If your team builds forms regularly, you’ve likely noticed the same pattern: create a new form, then spend time configuring the same notification email, the same permissions, the same PDF font, the same invitation wording — again. Form Default Settings solves this by letting you define those values once at the team level. Every new form starts with them already in place.
What is Form Default Settings?
Form Default Settings is a team-level configuration page in PlatoForms. Any values you save there are automatically applied to every new form created on your team — covering submission behavior, confirmation messages, notification emails, invitation wording, PDF font styles, and access permissions.
It does not affect forms that already exist. It only sets the starting point for forms created after you save your changes.
Note: Form Default Settings is open to every team member, not just Team Admins. Anyone on your team can change these defaults — worth keeping in mind if your team handles sensitive data.
Why use Form Default Settings?
Without team-wide defaults, every new form starts blank. Each person on your team configures the same settings independently — and inconsistently. Form Default Settings removes that friction:
- Consistency — every onboarding form routes to the same recipients (hiring manager, payroll, IT) and uses the same branded invitation email, regardless of which HR coordinator built it.
- Speed — skip the per-form setup. An HR coordinator creating a new equipment request form or compliance acknowledgement doesn’t need to reconfigure notifications, permissions, or PDF fonts — they’re already in place.
- Reduced errors — settings that must follow company policy (like restricting submission to invited contacts only, not the public) are correct by default, not by memory.
- Better submitter experience — new hires receive a consistent invitation email and confirmation message across every form, rather than whatever wording the last coordinator typed in.
Employee onboarding illustrates this well. A typical onboarding process spans several forms — personal details, banking information, equipment requests, compliance acknowledgements — often built by different HR coordinators at different times. For each one, HR needs the same notification recipients (the hiring manager, payroll, IT), the same permission restrictions (invited contacts only, not public), the same branded invitation email, and the same PDF font on generated documents. Without defaults, every form builder configures all of that independently — and gets it slightly wrong each time. The tab descriptions below use this scenario to show how each setting maps to a concrete decision your team would otherwise make repeatedly. For the full onboarding workflow, see How to Create an Employee Onboarding Form.
How to make form default settings?
To set default settings for your online forms, it’s essential to familiarize yourself with the process and locate the Default Form Settings window. Follow the steps below:
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Log in to your PlatoForms account.
Tip: New to PlatoForms? Create your account and start building immediately for free with full platform access!
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At the top of the left navigation, click your Team Name, and from the dropdown menu, click Form Default Settings.
The Form Default Settings page opens with eight tabs: General, Submit Confirmation, Save Later Email, Multi Languages, Notifications, Invitation Settings, Form Style, and Permissions.
Tip: Each tab has its own Save button — changes on one tab aren’t saved until you click Save on that tab.
General
Covers submission behavior, privacy options, and Save-for-Later settings — the same options found in individual form settings, but applied as the starting point for every new form. In the onboarding scenario: banking details and government IDs are sensitive, so your team sets shared PDF links to expire within 24 hours. Configure that once here instead of relying on every HR coordinator to remember it per form.
Submit Confirmation
Sets the default confirmation message or redirect link shown after a form is submitted. In the onboarding scenario: after a new hire submits, they should see a clear “Thank you — HR will be in touch within one business day with next steps” message, not a blank confirmation screen. Set the message once here and every new onboarding form uses it automatically.
Save Later Email
Sets the default subject and body for the email sent when a submitter uses Save for Later. Onboarding forms are often long — legal name, banking details, emergency contacts, equipment preferences — and new hires may not complete them in one sitting, especially if they’re still wrapping up their previous role. Without a default, the save-for-later reminder uses generic placeholder text. Set your HR team’s standard wording once here (“Your onboarding form is saved — return any time to complete it before your start date”) and every form sends it automatically.
Multi Languages
Sets whether new forms show a language switcher and auto-detect the submitter’s browser language by default. See the Enable multi-languages guide for full setup. If your company hires across regions with different primary languages, turn on auto-detect here once. Every new form will display in the new hire’s browser language automatically, without any per-form configuration.
Notifications
When a form is completed, PlatoForms notifies you via Dashboard and email. Switch to the Notifications tab to set default recipients, Email Body, Subject, and more. In the onboarding scenario: the hiring manager needs a notification so they can prepare the new hire’s first day; payroll needs banking details; IT needs the equipment request. Set all three as default recipients here once, and every new onboarding form routes to the right people automatically. See Configure form notifications for the full breakdown of every field and variable.
Note: The FROM address needs to be verified before it can actually send — set it here, but confirm it’s verified before you rely on it going out.
Tip: Notifications set in Form Default Settings affect all future forms on the team. Settings on a single form only apply to that form.
Invitation Settings
Set default invitation email content — subject, message, and other details — so every new form starts with consistent wording. For a step-by-step guide, see Create an invitation. In the onboarding scenario: new hires receive their form link by email before their start date. The invitation should come from your company’s HR email address with a clear subject line and a consistent message — not whatever wording the last HR coordinator typed in. Set the sender name, FROM address, subject, and body once here; every form sends the same invitation automatically.
As with Notifications, the invitation’s FROM address also needs verification before it can send.
Form Style
Set the default field styling and PDF styling for new forms — font, bold/italic, size, color, letter spacing, and line spacing. Every new form starts with these values already in place. If your company has a standard font and size for internal documents, set that once here — all generated PDFs across every onboarding form will match. See How to change font style for all fields in a PDF form for a step-by-step walkthrough.
Permissions
Set the default Form Editor, Form Submitter, and Form Submission Viewer for new forms. For a detailed explanation of each role, see Manage permissions. In the onboarding scenario: an onboarding form collects banking details and government IDs — it should never be publicly accessible. PlatoForms’ system default sets Form Submitter to Public (anyone with the link can submit). Change that default to specific members here, before anyone on your HR team creates their first form. Every new form will start with that restriction already in place.
For the full breakdown of every tab and option, see the Form Default Settings documentation. Curious about more? Check our FAQ for additional insights.
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