Understanding Airtable records

Records are the individual rows in your Airtable table. Each record represents one item—one product, one task, one customer, one event. Records contain the actual data you're tracking.

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What is a record?

A record is a single row in your table that contains data for one item. All records in a table share the same fields (columns), but each record has its own values in those fields.

Example: In a "Tasks" table:

• Record 1: Name="Write blog post", Status="In Progress", Due Date="2024-12-31"
• Record 2: Name="Review design", Status="Not Started", Due Date="2025-01-05"
• Record 3: Name="Send newsletter", Status="Complete", Due Date="2024-12-15"

Each record is one task with its own data.

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Record structure

Primary field

Every record has a primary field (usually the first field). This field:

• Acts as the record's identifier
• Is used in linked records and lookups
• Can be text, number, or other types
• Can be a formula

Example: In a "Products" table, the primary field might be "Product Name".

Field values

Each record has values in all fields (though some may be empty):

• Text fields: Store text values
• Number fields: Store numeric values
• Date fields: Store dates
• Select fields: Store selected options
• Link fields: Store linked records

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Creating records

Method 1: Manual entry

1. Click the + button at the bottom of your table
2. Enter data in the fields
3. Press Enter or click outside the row to save

Method 2: Import from CSV

1. Click + Add or import
2. Select Import a spreadsheet
3. Upload your CSV file
4. Airtable creates records from your data

Method 3: Form submission

1. Create a form view
2. Share the form link
3. Submissions create new records automatically

Method 4: Automation

Set up automations to create records:

• When a record is created in another table
• When a form is submitted
• On a schedule
• From external triggers

Method 5: Copy/paste

1. Select and copy records from another source
2. Paste into Airtable
3. Records are created automatically

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Editing records

Edit a single field

1. Click the cell you want to edit
2. Type or select the new value
3. Press Enter or click outside to save

Edit multiple fields

1. Click the record to open the record detail panel
2. Edit multiple fields
3. Changes save automatically

Bulk edit

1. Select multiple records (Ctrl/Cmd + Click)
2. Right-click and select Edit fields
3. Make changes that apply to all selected records
4. Click Update records

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Deleting records

Delete a single record

1. Right-click the record
2. Select Delete record
3. Confirm deletion

Warning: Deleted records cannot be recovered unless you have snapshots enabled.

Delete multiple records

1. Select multiple records (Ctrl/Cmd + Click)
2. Right-click and select Delete records
3. Confirm deletion

Undo deletion

If you just deleted a record:

• Press Ctrl/Cmd + Z to undo
• Only works immediately after deletion

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Record identification

Record ID

Every record has a unique ID:

• Format: recXXXXXXXXXXXX
• Used internally by Airtable
• Visible in URLs and API responses
• Never changes, even if record is updated

Primary field value

The primary field value is the human-readable identifier:

• "Task Name" field: "Complete project proposal"
• Used in linked records and lookups
• Can be changed

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Record relationships

Linked records

Records can link to other records:

• A task record links to a project record
• An order record links to a customer record

How to link:

1. Click in a "Link to another record" field
2. Search for or select the record to link
3. Can link multiple records if field allows

Lookup fields

Lookup fields show data from linked records:

• Task record shows project name from linked project
• Order record shows customer email from linked customer

Lookups update automatically when linked records change.

Rollup fields

Rollup fields aggregate data from linked records:

• Project record shows count of linked tasks
• Customer record shows sum of linked orders

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Record organization

Views

Views organize records in different ways:

• Grid view: Spreadsheet-like rows
• Kanban view: Cards organized by status
• Calendar view: Organized by dates
• Gallery view: Visual cards

Filters

Filter records to show only what you need:

• Status = "Complete"
• Due Date is in the next week
• Assigned To = "John Doe"

Sorting

Sort records by any field:

• Sort by Due Date (ascending)
• Sort by Priority (descending)
• Sort by multiple fields

Grouping

Group records by field values:

• Group by Status
• Group by Assignee
• Group by Date

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Record limits

Records per table

• Free plan: 1,000 records per base (shared across all tables)
• Team plan: 50,000 records per base
• Business plan: 125,000 records per base
• Enterprise: Custom limits

Note: The limit applies to the entire base, not individual tables. If you have 1,000 records total across all tables, you've hit the Free plan limit.

Records per view

Views can display all records in a table (subject to base limits). Filtered views show only matching records.

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Record best practices

Keep records focused

Each record should represent one item:

• ✅ One task per record
• ✅ One customer per record
• ❌ Multiple tasks in one record

Use consistent data

Keep data consistent across records:

• Use the same format for dates
• Use the same options in select fields
• Follow naming conventions

Link, don't duplicate

Use linked records instead of copying data:

• ✅ Link tasks to projects
• ❌ Copy project name into each task

Fill required fields

Mark important fields as required:

1. Right-click field header
2. Select Customize field type
3. Check "This field is required"

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Common record patterns

Task management

Record structure:

• Name: Task description
• Status: Not Started, In Progress, Complete
• Due Date: When task is due
• Assigned To: Who's responsible
• Project: Link to project record

Contact management

Record structure:

• Name: Contact name
• Email: Contact email
• Phone: Contact phone
• Company: Link to company record
• Tags: Multiple select for categorization

Inventory tracking

Record structure:

• Product Name: Item name
• SKU: Product identifier
• Quantity: Current stock
• Price: Item price
• Category: Single select

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Record actions

Duplicate record

1. Right-click record
2. Select Duplicate record
3. New record is created with same data

Copy record URL

1. Right-click record
2. Select Copy record URL
3. Share the link with others

Print record

1. Open record detail panel
2. Click Print icon
3. Print the record

Export record

Records can be exported:

• Export view as CSV
• Export via API
• Copy/paste to spreadsheet

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Record comments

Add comments

1. Open record detail panel
2. Click Comments tab
3. Type your comment
4. @mention team members

Comment notifications

• Get notified when someone comments on your records
• Get notified when you're @mentioned
• Reply to comments in threads

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Tips

• Use forms: Create records via forms for consistent data entry
• Bulk edit: Use bulk edit for updating multiple records at once
• Link records: Create relationships instead of duplicating data
• Use filters: Filter views to focus on relevant records
• Keep it clean: Delete or archive old records regularly
• Back up data: Use snapshots to protect against accidental deletion

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Quick reference

Action	Method
Create record	Click + button or press Ctrl/Cmd + N
Edit record	Click cell or open record panel
Delete record	Right-click → Delete record
Duplicate record	Right-click → Duplicate record
Link records	Click in link field → Select records
Filter records	Click filter icon → Add conditions
Sort records	Click field header → Sort ascending/descending

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References

Official Airtable documentation: Airtable records