Kaizen #90 - CRM Variables and APIs

Hello everyone!

Welcome back to another post in the Kaizen series!

This week, we will discuss what are CRM Variables and variable groups, how to create, update, and delete them through an API and the UI, and a simple example in Deluge of using a CRM variable in a function. 

Let's get started!

What are CRM Variables?

Often, we have the need to reuse certain data in CRM at various places. Instead of creating separate fields to hold such values in every module, we can create an org-level field and use the same value across the CRM system. This field is called a CRM Variable. 

These variables can be of any of the following data types:

• Decimal
• Single line
• Multi line
• Integer
• Long integer
• Percent
• Currency
• Date
• DateTime
• Email
• Phone 
• URL
• Checkbox

Where can you use CRM Variables?

You can use CRM variables in mail merge templates, email templates, functions, workflows, buttons etc,.

What are Variable Groups?

When you have multiple variables, you can group them together for easy accessibility. For example, it makes sense to group all the authentication variables such as access token, refresh token etc., under a group called "Auth parameters".

How can you create a CRM Variable?

You can create CRM Variables from the UI or through the CRM API.

1. From the UI

1. Go to Setup > Developer Space > Zoho CRM Variables > Create New Variable.
2. In the Create Zoho CRM Variable pop up, enter the following details:
   a. The name of the variable in the Variable Name field.
   b. The API name of the variable in the API name field.
   c. A brief description of the variable in the Description field.
   d. The data type of the variable from the Variable Type drop-down.
   e. The group that the variable must belong to in the Grouped Under drop-down.
3. Click Save.
   

2. Creating a variable through an API

Request URL: {api-domain}/crm/{version}/settings/variables

Request method: POST

Scope: ZohoCRM.settings.variables.ALL or ZohoCRM.settings.variables.CREATE

Input JSON keys

{     "variables": [        {             "name": "Company Address",             "api_name": "Company_Address",             "variable_group": {                 "api_name": "General",                 "id": "3652397000004992001"             },             "type": "textarea",             "value": "#24, Austin, TX",             "description": "The address of the company when the state is Texas"         }     ] }

where,

Key name and data type	Description
name string, mandatory	The name of the variable.
api_name string, mandatory	The API name you want to set for the variable.
variable_group JSON object, mandatory	The API name and the ID of the variable group you want to group your variable under. If you do not have a variable group, you can only group it under "General". Use the Get Variable Groups API to get the ID and name of the variable group.
type string, mandatory	The data type of the variable. The possible values are integer, text(for single line), percent, decimal, currency, date, datetime, email, phone, url, checkbox(for Boolean), textarea(for multi-line), and long.
value string, mandatory	The value of the variable.
description string, optional	A short description of the variable.

Sample Response

How can you update a CRM variable?

1. From the UI

1. Go to Setup > Developer Space > Zoho CRM Variables.
2. Hover over the variable you want to edit. 
3. Click the "Edit" icon on the left-corner of the variable.
4. In the Edit Zoho CRM Variable pop up, update the relevant details.
   
   
5. Click Save.

Note

You cannot edit the Variable Type and Grouped Under fields.

2. Through an API

Request URL: {api-domain}/crm/{version}/settings/variables (or)

{api-domain}/crm/{version}/settings/variables/{variable_API_name or Variable_ID}

Request method: PUT

Scope: ZohoCRM.settings.variables.ALL or ZohoCRM.settings.variables.UPDATE

Input JSON keys

Note that besides "id", all the keys are optional based on what details you want to update.

{     "variables": [        {  "id":"3652397000012482002";             "name": "Company_Address",             "api_name": "Company_Address",             "value": "#24, Austin, TX",             "description": "The address of the company when the state is Texas"         }     ] }

where,

Key name and data type	Description
id string, mandatory	The ID of the variable you want to update. You can get this ID from the Get Variables API.
name string	The name of the variable.
api_name string	The API name you want to set for the variable.
value string	The value of the variable.
description string	A short description of the variable.

Sample Response

How can you delete a CRM variable?

1. From the UI

1. Go to Setup > Developer Space > Zoho CRM Variables.
2. Hover over the variable you want to delete. 
3. Click the "Delete" icon on the left-corner of the variable.
   
   
4. Click Delete in the pop up that asks for confirmation.

2. Through an API

Request URL: {api-domain}/crm/{version}/settings/variables/{variable_id} (or) 
                       {api-domain}/crm/{version}/settings/variables?ids=id1,id2..

Request method: DELETE

Scope: ZohoCRM.settings.variables.ALL or ZohoCRM.settings.variables.DELETE

Sample Response

Use cases

Here are a few use cases where you can use CRM Variables.

• Consider that you have integrated with RazorPay and want to send payment links to deals that you have won. Here, you can store the payment link in a variable and use it in the function that sends the link to the deal through an email.
• You can improvise the above function, and have a condition that checks whether the payment link is valid or has expired. If it is invalid or expired, you can send an alternate payment link that is stored in another CRM variable.
• Consider you have scheduled a function to run everyday. Now, you want to run this function except on Saturday and Sunday of a particular month. In this case, you can hard-code the Saturday and Sunday in CRM variables of the DateTime type, and check this while running your function. You case would be "if datetime =={CRM variable}, stop execution".
• Another classic example of using CRM Variables would be in the banking sector. Consider that you have multiple modules that deal with the rate of interest. This rate will differ based on the tenure, the type of loan, the age of a person etc, and used at multiple places across the org. Here, you can set up variables for the different rates of interests and use them in various places. The best part is, when the rate of interest changes, you have to just change it at one place - CRM Variable. 
  

Let us see this example in detail.

I have a module called Loans. For home loans, the rate of interest is 10% for all, irrespective of the tenure. 

So, I have created a CRM variable called Interest, whose data type is decimal, and has the value 10.

In the Loans module, I have the following fields:

• Customer Name(single line) to represent the name of the customer who has opted for the loan.
• Principal(decimal) to represent the principal they have borrowed.
• Tenure(number) that depicts the number of years they will repay the loan in.
• EMI(decimal) to represent the monthly installment.
• Total(decimal) to represent the total amount they will repay including the interest.

I have a function that calculates the EMI and the Total. Here is the code.

// In this function, we are getting principal, tenure and record id from the record and Interest from CRM Variables.  //Calculate Total  Total = Principal + Principal * Interest / 100 * Tenure; info Total; //Calculate EMI  EMI = Total / (Tenure * 12); info EMI; //Variable with MAP type to hold the fields and values record_info = {"EMI":EMI,"Total":Total}; info record_info; info zoho.crm.getRecordById("Loans",record_id); //Updating the record zoho.crm.updateRecord("Loans",record_id,record_info);

The following image shows the function argument mapping.

I have now set up a workflow that is triggered upon record creation. This workflow has the Calculate EMI function associated to it as shown in the following image.

As you can see, in Argument Mapping, I have chosen the CRM variable Interest.

Here is a demo of how the workflow is triggered and function execution.

As you can see, based on the value in the CRM variable, the Total and EMI is calculated through the function triggered by the workflow upon record creation.

We hope you liked this post. We will see you next week with another interesting topic.

Please let us know if you have any questions in the comment section or write to us at support@zohocrm.com.

Cheers!

• Topic Participants

• Shylaja S

  

• Sticky Posts

• Kaizen #226: Using ZRC in Client Script

  Hello everyone! Welcome to another week of Kaizen. In today's post, lets see what is ZRC (Zoho Request Client) and how we can use ZRC methods in Client Script to get inputs from a Salesperson and update the Lead status with a single button click. In this

• Kaizen #222 - Client Script Support for Notes Related List

  Hello everyone! Welcome to another week of Kaizen. The final Kaizen post of the year 2025 is here! With the new Client Script support for the Notes Related List, you can validate, enrich, and manage notes across modules. In this post, we’ll explore how

• Kaizen #217 - Actions APIs : Tasks

  Welcome to another week of Kaizen! In last week's post we discussed Email Notifications APIs which act as the link between your Workflow automations and you. We have discussed how Zylker Cloud Services uses Email Notifications API in their custom dashboard.

• Kaizen #216 - Actions APIs : Email Notifications

  Welcome to another week of Kaizen! For the last three weeks, we have been discussing Zylker's workflows. We successfully updated a dormant workflow, built a new one from the ground up and more. But our work is not finished—these automated processes are

• Kaizen #152 - Client Script Support for the new Canvas Record Forms

  Hello everyone! Have you ever wanted to trigger actions on click of a canvas button, icon, or text mandatory forms in Create/Edit and Clone Pages? Have you ever wanted to control how elements behave on the new Canvas Record Forms? This can be achieved

• Recent Topics

• Resend Client Portal Invitation + View Email Delivery Status

  Hi Zoho Team, We hope you are doing well. We would like to request two important enhancements related to the Zoho Creator Client Portal invitation process. At the moment, when we add a user to the Client Portal, Zoho Creator automatically sends an invitation

• Get user last login

  1. Is there a way to programmatically get the last user login to trigger certain workflows? 2. Is there a way to programmatically access the custom fields on a user's account?

• Seeking Zoho Creator Expert (Delivery Management App / Logistics Ops) — Built & Deployed Before

  Hi everyone, We’re building a Delivery Management App (focused on delivery operations for now) using Zoho Creator. We’re looking for a Zoho Creator expert who has already developed and deployed a similar delivery/workflow system and can assist us with

• Zoho Expense Import Reports Won't Work Because Default Accounts Already Exist

  Im trying to import reports from another Zoho expense account to mine and im getting errors that won't allow the import to happen The account name that you've entered 'Ground Transportation' already exists. Enter another name for the account and try again.z

• Adding Multiple Files to a Zoho Vault Entry

  There is a old blog post talking about adding multiple file attachments to one Zoho Vault Secret: https://www.zoho.com/blog/vault/introducing-new-features-in-zoho-vault-powerful-password-sharing-wider-storing.html Is that still possible, I can see how

• FNB South Africa Bank Feed

  I should've thought this wouldn't work. As suspect, Zoho claims to be able to pull bank feeds from First National Bank (South Africa), but fails everytime. I suppose Xero (or even Sage One) is the way to go? If they (miraculously) get it to work again,

• Dropshipping Address - Does Not Show on Invoice Correctly

  When a dropshipping address is used for a customer, the correct ship-to address does not seem to show on the Invoice. It shows correctly on the Sales Order, Shipment Order, and Package, just not the Invoice. This is a problem, because the company being

• Zoho unreliable

  Some mails are delivered, others not. How can I trust Zoho any more? Some friends get my e-mail, some don't. Same with receiving e-mails: Some I get, some not. If I use Google, everything works well. But Zoho?!!! How to solve this problem? I already reported this problem before, but didn't get any reply. Thanks, Kim

• the custom domain forwards by default to the old career site / how to switch it off??

  dear friends, how to switch off the old version of the career site?? The set up custom domain forwards directly to the old site, so that I cant publish it... Any ideas? Thank you! KR, Victoria

• Preserve Ticket Issue Mapping When Migrating from Jira to Zoho Projects

  Hello Zoho Projects Team, We hope you are doing well. We are currently exploring a full migration from Jira to Zoho Projects, and we identified a critical limitation during the migration process involving Zoho Desk integration. Current Situation: We use

• Recording Shopify/Amazon fees in Zoho Books - Zoho Inventory

  We are currently flushing out the connections between Shopify/Amazon and Zoho Inventory. For other users of Zoho Books - Zoho Inventory, where and at what point do you record the merchant fees associated with theses channels? I have gotten mixed responses

• Pre-fill webforms in Recruit

  I don't want to use the career site portal (as I have my own already), but I would like to direct users to the application forms for each role, from my website job pages. Is there a way to pre-fill fields in Recruit application forms, so that I only have

• Function #8: Add additional charges to invoices

  Here goes one of the highly sought-after custom functions in Zoho Books. If you find yourself needing to apply additional charges to customers on their invoices (say credit card surcharges, or fuel charges applicable to customers from a certain region,

• Taxes Payable Adjustment

  I am from Canada and I need to make an adjustment to my Taxes Payable (HST) account.  Basically I need to take a portion of the amount within Taxes Payable and expense that portion to another account.  The adjusting entry would like like the following:

• ASAP Widget Not showing "My Tickets"ed

  Hello Team, I have created a ZOHO ASAP Widget and embedded to my portal app.clearvuiq.com , widget renders ok and I can open tickets from widget. However I want my opened tickets to be visible in the widget. How can I achieve that?

• Bug Causing Major Sync & SO Access Failures in Zoho POS

  We are experiencing critical and recurring issues in Zoho POS that all trace back to role-permission handling defects in the latest POS app version. These issues directly affect syncing, login ability, and Sales Order access for role-restricted users

• How to view CRM Sales Orders in Desk

  What's the usual way to view all CRM sales orders linked to a contact, when viewing a ticket in Desk? I don't want to have to open a new tab to see the order in CRM. And the Desk CRM sidebar doesn't seem to be configurable. Would I have to use an extension

• Kaizen #219: Actions API - Webhooks APIs - Part 1

  Hello all!! Welcome back to a fresh Kaizen week. In the previous weeks, we covered Workflow Rules APIs, Actions APIs - Email Notification APIs, Tasks Update API, and Field Update API. This week, we will continue with another Actions API - Webhooks API

• Pricing Strategies: #3 Services never Stop with just Plans

  "Hey, while you're here, could you also take a look at the vegetable patch?" Aaron hears that line almost every week. He runs a small gardening service, the kind where customers subscribe to a simple monthly plan that includes basic maintenance, mowing,

• Cropping Photos for Zoho Sites

  Hi, I'm wondering if there is a built in crop tool for zoho sites for my photos so I can crop them and see what the crop looks like on the site?

• bulk edit records and run internal logic

  hi there is few logics in manner "it this than that" logics work well when i edit entry openning it one by one (via workflow "on add/edit - on success" , for custom field "on update/on user input") but when i try bulk edit records - logic does not work.  how can i turn on logic to work as programmed - for mass editing records via bulk edit?

• Possible for first Signer of Sign Form to specify the next signer in the sequence

  We have many use cases where multiple signers need sign the same document. We'd love to be able to use sign forms, where the a signer who uses the Sign Form link can specify the name and email address for the next person in the sequence.

• BUG: Can't copy-paste data outside Sheet

  Currently I can't paste data copied from inside any of my Zoho Sheet files to any other app. Copy-paste works inside the sheet It does NOT work between two different sheets These sheets are built from automation templates Everything works fine if I create

• Zoho CRM Community Digest - November 2025 | Part 1

  Hello Everyone! Here’s what came through in the first half of November: new updates and a few helpful community discussions with real, notable solutions. Product Updates: Android App Update: Inctroducing Swipe Actions You can now swipe left or right on

• Upload own Background Image and set Camera to 16:9

  Hi, in all known online meeting tools, I can set up a background image reflecting our corporate design. This doesn't work in Cliq. Additionally, Cliq detects our cameras as 4:3, showing black bars on the right and left sides during the meeting. Where

• Truesync for Linux

  Is Truesync available on linux ?

• Hidding/excluding specific picklist options from filter

  Hi. Is it possible to hide/exclude specific picklist options from this filter? I don't want them to be shown when someone tries to filter in the leads module

• Subforms to Capture Multi-Row Data in Job Sheets

  Subforms transform your job sheets from simple checklists to powerful, data-rich forms. In field service work — whether maintenance, inspection, installation, or repair — a single job can involve multiple repeatable entries: readings, parts used, activities

• Add "Fetch Composite Item" Action for Inventory

  I want to make a Flow that uses information returned in the GET call for Composite Items, and it's not currently available in Zoho Flow. Please consider adding this functionality.

• Adress Labels for sending of the oder und barcode

  We want to print with my address labels to stick on the order of the ware can. there are these options?

• printing individual labels - Dymo LabelWriter

  I am trying to print individual labels to my Dymo LabelWriter - has anyone done this? Latest Update (December 2025): The Canvas Print View is now available! We encourage you all to try it out and share your feedback with us. Learn more here: Zoho CRM

• Zoho Creator for Agriculture

  Greetings, I am starting to work on  Zoho Creator specifically for the agricultural field, any recommendations, tips or ideas that might be helpful ? Also, if you are interested by any means in working on such project, kindly contact me. The project is

• Custom Print Layout

  I would like to create a custom print layout of a Lead or Contact. Is there a way to do that? What I mean is that if I'm viewing a specific lead or contact I'd like to be able to print or export that lead/contact and only print and/or export certain information.

• Print View

  Nothing happens when I'm in a module , ie; Contacts, and I hit the Print View Button. Even when it does come up and say "loading", nothing loads

• Get Holiday ready with Zoho Mail's Offline mode

  With the holiday season right around the corner, this is the perfect time to get ready to unplug, relax, and enjoy a well-deserved break. In addition to preparing yourself, you can also make sure your organization members are set for their time away from

• Solution to Import PST File into Office 365.

  MailsDaddy OST to Office 365 Migration Tool is an outstanding solution to recover OST files and migrate them into Office 365 without any hassle. Using this software users can multiple OST files into Office 365 with complete data security. It offers users

• Zoho CRM Kiosk issues

  Firstly this is for a system on the AU servers if that makes a difference. Issues are as follows (For Kiosk): 1. Re-ordering fields in the screen builder is broken. The fields seem to be re-ordering themselves, unless you order everything by moving the

• Email Template Edits Not Saving

  I can make an edit, click save, and see the blue bar annimation at the top, but the edits don't actually save. Important, because my email templates are now broken and clients are receiving bad emails. Tried on Chrome, Firefox and IE.

• Default Ticket View - Table?

  Guys, We mostly use the table view to queue tickets. Maybe I am missing it - but how can I set that view as 'default" for all our agents? Thanks JV

• Can I have different users see different pick list values for Potential Stage?

  We have some users focusing on new business and others focusing on existing business, and they follow different sales processes/cycles, so we would like them to see different pick list values for Stage (eventually leading up to Closed Won/Lost in both cases).   And just to keep it interesting - some of these users will of course do a combination, so would need to see one pick list for their New business potentials and a different pick list for their Existing business ones.   Salesforce does this

• Next Page