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    Airtable interface layout: Record detail
    • 06 Dec 2023
    • 9 Minutes to read
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    Airtable interface layout: Record detail

    • Updated on 06 Dec 2023
    • 9 Minutes to read
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    Article Summary

    In this article, we will cover the general setup steps and configuration options for the record detail layout.

    These interfaces can help end users to:

    • Understand more detail about a specific record like a “Project” or “Campaign”

    • Have the opportunity to work with related data like “Tasks” or “Assets”

    • Interact in a collaborative surface where your team can comment, make edits, and take action with preconfigured buttons

    Introduction

    Plan availability

    All plan types

    Permissions

    Please consult this support article for a breakdown of Interface Designer permissions.

    Platform(s)

    Web/Browser, Mac app, and Windows app

    Related reading

    Getting started with Interface Designer - A general overview of the Interface Designer feature

    Showing record details in Interfaces

    Record detail pages are an important part of most workflows that are powered by interfaces in Airtable. Record details allow your users to see more information about and work with specific records (like a project or a marketing campaign) when they click on that record from another page in your interface. For example, record detail pages allow users to:

    • See more detailed information about that record by viewing more fields.

    • Take action in a workflow by editing the record’s data and clicking on buttons.

    • Explore and work with related data using linked records (e.g. viewing and adding tasks for a project record).

    • Comment on the record to ask questions and keep your collaborators up-to-date.

    There are two ways to set up a page in your Interface to allow your collaborators to open record detail pages, and they work slightly differently depending on which layout your page is using.

    Option 1: Showing a record detail page from pages using List, Gallery, Kanban, Calendar, Timeline, and Grid layouts

    1. Open the interface page using a List, Gallery, Kanban, Calendar, Timeline, or Grid layout in Edit mode.

    2. Click on the main area of the page to ensure that it is selected - you should see a blue outline around it.

    3. In the properties panel on the right side of the screen, under the “User actions” section toggle on the Click into record details option.

    4. You’ll see a “Record detail pages” menu appear. From here, either:

      1. Click the dropdown to use another record detail page that has already been created

      2. Create a new record detail page - Click the + Create new layout option and begin configuring the page.

      3. Duplicate a layout - Click the Duplicate current layout button and then modify/configure the page.

      4. Click the up arrow icon to edit an existing record detail page.

    Option 2: Showing a record detail page from pages using Record review, Record summary, Dashboard, or Blank layouts

    1. Open an interface page using a Record review, Record summary, Dashboard, or Blank layout in edit mode.

    2. Click on the Add element button.

    3. Drag a List, Gallery, Kanban, Calendar, Timeline, or Grid element onto the page canvas.

    4. Make sure the element is showing records from the table that you intend it to. Change the table if needed in the Source section of the sidebar.

    5. In the Permissions section of the sidebar, toggle on Allow users to open record details.

    You will then see a new record detail layout that your collaborators will be shown when they click on a specific record from this page. You can begin editing the record detail layout using the instructions in the rest of this article.

    Configuring record details page settings

    Follow the steps in option 1 above to open a record detail page in edit mode. There are multiple sections to consider when configuring a record detail page’s layout. You can change the page’s name in addition to:

    Data

    • Title field - The title, shown at the top of a record detail layout, shows one particular field that is intended to help collaborators identify the record in question. By default, the primary field for the record is used as the title. *Only fields that are supported as the primary field of a record are able to be used as the title field within a record detail layout.

    • Fields - See how many fields are currently visible on the page. Additionally:

      • Find a field

      • Collapse or expand field groups

      • Hover over a field to reveal the … icon. Click this icon to Delete or Edit that individual field. Note that deleting the field removes it from the record detail page not from the underlying source table.

      • Toggle record visibility by clicking on the eye icon

      • Scroll to the bottom of the list of fields to the “Hidden” section to see any fields that will be hidden from end users.

    Learn more about configuring fields in another section below.

    Appearance (Sidesheet or full-screen)

    • Title size - Choose between a large or extra large title on the record detail page.

    • Page style - Record detail pages display as a sidesheet by default, but this can be changed at any time, with no loss or change to the contents of the record detail layout. You can toggle between these options in the sidebar when viewing a record detail layout in edit mode.

      • Sidesheet - This option shows the record detail layout in a drawer that slides out from the side of the page on top of the original page, keeping the original page in view. Choose sidesheet when:

        • You expect collaborators to browse multiple records in the same workflow - A sidesheet includes buttons for moving to the next or previous record.

        • You expect collaborators to interact with the initial list of records after the record detail page has been opened (e.g. to select a different record or apply different filters).

        • You want collaborators to keep the original list of records visible for greater context.

        • You expect collaborators to only comment on the record rarely, or in specific situations.

      • Full-screen - This will open the record detail layout on a new page that takes up the entire screen. Choose full-screen when:

        • You expect collaborators to focus deeply on one record at a time and not browse multiple records at once as part of their workflow.

        • You expect collaborators to spend more time working with a single record.

        • You want to display a large number of fields for that record and need more visual space.

        • You expect collaborators to comment on records often.

    User actions

    • Comments - Give end users the opportunity to comment on records when they have opened a record detail page. For more information on commenting in Airtable, see Commenting on records and @mentioning collaborators.

    • Revision history - Show end users revision history for the particular record that they have open. Note that:

      • With revision history, users will be able to see any changes that were previously made to fields that are visible in record details, as well as any changes moving forward. These changes may include:

        • Interface edits

        • Extensions

        • Automations

        • External applications (ex: OAuth)

    • Buttons - Add one or more buttons to the record detail page that end-users can click to perform a multitude of actions. For a more in-depth understanding of buttons consult this documentation.

    Managing and reusing record detail layouts

    A record detail layout can be reused on any page in the same interface. When you enable collaborators to click into record details from a new page, if a record detail layout has already been created for the table that contains the type of records shown on that page, it will automatically be reused. You can see the different pages where a record detail layout is used in the sidebar when viewing that record detail layout in edit mode.

    You can also create different record detail layouts to use in different interface pages. Using different record detail layouts on different interface pages allows you to display different fields from a record, or the same fields in a different order, whenever a user clicks into the record.

    1. Open a page that shows records from that table in edit mode.

    2. Click on the canvas where records are shown as a visualization or grid element. This will open the specific properties panel options for that set of records.

    3. Click on the cogwheel icon in the “User actions” section next to the “Click into record details” option.

    4. You will see a dropdown list of the available record detail layouts. Create a new layout or duplicate an existing layout as needed. Click on the up arrow button to view and edit the record detail layout that is currently being used for this interface page.

    Adding, reordering, removing, and customizing fields

    The record detail page canvas is a clickable space where you can cause additional options to appear in the properties panel on the right side of the page. From the canvas, you can:

    • Add group - Hovering over a line break on the canvas will reveal the option to + Add group. Groups allow you to section out the various fields that make up the record detail page.

    • Add field - Hovering in between fields on the canvas will reveal a + button. Click this to add an existing field from the source table or click + Create field to add a new field to the form page. This will also add the new field in the underlying source table.

    • Remove a field - Clicking on an individual field will reveal a … icon. Click this icon to reveal a menu where you can Remove the field from the form page. *This does not delete the field in the source base.

    You can also reorder/move fields around on the canvas by clicking, holding, and dragging those fields around. You can drag and drop fields above or below other fields, into other groups, or next to other fields (4 maximum, but can vary depending on field type and space constraints).

    Using groups in record detail pages

    Groups in record detail pages allow you to section together one or more fields on the page for end users.

    To create a new record detail group:

    • Click into the page-building canvas. Find a line break on the page and hover over it.

    • Then, click +Add group.

    • A New Group will appear. Click on the New group text box. Feel free to rename the group at this time.

    • This will open up configuration options in the properties panel on the right.

    Configure the group properties on the right side:

    • Title - Rename the grouping of fields

    • Fields - Choose to show or hide

    • Show group title - Toggle whether to hide or show the group title

    • Show description - Toggle to show and add a description for the group. Find the “Click to add text” section to add the description.

    • Show background color - Give the form a slight gray background color to help visually separate the group from other groups or fields.

    • Field labels - Choose whether field labels (titles) will appear on the Side or on Top of the fields in the group. The “Side” option is not available when two or more fields are next to each other.

    • Buttons - Choose to add a button into the group that end users can click to perform an action.

    To delete a form group from the canvas:

    • Click on the group’s name.

    • Hit delete twice to remove the form group.

    Moving fields to a new group:

    • Click into the canvas where the group currently resides.

    • Click, hold, and drag the group to another location on the canvas.

    FAQs

    How do I delete a record detail layout?

    Record detail pages can be turned off or modified, but they can’t be deleted. To learn more about deleting interfaces or interface pages, that is covered in another article's section here.

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