Customise the sign-up form | Civio Engage Knowledge Base [Skip to content](#main) [ ![Civio Engage Knowledge Base](/civio-light.svg) ](https://engage.knowledge.civ.io) [Product documentation](/articles) [Release notes](/releases) [Roadmap](/roadmap) [ Support portal ](https://engage.knowledge.civ.io/portal/login) Toggle navigation [Product documentation](/articles) [Release notes](/releases) [Roadmap](/roadmap) [Support portal](https://engage.knowledge.civ.io/portal/login) 1. [Home](/) › 2. [Product documentation](/articles) › 3. [Setting up Civio Engage ](/articles?category=2) › 4. Customise the sign-up form Customise the sign-up form ========================== Updated 1 day ago · 4 min read Search Search Custom user fields let you ask your users for the information your organisation actually needs, such as their connection to the area, a membership number or how they heard about you. You build each field yourself, choose its type, and decide where it appears: on the registration form, on the user's own profile, or only on the forms your team uses in the dashboard. Your answers then work like any other user detail. You can add them as columns on the People list and filter by them. Custom fields sit alongside the other sign-up options covered in [How to configure user sign-up text and profile fields](/articles/12078016018959-How-to-configure-user-sign-up-text-and-profile-fields). **Filter by any custom field.** Every custom field becomes a filter on the People list, so you can quickly find everyone who gave a particular answer. Custom fields are also fully supported by the [Civio Engage API](/articles/working-with-the-civio-engage-api). Where custom fields live ------------------------ 1. Click **Settings** in the left-hand menu. 2. Under **People**, click **User settings**. 3. In the **Jump to** panel, click **Custom fields**. ![Opening Settings from the dashboard menu, choosing User settings under People, then jumping to the Custom fields section, which lists Gender, Year of birth, Language, Education and Your connection to the area above the Add input button](https://engage.knowledge.civ.io/storage/MmHTiNcAwEPUYFBJzUCWqWKxhmk5Fya0cvqgha2S.gif) Adding a field -------------- 1. Click **Add input**, then choose the field type from the list. You can type to search it, for example **Drop** for Drop-down. 2. Type the **Question**. This is the label people see on the form, and it becomes the column and filter name in the People list. 3. For a **Drop-down**, **Radios** or **Checkboxes** field, click **+ Add option** for each answer people can choose. Tick **Allow multiple selections** on a Drop-down if people can pick more than one. 4. Tick **Answer required** if people must answer before they can continue. 5. Choose where the field appears (see below): tick **Show on the registration form**, **Show on the profile form**, both or neither. 6. Click the **Add** button at the bottom of the field (it is named after the field type, for example **Add Drop-down**). 7. Click **Save** at the top of the page. A **Settings saved** message confirms the change. ![Adding a Drop-down custom field called How you heard about us with two options, ticking Show on the registration form and Show on the profile form, then clicking Add Drop-down so the field joins the list, with the cursor resting on Save](https://engage.knowledge.civ.io/storage/ioG609P9JcdyRXfjtGIhZpqozRCDhXH430WaAOYH.gif) **Remember to click Save.** Clicking **Add** puts the field in the list, but it is not live on your site until you save the page. ### Field types available Type Good for **Text short** Short answers of up to 255 characters, such as a membership number or organisation name **Text long** Longer free-text answers **Email**, **URL** An email address or website address, checked as it is typed **Checkboxes** Several answers from a list you set **Radios** One answer from a short list, with every option visible **Drop-down** One answer (or several, with **Allow multiple selections**) from a longer list **Date only** A date, such as a date of birth or a membership start date **Number input** Numbers only, such as a postcode or a household size ### Additional options Open **Additional options** under **Advanced** to add a **Placeholder** (hint text shown inside an empty field), a **Description** (supporting text shown with the field) or **Conditional visibility** (show the field only when another answer matches). Choosing where a field appears ------------------------------ Each field has two tick boxes, and both start unticked: Setting What happens **Show on the registration form** Everyone who creates an account is asked this question on the **Create an account** form. **Show on the profile form** Users can see and update their answer in the **About you** section of **Manage profile**. Neither ticked Users never see the field. Only your team can fill it in, from the user's record in the dashboard. Use this for internal details, such as a panel membership status. Every custom field, whichever boxes are ticked, appears in a **Custom fields** card when you create or edit a user from **People**. See [Create and edit users](/articles/9176782341263-Create-and-edit-users). Using answers in the People list -------------------------------- In the left-hand menu, click **People** to open **All users**. ### Showing answers as columns Click **Columns**. Every custom field is listed below the standard columns. Tick the ones you want and click **Apply** to show their answers in the table. ![The Columns picker on the All users list, with the custom fields Gender, Year of birth, Language, Education and Your connection to the area listed below the standard columns, and Your connection to the area ticked](https://engage.knowledge.civ.io/storage/660iyJi5pLHgAQEJEj6e08c129Emf1GvDPPeJrZq.png) ### Filtering users by a custom field 1. Click **Filters**, then **+ Add filter**. 2. Choose **Question**. 3. Pick the custom field, leave the comparison as **equals**, and choose or type the answer you are looking for. 4. Click **Apply filters**. ![The Filters panel on the All users list, set to show users where Your connection to the area equals I live here, with the Apply filters button below](https://engage.knowledge.civ.io/storage/tBxxfB9sElCobQ9QIAiol6cVwNtJoG7PU8UT9cwe.png) You can add more than one filter to narrow the list further. Custom fields and the API ------------------------- Custom fields are fully supported by the Civio Engage API, so you can work with users' answers from other systems as well as from the dashboard. See [Working with the Civio Engage API](/articles/working-with-the-civio-engage-api). Changing or removing a field ---------------------------- Click a field in the Custom fields list to edit its question, options or settings, then click **Done** and **Save**. Changing an option does not update answers people have already given. **Removing a field hides it, it does not delete the answers.** Click the field, then **Remove**, then **Save**. The field disappears from every form, but answers already saved are kept until that user's record is next saved. Permissions ----------- Adding and editing custom fields is part of **User settings**, which Administrators can access. See [User roles](/articles/9176861358095-User-roles). Related articles ---------------- - [How to configure user sign-up text and profile fields](/articles/12078016018959-How-to-configure-user-sign-up-text-and-profile-fields) - [Create and edit users](/articles/9176782341263-Create-and-edit-users) - [Settings](/articles/9175641395215-Settings) - [Setting Up Your Site Basics](/articles/setting-up-your-site-basics) Was this article helpful? ------------------------- Your feedback helps us prioritise what to rewrite. Yes No [ Back to Setting up Civio Engage ](/articles?category=2) On this page ### Still need help? Raise a request in the support portal and track it to resolution. [ Submit a support request ](https://engage.knowledge.civ.io/portal/login) Submit a support request through the [support portal](/portal) or email . © 2026 [Civio](https://civ.io) [Privacy Policy](/articles/privacy-policy) [Terms of Use](/articles/terms-of-use)