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How to Filter Dynamic Dropdowns in Formidable Forms to Show Only Relevant Options

41 threads Sep 9, 2025

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Many Formidable Forms users want to create a seamless user experience by connecting dropdown fields. A common scenario involves having one dropdown for a category (like a Country) and a second, dependent dropdown for a sub-category (like a City). The goal is for the second dropdown to automatically filter its options based on the selection made in the first.

Based on community discussions, a frequent issue arises when a 'City' dropdown, dynamically populated from form entries, shows all available cities instead of only those linked to the selected 'Country'. This happens because, by default, dynamic field population does not automatically apply this type of cross-filtering. The form needs additional configuration to understand the relationship between the two fields.

Potential Solutions and Workarounds

While the native ability to filter options within one dynamic dropdown based on another is a feature often associated with the Pro version of Formidable Forms, there are several approaches you can consider.

1. Investigate Built-in Pro Features

The 'Formidable Forms – Contact Form Plugin, Survey, Quiz, Payment, Calculator Form & Custom Form Builder' team suggests that advanced filtering and conditional logic for dynamic fields are capabilities found in their premium offerings. If you have access to the Pro version, it is recommended to review their official documentation on 'Dynamic Fields' and 'Conditional Logic' or contact their official support for guidance on setting up this specific filtering.

2. Use a Lookup Field (Pro Feature)

Another advanced feature mentioned in community threads is the 'Lookup' field. This field type can be configured to pull data from another form and can often be set to filter its results based on the value of another field in the current form. Enabling the 'autocomplete' option on a Lookup field can also significantly improve usability for long lists.

3. Ensure Unique Parent Values

A related problem that can prevent effective filtering is duplicate entries in the source data. As seen in one thread, if the 'Country' dropdown itself is populated from entries and begins showing duplicates, any filtering will be unreliable. Before implementing complex solutions, ensure the data in your source form (e.g., the form containing the countries) is clean and unique. You may need to manage this list separately to maintain data integrity.

4. Custom Development Approach

For developers comfortable with code, a custom JavaScript solution is a possibility. This would involve:

  1. Using JavaScript to detect when the first dropdown (Country) changes.
  2. Making an AJAX call to your server to fetch a filtered list of options for the second dropdown (City) based on the selected country.
  3. Dynamically clearing and repopulating the second dropdown with the new data.

This method requires a strong understanding of WordPress AJAX, security (nonces), and the Formidable Forms API to query entries correctly. This is the most flexible but also the most technically complex solution.

Conclusion

Creating a filtered, dynamic dropdown experience in Formidable Forms typically requires features available in the Pro version, such as advanced Lookup fields or conditional logic. Your first step should be to consult the official 'Formidable Forms' knowledge base for your specific version. If you are using the Lite plugin and cannot upgrade, a custom-coded AJAX solution is your primary alternative, though it requires development expertise. Always remember to keep your source data clean and free of duplicates to ensure any filtering works as intended.

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