Standard Field Types in Salesforce are predefined data types that determine how information is stored, displayed, and validated within objects. As a Platform Administrator, understanding these field types is essential for effective data management and application building.
**Text Fields**: Store a…Standard Field Types in Salesforce are predefined data types that determine how information is stored, displayed, and validated within objects. As a Platform Administrator, understanding these field types is essential for effective data management and application building.
**Text Fields**: Store alphanumeric characters. Text fields hold up to 255 characters, while Text Area fields accommodate longer content. Text Area (Long) supports up to 131,072 characters, and Text Area (Rich) allows formatted text with images.
**Number Fields**: Store numeric values. You can specify decimal places and define the field length. Currency fields are specialized number fields that include currency formatting based on user locale.
**Date and Date/Time Fields**: Date fields store calendar dates, while Date/Time fields include both date and time components. These support various display formats based on user settings.
**Checkbox Fields**: Store boolean values (true/false). They appear as clickable checkboxes on record pages and are useful for tracking binary states.
**Picklist Fields**: Provide predefined value selections. Standard picklists allow single selections, while Multi-Select Picklists enable users to choose multiple values from the list.
**Lookup and Master-Detail Fields**: Establish relationships between objects. Lookup creates a loose association, while Master-Detail creates a tightly coupled parent-child relationship with cascading delete functionality.
**Email, Phone, and URL Fields**: Specialized text fields with built-in formatting and validation for their respective data types. Email fields validate email format, phone fields format numbers appropriately, and URL fields create clickable links.
**Formula Fields**: Calculate values based on other fields using expressions. These are read-only and update automatically when referenced fields change.
**Auto Number Fields**: Generate unique, sequential identifiers for records automatically.
Understanding these field types helps administrators design efficient data models, create meaningful reports, and build intuitive Lightning applications that meet business requirements.
Standard Field Types in Salesforce
Why Standard Field Types Are Important
Standard field types form the foundation of data management in Salesforce. Understanding these field types is crucial for any Salesforce Administrator because they determine how data is stored, validated, displayed, and reported. Choosing the correct field type ensures data integrity, improves user experience, and enables accurate reporting across your organization.
What Are Standard Field Types?
Standard field types are predefined data formats that Salesforce provides for storing different kinds of information. Each field type has specific characteristics, validation rules, and display behaviors. Here are the main standard field types:
Text Fields: • Text - Stores up to 255 alphanumeric characters • Text Area - Stores up to 255 characters with line breaks • Text Area (Long) - Stores up to 131,072 characters • Text Area (Rich) - Stores formatted text with images, up to 131,072 characters
Number Fields: • Number - Stores numeric values with optional decimal places • Currency - Stores monetary amounts with currency symbol • Percent - Stores percentage values with % symbol
Date and Time Fields: • Date - Stores calendar dates • Date/Time - Stores both date and time values • Time - Stores time values only
Selection Fields: • Checkbox - Stores true/false (Boolean) values • Picklist - Provides a dropdown list of predefined values • Picklist (Multi-Select) - Allows selection of multiple values from a list
Relationship Fields: • Lookup - Creates a relationship to another object • Master-Detail - Creates a tightly coupled parent-child relationship • Hierarchical - Special lookup only available on User object
Other Field Types: • Email - Validates and stores email addresses • Phone - Stores phone numbers with formatting • URL - Stores web addresses as clickable links • Geolocation - Stores latitude and longitude coordinates • Auto Number - Generates unique sequential numbers • Formula - Calculates values based on other fields • Roll-Up Summary - Aggregates data from child records (Master-Detail only)
How Standard Field Types Work
When you create a custom field in Object Manager, you select a field type that matches your data requirements. The field type you choose affects:
• Data Validation - Each type enforces specific formats (emails must contain @, numbers reject letters) • Storage - Different types use varying amounts of data storage • Reporting - Field types determine available report functions and groupings • Formulas - Certain functions only work with specific field types • User Interface - Each type renders differently on page layouts
Key Considerations When Selecting Field Types
• Text fields cannot be used in mathematical calculations • Auto Number fields are read-only and auto-increment • Roll-Up Summary fields require Master-Detail relationships • Formula fields are read-only and calculated in real-time • Picklist values can be restricted or unrestricted • Multi-Select Picklists store values as semicolon-separated strings
Exam Tips: Answering Questions on Standard Field Types
1. Know the character limits - Text (255), Text Area (255), Long Text Area (131,072), Rich Text Area (131,072)
2. Understand relationship implications - Roll-Up Summary fields only work with Master-Detail relationships, not Lookup relationships
3. Remember formula field restrictions - Formula fields cannot reference Long Text Area, Multi-Select Picklist, or encrypted fields
4. Recognize field type behaviors - When a question describes needing to calculate totals from child records, think Roll-Up Summary; when storing latitude/longitude, think Geolocation
5. Consider reporting needs - Questions about grouping or summarizing data may hint at specific field types
6. Watch for conversion limitations - Some field type changes cause data loss; know which conversions are safe
7. Read scenarios carefully - Match the business requirement to the most appropriate field type; avoid over-engineering solutions
8. Remember external ID capability - Only Text, Number, and Email fields can be marked as External IDs