A Record ID field shows the identifier SmartSuite gives every record when it is created. Think of the serial number stamped on a file: it never changes and no two are the same.

Here is the test: do you need a key that matches a row in a spreadsheet or another system to one record, every time? If yes, you want a Record ID field. For a short number people read aloud, such as INC-0042, use an Auto Number field.

Example: a Vendors table with a field called Record ID. Each week the vendor list is exported to a spreadsheet, scores are updated, and the file is imported back. The Record ID column tells the import which vendor each row belongs to, so nothing is duplicated.

The Record ID field in a vendor record, showing the 24-character id in a read-only box.

The field settings panel opens. It has two tabs: Settings and Help Text. There is no Defaults tab, because the value comes from the system. The rest of this article takes the tabs in order. Save at any point with Add Field (or Update Field on a field that already exists).

The field settings panel, Settings tab, with the Display Format preview and Include Labels with the Prefix VEND-.

The Settings tab is short. The id comes from the system, so the only choice is whether to dress it with a label. Top to bottom: Display Format and Include Labels. There is no Require switch; every record has an id.

A read-only preview of a sample id, 24 characters of letters and digits, such as 5ea7f379c269062dcc60539f. There is nothing to choose.

Off by default, so the field shows the bare id. On, a box shows Prefix (text before the id) and Suffix (text after it). The Prefix can hold up to 20 characters. Record ID on Vendors uses the prefix VEND- so an id pasted into an email or a ticket says which table it came from.

The Include Labels switch on, with the Prefix VEND- typed and the Suffix empty.

A note for the person reading the record, up to 800 characters. Help Text Appearance shows it As A Tooltip (the default, behind an info icon next to the field name) or Below The Field Name (always visible).

Nobody fills in a Record ID, so write the help text to explain what it is for. For Record ID: "The system id of this vendor. Keep it in any spreadsheet you plan to import back."

Field Permissions. Every field can carry its own permissions, which control who can see the field and who can edit it. Open the column menu and select Edit Field Permissions. Nobody edits a Record ID, so the useful setting is who can see it. See Field Permissions.

Dynamic Record Permissions. A Record ID field can also drive record-level rules: who can see or edit a record based on the value it holds. Every field type except Button can drive a rule. See Dynamic Record Permissions.

The id is read-only everywhere. In Grid View every record shows its id, cut to the column width, and a selected cell shows a small lock badge. Selecting the cell copies the id to your clipboard: the cell turns green with the word Copied and a toast reads 1 cell copied. A copied or exported value includes the Prefix and Suffix when Include Labels is on. In a record the full id sits in a read-only text box. Export the column with the fields you plan to edit; on import, map the Record ID column so each row updates its own record instead of creating a new one. See CSV/Excel Data Import.

The operators are is, is not, contains and does not contain. Paste an id from a spreadsheet into "Record ID is" to find that one vendor.

Grouping by the field is possible, but every record is its own group. Group by a field that repeats instead, such as Vendor Tier.

Sort 1 → 9 or 9 → 1 from the column menu orders records by the characters of the id, which is not a date or creation order. Sort by First Created for the order records were made.

The id works in Lookup fields and on Linked Record cards, so a contract can show its vendor's id. It can also be a condition in the filters of Count, Lookup and Rollup fields.

A formula can read the id as text, for example to build a reference that includes it. The id never changes, so a formula built on it stays valid.

A trigger passes the Record ID on as a value, and a condition can test it: equals, not equals, contains, does not contain and changes. An action cannot write to it, because the id is set by the system. See Automation Actions explained.

A Record ID field cannot be placed on a form. The id is set by the system, not typed, so there is nothing for a form to collect.

Change the value. Not possible. The id is generated when the record is created and is read-only.

Add or change the label. Open Modify Field Settings, turn on Include Labels, set the Prefix or Suffix, then Update Field. The id itself does not change.

Delete the field. Open the column menu and select Delete Field. The field stops showing the id; the record keeps it, because every record has one whether or not a field shows it. Deleted fields sit in the Recycle Bin for 30 days.

Last verified 30 Oct 2026.