Field types

Choose the right type for text, numbers, dates, tags, people, locations, relations, and more.
4 min read · Reviewed

Choose a field type that matches the information you want people to enter, display, and use in views.

Understand field types

A field type controls the kind of value a field accepts and the controls used to edit it. For example, a Date field opens a date control, while a Checkbox field stores a yes-or-no choice.

Choose carefully when you create a field. Bidlo keeps an existing field's type locked. If the structure changes later, create a new field and move or re-enter the values you still need.

The New field menu showing the available field types.
The New field menu showing the available field types.

Choose a field type

Enter text and numbers

  • Text — Names, descriptions, reference codes, and other free-form words or characters.
  • Number — Quantities, costs, percentages, distances, and other values you may want to calculate or summarize. Number settings can control formatting, decimal places, and visual displays such as a bar or ring.

Choose from consistent options

  • Tag — One reusable label from a defined set, such as a project status.
  • Multi tag — Several reusable labels on the same record, such as work categories or capabilities.
  • Checkbox — A yes-or-no value for questions such as “Approved?” or “Site visit complete?”
  • State — A consistent state selection for records that should not use free-form text.
  • County — A consistent county value for county-based work and filtering.

Track dates, people, and places

  • Date — A calendar date, with optional display settings for the date and time.
  • People — One or more members of your Bidlo team. You can limit the field to one person or allow multiple people.
  • Location — A place or address that can support map views and location-based work.

Connect and calculate

  • Relation — Links a record to one or more records in another collection.
  • Formula — A calculated value based on other fields. Use it when the result should update from a defined expression instead of being entered manually.

Every collection also has a required title field, usually named Name. It identifies each record and is created with the collection, so it does not appear as a choice in the new-field list.

Create a field with the chosen type

  1. Open a view connected to the collection you want to update.
  2. Open the view settings.
  3. Select Columns in a table or Fields in another layout.
  4. Select New field.
  5. Choose the field type.
  6. Enter a clear name and review the settings shown for that type.

Bidlo adds the new field to the collection and the current view. Type-specific choices appear in Edit field. For example, you can adjust number formatting, date and time display, people limits, tag options, or relation behavior.

FAQs

Can I change a field's type later?

No. The field editor keeps the type locked. Create a new field with the correct type, confirm that its values are complete, and delete the old field only when it is no longer needed.

Should a status be a tag or text field?

Use Tag when each record should have one value from a consistent set, such as Planned, Active, or Complete. Use Text when the value is open-ended and does not need a controlled list.

When should I use a relation instead of a tag?

Use a relation when the selection is another Bidlo record with its own fields, such as a contractor, facility, or project. Use a tag when you only need a reusable label.