Skip to content

Single Choice field

Use Single Choice when the respondent must select exactly one answer.

Example: preferred contact method

  1. Open Fields > General and select Single Choice.
  2. Select the field and open Edit.
  3. Set the question label to What is your preferred contact method?.
  4. Set Name to preferred_contact_method.
  5. Edit the choices so they are Email, Phone call, and Text message.
  6. Use Add Other only if a free-text response is genuinely useful.
  7. In the field-specific choice settings, select Single Column because these labels are longer than a few words.
  8. Keep the display type as Text; use Button only for a small set of very short answers.
  9. Turn on Required Field and set Custom error text to Choose a preferred contact method.
  10. Preview the form. Confirm that exactly one option can be selected and an empty submission is rejected.

Settings

ControlWhat it changes
Label / NameThe respondent question and its internal reference.
ChoicesOne allowed answer per choice.
OtherAdds an editable response not listed among the fixed choices.
Single, Two, Three, Four ColumnsControls the arrangement of choices.
Text / ButtonDisplays normal choice controls or button-style choices.
Required FieldRequires one choice before submission.
Unique ValueRestricts a choice from being reused across submissions; this is rarely appropriate.
Custom error textExplains what to select when validation fails.

Importing standard choices

The choices editor includes a folder/open Import icon. It opens the v2 Import choices picker with reusable lists such as countries, continents, months, weekdays, currencies, satisfaction levels, probability levels, and US states. Select a list to preview it, then choose Save to replace the current choices or Cancel to leave them unchanged. Importing turns off Other and can adjust the column layout to fit the field width.

Expected result

The respondent can select Email, Phone call, or Text message—never more than one. The field is submitted as the chosen value and can be used in a condition or workflow through preferred_contact_method. Single Choice v2 settings drawer.

Build better forms with AbcSubmit.