How to Add an Email Field to Your Google Form: Complete Step-by-Step Guide

Adding an email field to your Google Form is essential for collecting contact information from respondents while maintaining control over your form's appearance and validation. This guide will show you how to create a custom email field that integrates seamlessly with CustomGForm.

Why Add a Custom Email Field?

When you use Google Forms' built-in email collection feature, it automatically adds an email field that you cannot customize or style. By creating your own email field, you gain:

• Full control over the field's appearance and styling
• Custom validation messages that match your brand
• Better integration with CustomGForm's theming system
• Consistent design across all form fields

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Disable Google Forms' Built-in Email Collection

First, you need to turn off Google Forms' automatic email collection to avoid duplicate email fields.

1. Open your Google Form
2. Click the Settings tab (gear icon)
3. Navigate to Responses
4. Find "Collect email addresses"
5. Select "Do not collect"

Disabling this setting ensures that Google Forms won't automatically add its own email field, giving you complete control over email collection.

Step 2: Create a Custom Email Field

Now you'll add your own email field with proper validation.

1. In your Google Form, click the "+" button to add a new question
2. Select "Short answer" as the question type
3. Enter your email field label (e.g., "Email Address", "Your Email", etc.)
4. Click the three dots menu (⋮) in the bottom-right corner of the question
5. Select "Response validation"

Step 3: Configure Email Validation

Set up proper email validation to ensure users enter valid email addresses.

1. In the response validation settings:

   • First dropdown: Select "Text"
   • Second dropdown: Select "Email"
   • Error message: Enter a custom validation message (e.g., "Please enter a valid email address")

2. Optionally, you can:

   • Make the field required by toggling the "Required" switch
   • Add description text to provide additional context

Step 4: Update Your CustomGForm Integration

After making changes to your Google Form, you need to refresh the form data in your CustomGForm dashboard.

1. Go to your CustomGForm dashboard
2. Navigate to your form's settings
3. Click "Refetch Google Form" or "Sync Form"
4. Wait for the synchronization to complete

Best Practices

Email Field Labeling

• Use clear, descriptive labels like "Email Address" or "Contact Email"
• Consider adding helper text if the email will be used for specific purposes
• Make the field required if email collection is essential for your workflow

Validation Messages

• Write user-friendly error messages that guide users to correct their input
• Keep messages concise but helpful
• Consider your audience's technical level when writing messages

Form Testing

After implementing these changes:

1. Test your form thoroughly to ensure email validation works correctly
2. Try submitting invalid email formats to verify error messages display properly
3. Check that valid emails are accepted without issues

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Problem: Email field appears twice

• Solution: Make sure you've disabled Google Forms' built-in email collection in Step 1

Problem: Validation not working

• Solution: Double-check that you selected "Text" → "Email" in the validation settings

Problem: Changes not reflected in CustomGForm

• Solution: Always refetch/sync your form after making changes in Google Forms

Conclusion

By following this guide, you now have a custom email field that integrates perfectly with your CustomGForm while maintaining full control over its appearance and validation. This approach ensures a consistent user experience across your entire form while collecting the email information you need.

Remember to test your form thoroughly after implementation and keep your CustomGForm dashboard synced whenever you make changes to your Google Form.