Emails Section: How to Hide Blank Fields in PDF Email

See attached screenshot. If I have "blank" fields in my form, how do I not show them in the pdf email?

Hi Larry,

Thanks for reaching out to Jotform Support. I'm an AI assistant here to assist you.

Let me help you with that:

To hide blank (empty) fields in the PDF email notifications sent from your form, Jotform has a built-in option called Hide Empty Fields. This option is enabled by default in recent updates, so empty fields will not show in your email notifications unless you turn it off.

Here’s how to check or change this setting:

1. Open your form in Form Builder and go to the Settings tab.
2. Select Emails from the left panel.
3. Hover over your Notification Email and click the Edit (pencil) icon.
4. Go to the Advanced tab.
5. Toggle the Hide Empty Fields option to On to hide blank fields or Off to show them.
6. Click Save to apply the changes.

This setting also applies to autoresponder emails if you use them.

Note: The Hide Empty Fields option works with the default email template. If you customize the email template heavily, make sure to keep the original field tags intact for this feature to work properly.

Give it a try and let us know how it goes.

Did not work:

Hi Larry,

You can hide empty fields or delete fields in the PDF Editor to ensure blank fields do not show in your PDF email. Let me show you how:

To delete fields in PDF Editor:

1. In PDF Editor, click on the form field you want to delete.
2. Click on the Trash Can icon under the field to delete it.

To hide empty fields in PDF Editor:

1. In PDF Editor, click on the Gear icon in the upper right corner to open PDF Settings.
2. Check the box next to Hide Empty Fields.

This will hide fields that haven't been filled when using the form as a PDF document. Here's an example:

Give it a try and let us know if you need any further help.

As you can see in the screenshot I attached, the checkbox is checked but the blank field remains

Hi Larry,

From what you described and the screenshot you attached, it seems that even though the "Hide Empty Fields" checkbox is checked in PDF Editor, the blank fields are still showing in your PDF email.

This issue can happen if the PDF template has been customized heavily or if the fields are not properly linked between the online form and the PDF document.

Here are some points to check and try:

• Ensure you are using the default PDF template or that the field tags in the customized PDF template remain intact and correctly linked to the form fields.
• Verify that the fields you want to hide are actually connected to the form fields and not standalone fields in the PDF.
• If you have added fields manually in the PDF Editor, try deleting those fields and re-adding them from the form fields to ensure proper mapping.
• After making changes, save the PDF template and test the email again.

If these steps do not resolve the issue, please provide more details about any customizations made to the PDF template or the form so I can assist you further.

Give it a try and let us know how it goes.

All fields are correct and were added automatically by jotform after the fields were created

Hi Larry,

Thank you for clarifying that all fields are correct and were added automatically by Jotform after the fields were created.

Since the fields are properly linked and the "Hide Empty Fields" option is enabled but blank fields still appear in the PDF email, this might be an unusual issue.

Could you please confirm if you have made any customizations to the PDF template or if you are using the default template? Also, let me know if this happens with all submissions or only specific ones.

This information will help me assist you further in resolving the issue.

Looking forward to your response.

No mods except for moving fields around

Hi Larry,

Thank you for confirming that the only modification made was moving fields around in the PDF template.

Since the "Hide Empty Fields" option is enabled and fields were added automatically by Jotform, but blank fields still appear, this could be related to how the fields are positioned or grouped in the PDF layout after moving them.

Sometimes, moving fields around can affect the visibility logic or grouping in the PDF, causing empty fields to still show.

To troubleshoot this, you might want to try the following:

1. Rearrange the fields back to their original positions temporarily and test if the empty fields hide correctly.
2. Check for any overlapping or grouped fields that might force the display of blank fields.
3. Consider creating a new PDF template from scratch without moving fields and see if the issue persists.

If these steps do not resolve the issue, please provide more details or screenshots of the PDF layout so I can assist you further.

Give it a try and let us know how it goes.

All fields are correct with correct information.

Hi Larry,

From the description of your screenshot, it appears you have a form with multiple fields, some of which remain blank, and you want to ensure these blank fields do not appear in the PDF email.

You mentioned that all fields are correctly linked and contain the correct information, yet blank fields still show despite the "Hide Empty Fields" option being enabled.

This situation suggests that the issue might be related to the PDF layout or how the fields are arranged rather than the field data itself.

If possible, please provide a screenshot of the PDF layout or the email showing the blank fields so I can better understand the issue and offer more precise guidance.

Let us know if you need help capturing or sharing that.

Hi Larry,

Based on the screenshot description you provided, it looks like your form has multiple fields organized by floor levels and departments, and you want to prevent blank fields from showing in the PDF email.

The fields appear to be correctly linked and were added automatically by Jotform, but blank fields still appear despite the "Hide Empty Fields" option being checked.

This suggests the issue might be related to how the fields are arranged or grouped in the PDF layout, possibly due to moving fields around.

Could you please confirm if the blank fields appear in all submissions or only specific ones? Also, if possible, sharing a screenshot of the actual PDF email showing the blank fields would help us diagnose the issue more accurately.

Let us know if you need assistance capturing or sharing that screenshot.

Please send to live support

Hi Larry,

One of our Support Team members will take it from here to follow up shortly.

Hi Larry,

The fields will appear in the PDF Editor even if they are hidden by default when empty. These fields will only disappear when you preview the document in the PDF Editor or view the submission’s PDF attached to your email notification. See the screencasts below:

PDF Editor & Preview:

Submission's PDF:

Reach out again if you have any other questions.