Field after a form is deployed requires updating the form.

Building the field structure first means every subsequent build uses the fields from the start – clean, consistent, and integrated from day one.