TLDR
Custom fields extend GrantPipe's data model without replacing it. Define typed fields for donors, grants, and gifts — text, number, date, select, or boolean — and they appear in filters, exports, and reports alongside the standard fields. The data stays structured, not buried in a notes column.
Custom fields extend the GrantPipe data model without overwriting it. When the standard schema does not capture everything your organization tracks about donors, grants, or gifts, custom fields add the missing structure — typed, filterable, and reportable from day one.
TL;DR
- Eight field types: text, text area, number, currency, date, single select, multi-select, boolean
- Available on donors, grants, and gift records
- Appear in filters, segments, and CSV exports without additional setup
- Required-field enforcement at the form level
- Archive to hide without deleting; delete to remove permanently
What this feature does
The standard donor record covers the fields nearly every nonprofit needs: name, contact information, giving history, source, and relationship manager. Custom fields cover everything else your specific organization tracks — cultivation scores, board relationships, interest areas, ask amounts, legacy system IDs, capacity ratings, constituent tiers.
The critical design choice: custom fields are typed. A number field accepts numbers. A date field accepts dates. A single-select field only accepts values from the defined option list. This means the data you put in is the data you can filter on, export, and count — not freeform text that requires manual parsing to be useful.
Custom fields appear automatically in the filter builder for the entity type they are defined on. A custom “Portfolio Tier” field on donors appears as a filter option in the donor list, in segment definitions, and in the export column selector. No additional configuration required.
Who it’s for
Development directors who need fields their current CRM does not have, without paying for a customization project. Finance staff who want to track grant-specific metadata — cognizant agency, indirect rate agreement date, program officer contact — alongside the standard grant record. Operations teams migrating from a legacy system that had custom fields they do not want to lose.
Workflow example
- Navigate to Settings > Custom Fields > Donors (or Grants, or Gifts)
- Click “Add field,” choose the field type, enter the label and optional help text
- Mark the field required if it should be enforced on create/edit
- Set display order by dragging the field to the desired position
- The field appears immediately on all donor create/edit forms and in the filter builder
- Existing records show the field as empty until populated
What custom fields are not for
Custom fields extend structured data. They are not a replacement for the notes field (unstructured narrative that does not need to be filtered), tags (categorical labels you want to apply across records quickly), or documents (attachments stored against a record).
If you find yourself creating a custom text area field and then never filtering on it, it probably belongs in notes. If you find yourself creating fifteen single-select fields with overlapping option lists, the data model design needs review before adding more fields.
Integration with the rest of GrantPipe
Custom field values move with records. If a donor record is merged with a duplicate, the custom field values from both records appear in the merge-review step so you choose which value to keep. If a record is exported as part of a segment, custom fields are included as columns in the export. If a record appears in an audit trail entry, custom field changes are logged alongside standard field changes.
What it replaces
- Notes columns used as a catch-all for structured data that should have been typed fields
- Separate tracking spreadsheets maintained alongside the CRM to capture information the CRM schema could not hold
- The consultant engagement some platforms require to add fields outside the standard schema
- Manual tagging systems that were created as workarounds for missing field types
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Q&A
When should I use a custom field vs a note or tag?
Use a custom field when the information needs to be filtered, reported on, or exported as a column. Use a note when the information is unstructured narrative. Use a tag when the value is categorical and shared across many records. The rule: if you will ever need to find or count records by this value, it belongs in a typed custom field.
Q&A
Can custom fields be populated via CSV import?
Yes. During a CSV import, custom fields appear in the field mapper alongside standard fields. Map a CSV column to a custom field and the values import as typed data. Custom fields must be defined before the import runs.
Q&A
How are custom fields handled in the audit trail?
Changes to custom field values are logged in the activity log alongside changes to standard fields. Each entry records the old value, the new value, the timestamp, and the user who made the change.
Frequently asked