Get Started with Picklists

When you’re at a bakery ordering cookies, you want to know what kinds of cookies they have instead of just guessing what to order.

Picklists have two parts.

The field (1) defines the type of picklist. Can users select more than one value? Is this field dependent on another field for its value set? You set those options, and more, at the field level.

The value set (2) defines the choices a user sees, their order and the default value, and other settings.

Pretty basic, but this is an important distinction. You manage these two parts separately. For now, we focus on the field. In the next unit, you focus on the values.

Let’s take a look at the different varieties of picklist fields. We cover values in a later unit.

Standard picklists are the ones that are included in your Salesforce org before any customization. Examples include the Lead Source picklist on the Lead object, the Opportunity Stage picklist on the Opportunity object, and others.

Standard picklist fields are included for the common fields you likely want on standard objects that come with your org.

Standard picklist fields sometimes share a standard value set. For example, on the Lead object, the Lead Source picklist values are part of a standard value set. The same values are also used on the Account object for the Account Source picklist field. When you change a value from that set in the Lead Source picklist settings, the change also appears in the Account Source picklist field values.

For more flexibility, you need a custom picklist field.

1. In Setup, click the Object Manager tab, and then select the object to contain the picklist field.
2. Click Fields & Relationships.
3. Click New. Select Picklist, and then click Next.
4. Enter a Label for the picklist field. The Field Name is automatically assigned. The Field Name is often also called the “API name” since it’s a way to reference the field programmatically.
5. Select Enter values, with each value separated by a new line.
6. Enter your values. 
7. Optionally, sort the values alphabetically or use the first value in the list as the default value, or both. If you select both options, Salesforce alphabetizes the entries and then sets the first alphabetized value as the default. You can use a formula to assign a default value dynamically. We get into that later.
8. Choose whether to restrict this picklist’s values to an admin-approved list. This is where you can decide this should be a restricted picklist. You can change it later if you find that you do need to accept new values in the field.
9. Click Next.
10. Set field-level security for the picklist field, and then click Next. This list determines who can see or edit the field.
11. Choose the page layouts on which to include the picklist field.
12. Click Save.

Identify existing custom picklists on an object’s Fields & Relationships page. Like other custom fields, a custom picklist’s Field Name ends with __c.

When you create a custom picklist, notice the Picklist (Multi-Select) option, too.

Pick this option if you want your users to select more than one value from the picklist. When a user picks more than one value, the selected values show in the field, separated by a semicolon.

Do they have to select more than one value? No. They can select only one. Now, you’re probably thinking “Then, why don’t I always use a multi-select picklist?” And, that’s in case you want to restrict users to only one value. So, just remember:

• Picklist: Only one value at a time. Sometimes that’s a good thing.
• Multi-Select Picklist: One or more values at a time.

Also, consider the following:

• Multi-select picklists have a lower limit on total values. See  Picklist Limitations  for more information.
• You can convert a custom picklist to a multi-select picklist to support multiple values in the field, later. However, when you convert a multi-select picklist to a picklist field that doesn’t support multi-select, Salesforce clears the values for that field on existing records. The new field only allows one value.
• Reports referencing multi-select picklists should use contains or includes (not equals) to collect all results that contain more than one value.
• In report results, or dashboards, multi-select picklist selections are grouped independently. For example: One record has a, b, and c values. Another record has b and c values. And another record has only c selected. You’ll get three different groupings: one for a;b;c, one for b;c and another for c.
• Only specific functions can reference multi-select picklists in formulas. See  Tips for Working with Picklist and Multi-Select Picklist Formula Fields  for more information.

In Lightning Experience, select/deselect values from a multi-select picklist by holding the Crtl (Windows) or Command (Mac) key on your keyboard while clicking the last active entry. Or, use a “None” value option to undo the current selections.

1. Go to the picklist detail page and select Edit.
2. Select Restrict picklist to the values defined in the value set. 
3. Click Save.

Guide users, save UI space, and further improve data integrity with a dependent picklist. A dependent picklist filters values for one picklist based on a selection from another picklist or a checkbox (the controlling value) on the same record.

Say your bakery has a hundred different kinds of cookies, and you want to guide customers with gluten or nut allergies to cookies that don’t have gluten or nuts. Create a controlling picklist for preferences to select “all” , “gluten-free” or “nut-free”. Then, set the cookie flavor picklist as a dependent picklist of the preference picklist. When someone selects “gluten-free” the cookie flavor picklist shows only the gluten-free flavors.

We cover how to set a dependent picklist in the next unit.

Consider printing this, laminating it, hanging it on your wall.

	Standard Picklist	Custom Picklist	Custom Multi-Select Picklist
Add/Remove from Page Layouts
Delete from Your Org
Set a Default Value
Use a Formula for a Default Value
Can Select Multiple Values
Can Add Values via Apps or API
Can Be Restricted
Can Be a Dependent Picklist

That covers the picklist field types and properties. In the next unit, you focus on the things you can do with the picklist’s values.