Introducing new options for more flexible validation rules in CRM

Introducing new options for more flexible validation rules in CRM

Notes
Editions:  Professional and above
DCs: All
Release plan: We've started rolling out this enhancement to customers. It is being released in a phased manner and will soon be available to all customers in all DCs.

[Update | 26 Sep 2024] This enhancement has been released to all users in all DCs.

Help doc: Working with validation rules

Hello everyone,

You can configure validation rules to alert users of mistakes and prevent incorrect data from being submitted. They are useful in situations like the following:
  • Preventing a form from being saved if the social security number doesn't contain nine characters.
  • Validating an IBAN number against the specified format.

We've added new configuration options to validation rules for increased flexibility. With these options, you can:
  • Quickly validate individual fields
  • Allow the record to be saved with an alert
  • Decide where the error messages will be displayed.
Let's look at them one by one.

Quickly validate individual fields


Fields were previously validated only upon clicking the save button. To validate fields as you filled out a form, you had to:
  • Ensure that the mandatory fields were filled
  • Click the save button to validate a field.
Each click of the save button triggers the execution of all validation rules, displaying error messages throughout the form.

Now, we've added a new option: "Field verify and save". Users may need to quickly validate an important field before they proceed to other fields. In such cases, they can pick Field verify and save for validating those important fields.



Validation will take place when you click the "Verify" button next to the field and when saving the record. This speeds up field verification by allowing you to click a button right next to the filled field and executing only that field's validation rule.

This is available for both validation rules based on criteria and those that use functions.

Notes
[Updated on 23 Jan 2025] The field verify and save option is not available in:

Allow the record to be saved with an alert

Let's say that you have a company policy that prohibits discounts exceeding 15%, and that your sales reps are encouraged to avoid offering discounts over 10%.

The challenge lies in not allowing values above 15% at all, while also permitting values above 10% but reminding sales reps that discounts above 10% are not ideal.

You can manage situations like this by setting the validation preference as:
  • Stop with error (prevents the saving of the record)
  • Allow by alert (allows the saving of the record after getting confirmation from the user)


When you choose to stop with an error, the record will not be saved with the entered value. This feature is beneficial for completely blocking the input of inaccurate data. Before this enhancement, this was the default behavior of all validation rules.



With this enhancement, we've added the allow by alert option to remind users to verify the data before saving it. This enables them to save a record after being reminded of the policy and confirming that they understand it, which is useful when the entered value isn't optimal and you want to ensure the user has not made an error.



You can set this preference independently for each condition in your validation rule.
Notes
This option is available for validation rules using criteria where the validation happens on Save only.

Decide where the error messages will be displayed

Additionally, you can select where error messages will appear for a specific condition in a validation rule.



If a field's value is not related to another field, it's best to display the error near the field itself. This enables users to quickly identify and correct any mistakes. Therefore, you should select the on primary field option for these scenarios. Previously, all error messages were displayed in this manner.



In complex and data-intensive forms, validation errors may occur due to inter-dependencies between the values entered in different fields. In these cases, consolidating these validation errors in one place can help users resolve these issues more efficiently. With this enhancement, you can choose the top of page option in such scenarios.



You can set the error location separately for each condition in your validation rule.
Notes
This option is available for validation rules using criteria where the validation happens on Save only. It will be available in all conditions where the validation preference is Stop with error.

In addition to the above changes, you can now create validation rules for lookup fields as well.

Do share your feedback in the comments section below!

    Access your files securely from anywhere







                            Zoho Developer Community




                                                  • Desk Community Learning Series


                                                  • Digest


                                                  • Functions


                                                  • Meetups


                                                  • Kbase


                                                  • Resources


                                                  • Glossary


                                                  • Desk Marketplace


                                                  • MVP Corner


                                                  • Word of the Day


                                                  • Ask the Experts





                                                            Manage your brands on social media



                                                                  Zoho TeamInbox Resources



                                                                      Zoho CRM Plus Resources

                                                                        Zoho Books Resources


                                                                          Zoho Subscriptions Resources

                                                                            Zoho Projects Resources


                                                                              Zoho Sprints Resources


                                                                                Qntrl Resources


                                                                                  Zoho Creator Resources



                                                                                      Zoho CRM Resources

                                                                                      • CRM Community Learning Series

                                                                                        CRM Community Learning Series


                                                                                      • Kaizen

                                                                                        Kaizen

                                                                                      • Functions

                                                                                        Functions

                                                                                      • Meetups

                                                                                        Meetups

                                                                                      • Kbase

                                                                                        Kbase

                                                                                      • Resources

                                                                                        Resources

                                                                                      • Digest

                                                                                        Digest

                                                                                      • CRM Marketplace

                                                                                        CRM Marketplace

                                                                                      • MVP Corner

                                                                                        MVP Corner







                                                                                          Design. Discuss. Deliver.

                                                                                          Create visually engaging stories with Zoho Show.

                                                                                          Get Started Now


                                                                                            Zoho Show Resources

                                                                                              Zoho Writer

                                                                                              Get Started. Write Away!

                                                                                              Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                                                                                                Zoho CRM コンテンツ



                                                                                                  Nederlandse Hulpbronnen


                                                                                                      ご検討中の方




                                                                                                              • Recent Topics

                                                                                                              • Creating Custom PDF Template from Form

                                                                                                                I am trying to create a custom PDF from form submissions. I have the standard subscription and it indicates that PDF forms are included. I cannot find anywhere to create PDF forms. I try to follow the instructions from here: https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/kb/forms/form-settings/pdf-settings/pdf-editor/articles/creating-your-own-pdf-template#Creating_your_template_from_the_scratch
                                                                                                              • Empowered Custom Views: Cross-Module Criteria Now Supported in Zoho CRM

                                                                                                                Hello everyone, We’re excited to introduce cross-module criteria support in custom views! Custom views provide personalized perspectives on your data and that you can save for future use. You can share these views with all users or specific individuals
                                                                                                              • Important Update: Facebook Metrics Deprecation & Impact on Zoho Analytics

                                                                                                                Dear Zoho Analytics users, Facebook has deprecated a set of metrics from the Facebook Pages Insights API, effective November 15, 2025. As a result, these changes will affect any reports and dashboards in Zoho Analytics that rely on Facebook Pages data.
                                                                                                              • Quick Copy Column Name

                                                                                                                Please add the ability to quickly copy the name of a column in a Table or Query View. When you right-click the column there should be an option to copy the name, or if you left-click the column and use the Ctrl+C keyboard shortcut it should copy the
                                                                                                              • Conditional Field Visibility in Bigin CRM

                                                                                                                I would like to request support for conditional field visibility within Bigin CRM. This feature should allow administrators to configure show/hide rules for fields based on predefined criteria (e.g., field values, picklist selections, stage changes,
                                                                                                              • Tag Adding Option in Kanban Card Customization Bigin CRM Mobile App

                                                                                                                I would like to request an option to add and display tags on Kanban cards in the Bigin CRM mobile app. This feature would make it easier to categorize deals and quickly identify priorities while working on the go.
                                                                                                              • WhatsApp Voice Message Sending Option in Bigin CRM

                                                                                                                I would like to request a feature that allows users to send WhatsApp voice messages directly from Bigin CRM. This would help improve communication efficiency and make it easier for teams to respond quickly to customer inquiries.
                                                                                                              • Introducing Zoho MCP for Bigin

                                                                                                                Hello Biginners! We're excited to introduce Zoho MCP for Bigin, a completely new way of interacting with Bigin data using AI. With Zoho MCP, you can securely connect your Bigin account with popular AI agents like Claude, Cursor, Windsurf, and VS Code,
                                                                                                              • Introducing the Zoho Projects Learning Space

                                                                                                                Every product has its learning curve, and sometimes having a guided path makes the learning experience smoother. With that goal, we introduce a dedicated learning space for Zoho Projects, a platform where you can explore lessons, learn at your own pace,
                                                                                                              • Ask the Experts 26: Brighten every customer interaction with Zoho Desk all year long

                                                                                                                Hello everyone, Greetings and welcome to Ask the Experts 26. As we wrap up 2025, we are excited to invite you to the 26th episode of our Ask the Expert series. 🎄The Merry Metrics Edition = Best of Zoho Desk [Best Practices + Holiday Automation + Year-End
                                                                                                              • MCP > Creator connection failing with Claude

                                                                                                                I'm trying to get claude to access any of my Zoho Creator apps and it keeps failing. I have enabled all tools for creator and ensured in claude settings that everything is authorised. Here is what claude says : Unfortunately, the error messages I'm receiving
                                                                                                              • Is it possible to sync data every 5–10 minutes in Zoho Analytics (CRM or Excel imports)?

                                                                                                                Hello Team, I want to know if Zoho Analytics supports near real-time syncing of data from different sources. My requirements: I am importing data from Zoho CRM → Zoho Analytics I also have some datasets maintained in Excel/CSV I want both data sources
                                                                                                              • Feature Request: Dynamic Dimension Control for zc_LoadIn Popups

                                                                                                                As detailed in this community discussion, Zoho Creator's zc_LoadIn parameter is a vital tool for opening components (forms, reports, or pages) in modal dialogs via HTML snippets, Notes, or Rich Text Fields. While powerful, this feature suffers from a
                                                                                                              • Subforms in stateless forms

                                                                                                                I think the title says it all. We need to be able to add subforms to stateless forms. Currently the only workaround is to create a Form and delete each record upon submission of the form. I need to build an interface to update our inventory. Basically
                                                                                                              • Text wrap column headers in reports?

                                                                                                                Is it possible to auto wrap column headers so that a longer multi-word header displays as two lines when the column is narrower than the width of the header title?
                                                                                                              • Asap Widget 2.0

                                                                                                                Where's the documentation for the new ASAP widget? https://www.zoho.com/desk/developers/asap/#introduction this one is outdated How can we dynamically navigate between different views? How can we prefill ticket forms using ASAP 2.0?
                                                                                                              • Converting Sales Order to Purchase Order

                                                                                                                Hi All, Firstly, this code works to convert a sales order(SO) to a purchase order (PO) via a button, however I am running into an issue when I convert the SO where the values from the line items are not pulled across from the SO to the PO. The ones in
                                                                                                              • What’s New in Zoho Inventory — Latest Features, Integrations & Updates | December 2025

                                                                                                                Zoho Inventory has evolved significantly over the past months, bringing you smarter, faster, and more connected tools to streamline your operations. Whether you’re managing multichannel sales, complex fulfillment workflows, or fast-moving stock, our newest
                                                                                                              • Marketer’s Space - Multi-Channel Campaigns for the Biggest Shopping Week with Zoho Marketing Automation

                                                                                                                Hello marketers, Welcome back to another post in Marketers Space! The biggest shopping week of the year is almost here, and it’s your moment to shine without the stress. With Black Friday and Cyber Monday just around the corner, being present across email,
                                                                                                              • Auto-Invite Users to Portals in Zoho CRM based on Conditions

                                                                                                                Hello Everyone, You can now automate portal invitations in Zoho CRM with the new Auto-Invite users feature in Portal management. No more manually enabling portal access one by one. With this enhancement, you can automatically send invites for users to
                                                                                                              • Pricing Strategies: #5 Stay local, Price & Sell Global

                                                                                                                Arun had always dreamed of taking his handmade craft business beyond his hometown. For years, he sold locally. Most of his customers are familiar faces, in our usual currency and with the exact expectations. But one day, a traveller visited his workshop
                                                                                                              • Best practice to structure reporting to include events covering multiple months / quarters.

                                                                                                                Hi, I'm new to Zoho, have some experience of more "enterprise" tools, looking for some input from the community. I'm looking to create a report that includes events that cover a long period, each event has a start / end date and I'm struggling undertanding
                                                                                                              • Incorrect Email Notifications for Product Reviews

                                                                                                                Dear Zoho Commerce Support Team, I am writing to report a technical issue that occurs frequently on our platform. Problem Description: We regularly receive email notifications informing us of new product reviews awaiting approval. However, when we access
                                                                                                              • Zoho CRM for Everyone's NextGen UI Gets an Upgrade

                                                                                                                Hello Everyone We've made improvements to Zoho CRM for Everyone's Nextgen UI. These changes are the result of valuable feedback from you where we’ve focused on improving usability, providing wider screen space, and making navigation smoother so everything
                                                                                                              • FSM - Associating and selecting Contacts based on Service Addresses

                                                                                                                Hi FSM team, I've come across an FSM limitation I wanted to share for improvement. I'm currently configuring FSM for a client who provides heating system install and maintenance services. The are often sub contracted by building management companies to
                                                                                                              • What is the easiest way to move Hotmail emails to an IMAP server?

                                                                                                                The easiest way to move Hotmail (Outlook.com) emails to an IMAP server is to add your Hotmail account directly to any email client that supports IMAP, then copy the messages across. This avoids paid tools and keeps the process simple. Fastest free method:
                                                                                                              • No feedback from Zoho Books regarding Yodlee feeds for Investec

                                                                                                                I reported on 6 Feb 2025 that the Bank Feeds for Investec bank via Yodlee are not working. To date there has been no resolution. You are charging us for a suite of products where the functionality does not work. Please advise how you will refund me for
                                                                                                              • Turn off Knowlege Base Follow options and Follower lists

                                                                                                                Is there a way to hide or turn off the option in the Knowledge Base for users to follow specific departments/categories/sections/articles? If not, is there a way to turn off the public list of followers for each of those things? Otherwise, customer names
                                                                                                              • Custom validation in CRM schema

                                                                                                                Validation rules in CRM layouts work nicely, good docs by @Kiran Karthik P https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/kb/crm/customize-crm-account/validation-rules/articles/create-validation-rules I'd prefer validating data input 'closer to the schema'
                                                                                                              • Meet Canvas' Grid component: Your easiest way to build responsive record templates

                                                                                                                Visual design can be exciting—until you're knee-deep in the details. Whether it's aligning text boxes to prevent overlaps, fixing negative space, or simply making sure the right data stands out, just ironing out inconsistencies takes a lot of moving parts.
                                                                                                              • Zoho DataPrep switching Date Format

                                                                                                                When using a pipeline that is importing Zoho Analytics data into Zoho DataPrep, the month and day of date fields are switched for some columns. For example, a Zoho Analytics record of "Nov. 8, 2025" will appear in Zoho DataPrep as "2025/08/11" in "yyyy/MM/dd"
                                                                                                              • Introducing Withdrawal Reasons for Offers

                                                                                                                We’re excited to introduce a new enhancement to the Offer module that brings more clarity and accountability to every withdrawn offer. The Withdrawal Reason update ensures that each withdrawal — manual or automatic — is backed by a clear explanation,
                                                                                                              • Send Automated WhatsApp Messages and Leverage the Improved WhatsApp Templates

                                                                                                                Greetings, I hope all of you are doing well. We're excited to announce a major upgrade to Bigin's WhatsApp integration that brings more flexibility, interactivity, and automation to your customer messaging. WhatsApp message automation You can now use
                                                                                                              • Text snippet

                                                                                                                There is a nice feature in Zoho Desk called Text Snippet. It allows you to insert a bit of text anywhere in a reply that you are typing. That would be nice to have that option in Zoho CRM as well when we compose an email. Moderation Update: We agree that
                                                                                                              • issue with deluge script

                                                                                                                i used chat gpt to build this script and I am getting 2 errors which I cannot figure out how to fix: void monthly_sales_order_generation() { try { // ---------------- CONFIG ------------------- analytics_url_1 = "https://analytics.zoho.com/api/<workspaceID>/report/<reportID1>/data";
                                                                                                              • Zoho Books "Update" Trigger for Zapier?

                                                                                                                Hi Zoho Team, I've been in talks with Zapier about using their services to connect my Zoho Books account to various apps, but I require an additional trigger beyond the "New" trigger. I require an "Update" trigger, which will allow me to filter and create Zaps only when certain conditions are fulfilled on the Zoho Books end before I automate a separate app. Specifically this will help me create invoices in QuickBooks Online only when payments are recorded in Zoho Books, rather than when a new invoice
                                                                                                              • Service One. Bill Another. Zero Hassle.

                                                                                                                In field service operations, one challenge often comes up: the person who needs the service isn’t always the one who pays for it. Think about tenants vs. property managers, corporate offices vs. their finance departments, or school buildings vs. central
                                                                                                              • Presenting ABM for Zoho CRM: Expand and retain your customers with precision

                                                                                                                Picture this scenario: You're a growing SaaS company ready to launch a powerful business suite, and are looking to gain traction and momentum. But as a business with a tight budget, you know acquiring new customers is slow, expensive, and often delivers
                                                                                                              • Can we do Image swatches for color variants?

                                                                                                                We want to do something like the attached screenshot on our new zoho store. We need image swatches instead of normal text selection. We want to user to select an image as color option. Is this doable? I don't see any option on zoho backend. Please h
                                                                                                              • Can Zoho Flows repeat Actions more than once?

                                                                                                                I'm attempting to make an intentional Zoho Flow loop using the below layout. However, when "WithinLimit" condition is met, the program fails to execute the action "Get & Add Request Co..." again. Is this by design? Is Zoho Flows unable to repeat actions
                                                                                                              • Next Page