Field Creation and Deletion in New Lists Reference

Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://support.affinity.co/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

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Overview

Field creation and deletion in New Lists allows you to manage your CRM data structure directly from the sheet view. Create custom fields to track new data points and delete outdated fields to keep your Lists organized—all without leaving New Lists or toggling back to Classic. What it does: Create new columns (fields) to capture custom data and remove fields you no longer need, with changes propagating immediately across Affinity. Who can use: Field creation available to Standard users and above. Global field creation requires Manage Global Fields permission. Deletion permissions vary by user role and field type. Where to access: Column headers in any List view, or Customize panel

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Creating Fields

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How to Create a Field

Three entry points:

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Method 1: + New Field button

• Click + at the right edge of the column header row
• Field creation form opens with search focused

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Method 2: Customize panel

• Open Customize view panel (gear icon)
• Click + New Field

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Method 3: Column header menu

• Click any column header to open menu
• Select Insert column right or Insert column left
• Field creation form opens

Creation workflow:

1. Form opens with search bar focused
2. Search existing fields (to reuse) or create new
3. Select field type from available options
4. Enter field name (required, must be unique)
5. Choose scope: List-specific or Global
6. Choose value type: Single or Multi (if applicable)
7. Click Save
8. New column appears immediately in sheet

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Supported Field Types

Text

• Single-value only
• For free-form text entry
• Examples: Notes, Comments, Investment Thesis

Number

• Single-value only
• For numeric data (can be used in formulas)
• Examples: Deal Size, Valuation, Score

Date

• Single-value only
• For deadline, milestone, or time-based tracking
• Examples: Target Close Date, Next Review Date

Location

• Single or Multi-value
• For geographic data
• Examples: Office Locations, Markets Operating In

Company

• Single or Multi-value
• Links to company entities in Affinity
• Examples: Parent Company, Strategic Partners, Portfolio Companies

Person

• Single or Multi-value
• Links to person entities in Affinity
• Examples: Secondary Contact, Board Members, Advisors

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Field Types Coming Soon

Dropdown (Single and Multi-value)

• For predefined option lists
• Examples: Deal Stage, Industry, Region

Ranked Dropdown (Single-value)

• For ordered option lists (like Status)
• Examples: Priority, Risk Level Expected: Q2 2026

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Field Scope: List-Specific vs Global

List-Specific (default):

• Field only appears on the List where it was created
• Only visible to users with access to that List
• Use when: Data is unique to this List’s purpose
• Examples: “Pipeline Stage” on Deal Pipeline list, “Investment Committee Date” on Active Investments list

Global:

• Field appears across all Lists of the same entity type (all People lists, all Org lists)
• Visible to all users with access to those Lists
• Requires “Manage Global Fields” permission to create
• Use when: Data should be consistent across your firm
• Examples: “Investment Thesis” on all Org lists, “Board Member Status” on all Org lists

Important:

• Global scope option is grayed out for users without permission
• Choose scope carefully—cannot be changed after creation

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Field Naming Requirements

Rules:

• Field names must be unique (case-insensitive)
• Cannot create field with same name as existing field
• No character limit specified
• Required—cannot save without name

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Best practices

• Use clear, descriptive names (“Deal Source” not “Source”)
• Consider how name appears across all Lists if global
• Use consistent naming convention across team
• Avoid abbreviations unless universally understood

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Single vs Multi-Value Fields

Single-value:

• Stores one value per cell
• Examples: Primary Contact, Investment Amount, Close Date

Multi-value:

• Stores multiple values per cell
• Available for: Location, Company, Person
• Examples: Board Members (multiple people), Office Locations (multiple cities) Choosing:
• Use single when: Only one value makes sense (“CEO”, “Valuation”)
• Use multi when: Multiple values expected (“Advisors”, “Markets”)

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Deleting Fields

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How to Delete a Field

Access deletion:

1. Click column header to open action bar
2. Select Delete Field (styled in red)
3. Confirmation dialog appears
4. Review what will be deleted
5. Click Confirm to proceed

Alternative method:

1. Open Customize panel
2. Find field in list
3. Click ••• menu > Delete Field

Deletion is immediate and permanent:

• Column removed from sheet instantly
• All field values across all records deleted
• Change propagates across all Affinity surfaces
• No undo available

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What Gets Deleted

When you delete a field: ✅ All data lost:

• Every cell value in that field is permanently deleted
• Data cannot be recovered
• Applies to all records in the List (or all Lists if global)

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Non-Deletable Fields

These fields CANNOT be deleted: Affinity-unique Fields

• Date Added
• Connections
• First Email, Last Email
• First Meeting, Last Meeting, Next Meeting
• Last Contact
• Time in Current Status
• Notes
• Reminders
• Status (on Opportunity lists)
• Owners (on Opportunity lists)
• Amount (on Opportunity lists)
• Close Date (on Opportunity lists)

How to identify:

• Delete Field option does NOT appear in column header menu
• These fields are permanent and protected
• Can hover over the column header and see the tag “Unique”

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Permissions

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Who Can Create Fields

List-specific fields:

• ✅ Standard users
• ✅ List Owners
• ✅ List Admins
• ✅ Account Admins
• ❌ Basic users (cannot create) Global fields:
• ✅ Users with “Manage Global Fields” permission only (if on Enterprise tier)
• Global scope option grayed out for users without permission
• Typically limited to Account Admins (on all other tiers)

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Who Can Delete Fields

List-specific fields: Basic users:

• ❌ Cannot delete fields Standard users:
• ✅ Can delete ONLY if field is completely empty (no values across entire List)
• ❌ Cannot delete if any cell has a value

List Owners and List Admins:

• ✅ Can delete any list-specific field (even if populated)
• Delete Field option always available Global fields:
• ✅ Users with “Manage Global Fields” permission
• Deletes field from ALL Lists of that type

System fields:

• ❌ No one can delete (no Delete Field option)

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Cross-Surface Propagation

Changes are immediate and automatic: When you create or delete a field in New Lists, the change propagates instantly to: ✅ All List views:

• Sheet view (current List)
• Other Lists (if global field)
• Saved views
• Classic Lists (backward compatible)

✅ Profile pages:

• Person profiles
• Company profiles
• Opportunity profiles

✅ Other views:

• Kanban boards (field available to add)

✅ Tools and integrations:

• Customize panel
• Filter builder
• Sort builder
• Column search
• Data Importer (field mapping)
• Formula field inputs (Number fields)
• Automation Builder (input/output)
• Status trigger configuration
• Mobile apps
• Extensions
• API No refresh required - changes appear immediately for all users

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Important Behaviors

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Field Name Uniqueness

Rules:

• Field names are case-insensitive
• Cannot create “Deal Stage” if “deal stage” already exists
• Uniqueness applies to: All fields on the List (list-specific) OR all fields of that entity type (global)
• System prevents saving duplicate names

If you try to create duplicate:

• Error appears
• Must choose different name or reuse existing field

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Deletion Permanence

Critical reminders:

• Deletion is permanent
• All field values are immediately and irreversibly deleted
• No undo, no recovery
• Confirmation dialog always appears before deletion

Before deleting, verify:

• Field is not used in automations
• Field is not used in formula calculations
• Field is not required by Status Triggers
• Field is not used in saved view filters
• Team no longer needs this data

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Search Returns Existing Fields

When creating a field:

• Search bar shows existing fields matching your query
• Reuse existing fields when possible (avoids duplicates)
• Create new only if existing field doesn’t fit

Benefits of reusing:

• Maintains consistency across Lists
• Leverages existing data
• Reduces field proliferation

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Best Practices

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Creating Fields

Plan before creating:

• Identify exactly what data you need to track
• Check if similar field already exists (search first)
• Determine if data should be list-specific or global
• Choose appropriate field type (structured over free text when possible)

Name fields clearly:

• Use descriptive names that make sense to all users
• “Lead Source” not “Source”
• “Investment Committee Date” not “IC Date”
• Consider how name appears in filters, sorts, exports

Choose scope wisely:

• List-specific when: Data is unique to this List’s workflow
• Global when: Data should be consistent across your firm and all Lists
• Remember: Reach out to Support to change scope after creation

Prefer structured over text:

• Wait for Dropdown fields (coming Q2) over Text fields for bounded values (or create in classic Lists till then)
• Use Number over Text for numeric data (enables formulas, sorting)
• Use Date over Text for deadlines (enables date-based filtering)

Start single, expand to multi if needed:

• Create single-value fields initially
• Can recreate as multi-value if requirements change
• Easier to manage single-value fields initially

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Deleting Fields

Before deleting, check dependencies: Verify field is not used in:

• Formulas (other fields may reference it in calculations)
• Status Triggers (required field configurations)
• Saved view filters (team’s saved filters may break)
• Reports or exports (recurring reports may fail)

Coordinate with stakeholders:

• Ask teammates if they’re using the field
• Check with List Owners before deleting from shared Lists
• Announce deletions in team channels
• Verify global field deletion with Account Admin

Consider alternatives to deletion:

• Hide column instead (keeps data, removes from view)
• Rename field to indicate deprecation (“OLD - Deal Stage”)
• Export data before deleting (backup in case needed later)

Document before deleting:

• Note what data was in the field
• Export List if field had valuable historical data
• Create transition plan if migrating to different field

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Managing Fields Over Time

Regular field audits:

• Quarterly review of all List fields
• Identify unused or redundant fields
• Delete or hide fields cluttering views
• Standardize field names across Lists

Field governance:

• Establish naming conventions
• Define when to use global vs list-specific
• Require approval for global field creation
• Document field purposes and intended usage

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can I undo field deletion? No. Field deletion is permanent and irreversible. All data in the field is immediately deleted across all records. There is no undo or recovery option. Always confirm you want to delete before proceeding. What happens to field values when I delete a field? All values stored in that field are permanently removed from every record. For global fields, this affects all Lists of that entity type. The data cannot be recovered. Export your List before deleting if you want a backup. Why can’t I create Dropdown or Ranked Dropdown fields? Dropdown and Ranked Dropdown field creation is coming soon (expected Q2 2026). You can currently create Text, Number, Date, Location, Company, and Person fields. For now, you can create it in Classic lists experience and then add it to the view in the new Lists experience. How do I know if a field is global vs list-specific? Global fields appear across all Lists of the same entity type (all People lists, all Org lists). List-specific fields only appear on the List where they were created. Check the field’s scope in the Customize panel or note whether it appears on other Lists. Can I change a field’s scope after creation? You can reach out to Support to change this or you can delete the field and recreate it with the desired scope. Why is the Global scope option grayed out? You don’t have the “Manage Global Fields” permission. Only users with this permission (typically Account Admins) can create global fields. Contact your Account Admin if you need to create a global field. Can I create multiple fields at once? No. Fields must be created one at a time. The field creation form creates one field per submission. To add multiple fields, repeat the creation process for each field. What happens to fields when I switch between New Lists and Classic? Fields created in New Lists are immediately available in Classic Lists (backward compatible). Fields created in Classic also appear in New Lists. The field management system works across both experiences. Can I rename a field after creation? Yes. Click the column header > Edit Field (or similar option) to rename. The rename propagates across all surfaces immediately. Why can’t I delete a field even though I created it? Check:

• Are you a Standard user and the field has values? (Standard users can only delete empty fields)

What’s the difference between hiding a column and deleting a field? Hiding a column:

• Removes from current view only
• Data preserved
• Field still exists
• Can unhide anytime
• Other users still see it

Deleting a field:

• Removes from ALL views and surfaces
• All data permanently deleted
• Field completely removed
• Cannot undo
• Affects all users Use hiding for temporary decluttering. Use deletion for permanently removing fields.

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