# Create forms https://help.circle.so/p/email-hub/audience-crm/create-forms Category: [Email Hub](https://help.circle.so/p/email-hub) › [Audience CRM](https://help.circle.so/p/email-hub/audience-crm) --- _Last updated: October, 2026_ Forms are a great way to collect contact information from individuals interested in receiving your marketing emails and automatically add them as contacts, allowing you to effortlessly grow your audience. ## **About forms** With the new form builder, you can create embeddable forms and customize their layout, field types, styling, and post-submission experience. The builder offers a flexible, visual workspace that allows you to design forms that fit your community’s brand and collect the data you need. Here’s what you can do with forms: - **Collect richer data:**  Gather information from fields such as name, email, numbers, dropdowns, single-choice and multi-choice options, and short or long text inputs from anyone who submits the form, and they’ll automatically be subscribed to your marketing emails. - **Customize the layout and design:** Build your form with layout elements such as stacks and customize them with the right sidebar editor to adjust colors, spacing, margins, and padding. - **Control the post-submission experience:** Show a custom end screen or redirect users to a different page. - **Display format** : You can choose between two display options. You can embed the form inline within a page's content for a seamless user experience, or use a pop-up for greater visibility. - **Share or embed:**  Forms can be embedded on external websites, landing pages, and even directly in your community posts. You can also share the form with your audience as a standalone page. ## **Create a new form** To get started: 1. Click  **Marketing**  in the left sidebar, then select  **Forms**. 2. Click  **New form**  in the top-right of the page. 3. In the  **Create a new form**  dialog, provide the internal name. This name is only for your reference and will not be visible to contacts. 4. Click  **Create form**. The form editor will now appear, allowing you to customize the form’s content, style, and behaviour. ## Understanding the new form builder interface The new form builder features the same intuitive layout as the page builder, enabling you to create and manage forms with clarity and control. It includes three main panels: ### Left sidebar The left sidebar contains the elements you need to start building your form. This includes: - **Profile fields:** Profile email and profile name - **General text inputs:** Short answer, long answer and numbers - **Structured inputs:** Dropdown, single choice and multiple choice - **Layout elements:** Heading, paragraph and Stack - **Action elements:** Form button ### Preview pane Similar to page builder, the preview pane allows you to see the form come together in real-time as you build it. Drag and drop elements from the left sidebar into the preview. Select a field in the preview to open its settings in the right-sidebar editor. The menu bar at the bottom of the preview pane allows you to switch between two editors. Use these tabs to switch between designing your form and customizing the post-submission experience. - **Form:** Edit the main form and all its elements. - **Ending:** Edit what members see after submitting the form, see the **Configure the post submission behavior** section below. > ℹ️  **Note** : To save and reflect your changes to the form at any time, click Save & publish at the top-right. ### Right sidebar The right sidebar displays the specific settings for the element you’ve selected. Here you can: - Edit field labels or placeholder text. - Configure field-specific behavior such as marking required fields and adding options for choice fields or dropdowns. - Adjust design options such as colors, spacing, padding, margins, and typography. ## **Add elements to your form** Elements are the building blocks of your form. They include text blocks, input fields, and choice-based options that help you collect the necessary information. To add an element to your form, drag and drop it from the left sidebar into the preview. Here are the available elements: ### **Profile fields** When submitted, these fields will create a new user or update an existing user’s information. - **Profile email:**  The email used to create the contact. All marketing emails will be sent to this email address. - **Profile name:**  The user’s name that will be displayed on the profile. - **Custom profile fields:**  Add existing [Custom profile fields](https://help.circle.so/p/administration/custom-profile-fields) such as dropdowns, links or checkboxes to create richer forms. ### **General** These fields help you gather richer user information, whether that’s preferences, contact info, or other custom responses. - **Short answer:** A single-line text field for brief responses. Use this to collect information such as a user’s company name. - **Long answer:** A multi-line text field for longer or more detailed input. Use this field to collect information such as user bios. - **Link: ** A single-line text field to add collect URLs. - **Single choice:** This field allows members to pick one option from a list. For example, you can use this field to ask how users hear about your community (social media / friend / search engine). - **Multiple choice:** Let members select more than one option from a list. For example, what topics are you interested in (events/courses/community updates)? - **Dropdown:** Use this field to provide a condensed list of options that expands when clicked, for example, countries, industries or affiliated businesses. - **Number:** Use this field to collect numeric information such as phone numbers or team sizes. - **Email:**  A dedicated field for collecting email addresses. ### Layout Layout elements help structure your form, making it clear and easy to follow. Use them to break sections apart, add context, or guide members through their submission. - **Heading:** Use this element to add a clear and compelling heading that grabs the user’s attention. For example: “Subscribe to our exclusive newsletter.” The heading element can also be used to divide the form into clear parts. - **Paragraph:** Use paragraphs to add supporting text to give context or instructions. - **Stack:** A stack groups elements together and arranges them in a clean layout. For example, you can use a stack to group name, email and phone number into their own section with consistent spacing and a shared background style. ### Actions **Submit button** Add a button that lets members submit the form after they’ve filled in the required fields. Once added you can select the button to customize the text, for example, you can change it to Subscribe or Join the waitlist. You can only add one button per form. Applying a button disables the option in the left sidebar. ## **Customize the form’s style** The form builder offers more flexible customization through stack-level controls and overall form styling to ensure it blends well with your brand and site colors. When building your form in the main editor (edit tab), select an element to reveal its options in the right sidebar.  Here, you can customize items such as: - **Field labels and placeholder text:** Edit the label of your field, and customize the placeholder text to give users an idea of what to enter. - **Required field toggle:** Mark a field as required to ensure users input their information before being able to submit. - **Dropdown and choice options:** Add and customize pre-defined options for dropdown and choice-based fields (single or multiple choice). - **Button text:** Edit the text displayed on a button. - **Heading type:** Choose between Title (a primary heading to set the topic) or Subtitle (a secondary heading to provide context or clarification) for the heading element. - **Stack settings:** Select a stack to reveal additional options such as background colors, border styling, alignment, sizing and spacing. ## Sharing options for forms The **Share**  tab provides you with two options for sharing a published form with your audience: ### **Option 1: Share the link** ![](https://assets-v2.circle.so/gm6z8jv4kryi23jw8s7tsjmcemtu) This option gives you a simple, dedicated link you can share anywhere. Ideal for emails, messages, social posts, or within your community. To get a sharable link, select **Share the link** from the **Sharing options** in the left sidebar and click the **Copy link** button. ### **Option 2: Embed in web page** ![](https://assets-v2.circle.so/vkg63ybiw5suywzkw255dz4047q0) Select this option to get an embed code that can be placed directly in your site or community post. This is ideal for capturing information during browsing flows and maintaining consistency with your site’s design. To get an embed code, select **Embed in web page** from the **Sharing options** in the left sidebar and click the **Copy code** button. There are two display format options for embedding the form:  **inline**  and  **pop-up**. To select the preferred option, click the  **Display format**  dropdown menu and choose your preferred format. Here’s how they work: - **Inline:** The form is embedded directly within your website's content and remains fixed as part of the page’s layout, making it ideal for situations where subtle engagement is critical. **Paste this code into your website where you want the form to appear.** - **Pop-up:** The form appears as a pop-up overlaying your website, which is an ideal option for grabbing users' immediate attention. **Paste the embed code at the very end of your website's \ tag.** If you choose this option, you can configure additional options for its display behaviour: > ℹ️  **Note:** The frequency configuration only works if the user uses the same browser and hasn’t cleared cookies. If the users use a different browser, open the website in an incognito window, or do not allow third-party cookies, they will see the pop-up again as if visiting the website for the first time. Additionally, “closing” the form includes any action the user takes to dismiss it, such as clicking outside the form, clicking the ✖️ icon on the pop-up, or submitting the form. > 💡  **Tip:** You can also embed the form inside your community post using a custom HTML field in the post settings. When added, the custom HTML will appear at the end of the post body. ### Form properties You can also customize the background, text and button colors of the form for each sharing option. To do this: 1. Select either the **Link** or **Embed** option. 2. From the properties menu in the right sidebar, update the colors under **Design** and **Button**. You can either enter the desired  **HEX**  code in the fields or click the current color to open the palette and choose a color visually. ## **Configure the post submission behavior** After the user submits the form, you can decide what happens next by selecting one of two actions:  **An end screen**  or  **a redirect**. To configure this, go to the  **Ending** tab at the bottom of the preview pane. In the ending menu, you can choose from one of these options and enter or customize additional details. ### **End screen** A custom thank you page will appear in place of the form immediately after the user submits it. This is a great way to acknowledge the action, and make them feel appreciated for showing interest and submitting the form. When you choose this option, you can customize the following: - **Title** : This is where you can add a clear, concise statement that acknowledges the submission. - **Body text** : Use this field to provide additional information. You can only add plain text and paste any emoji if you’d like. No other formatting options are available for this field. ### **Redirect** A redirect allows you to send users to an external URL after submitting the form. This option is ideal if you want to direct users to a specific page rather than a thank-you page. The redirect could be your promotional landing page, marketing site, or your community. When you choose this option, a URL field will appear. Enter a valid URL to redirect users in the field.