Gravity Forms Custom Code: Populate Your Form Fields Dynamically Using PHP Hooks

If you’re using Gravity Forms to gather data on your WordPress site, you likely know how powerful and versatile this plugin is. But what if you could take it a step further and populate your form fields with customized data sourced from nearly anywhere? With the Gravity Forms Custom Code plugin, you can! By leveraging a simple PHP hook, you can set custom values for your Gravity Forms fields, giving you unlimited control over form inputs.

Whether you’re looking to personalize form fields with dynamic user information, fetch data from third-party APIs, or retrieve WooCommerce product details, Gravity Forms Custom Code makes it easy. Here’s everything you need to know to make the most of this plugin.

Why Use Gravity Forms Custom Code?

Gravity Forms Custom Code allows you to populate form fields dynamically, reducing the need for user input and enhancing your form’s flexibility. Through a PHP hook, Gravity Forms Custom Code lets you:

1. Set Custom Values – Use the hidden Custom Code field to insert dynamic values.
2. Source Data from Anywhere – With PHP, you can pull in data from databases, APIs, WooCommerce, and more.
3. Update Multiple Fields at Once – Populate multiple form fields with a single hook, streamlining form setup and reducing code.

Key Benefits of Using PHP Hooks with Gravity Forms

The benefits of using a PHP hook to populate Gravity Forms fields are both wide-ranging and powerful:

• Save Time – Automatically filling out fields minimizes user effort and speeds up the submission process.
• Limitless Data Options – By accessing data with PHP, you can grab anything you need from your database or an external source.
• Reduced Errors – Automating field population ensures that data is accurate, improving the reliability of your data collection.
• Better User Experience – Users only see relevant fields and don’t have to input information that’s already available – no more creating tons of hidden fields just to determine the value of one field!

How to Hook into a Gravity Forms Field with Gravity Forms Custom Code

The heart of the Gravity Forms Custom Code plugin lies in its PHP hooks. The plugin allows you to set the value of a form field (or multiple fields) by hooking into the form’s rendering process. Here’s how to get started:

Step 1: Identify Your Target Field(s)

Before writing code, identify the field(s) you want to populate. This could be user-related data, like a user’s name or email address, or other custom information you wish to pull in from an external source.

Step 2: Write Your PHP Hook

Here’s a simple example of how you can populate a Gravity Forms field with data using a PHP hook. This hook sets the value of a custom field by pulling in a user’s information from the WordPress database:

add_filter('zgp_gf_custom_code_FORMID_FIELDID', function ($value, $current_field_values) {
    $current_user = wp_get_current_user();
    return $current_user->display_name; // This will populate the field with the user's display name
}, 10, 2);

In this example:

• zgp_gf_custom_code_FORMID_FIELDID is the PHP hook that targets a specific field within Gravity Forms.
• The value we return sets the data for the field. Here, we use the WordPress function wp_get_current_user() to retrieve the current user’s display name.

How to Set a Custom Value for a Gravity Forms Field with External Data

One of the best aspects of Gravity Forms Custom Code is the ability to fetch data from anywhere. Using PHP, you can pull data from an API or database to populate Gravity Forms fields.

Here’s how you might populate a field with data from an API, such as fetching a weather update for a specific location:

add_filter('zgp_gf_custom_code_FORMID_FIELDID', function ($value, $current_field_values) {
    $response = wp_remote_get('https://api.weatherapi.com/v1/current.json?key=YOUR_API_KEY&q=London');
    $data = json_decode(wp_remote_retrieve_body($response), true);

    return $data['current']['temp_c'] . '°C in London'; // Populates the field with the current temperature
}, 10, 2);

This simple snippet retrieves the current temperature in London from the Weather API and sets it as the value for the field.

Setting Multiple Field Values from a Single PHP Hook

In cases where you want to update multiple fields at once, Gravity Forms Custom Code offers a clean solution. Instead of writing separate hooks for each field, you can return an array of field IDs and corresponding values.

add_filter('zgp_gf_custom_code_FORMID_FIELDID', function ($value, $current_field_values) {
    $user = wp_get_current_user();
    return [
        'this' => $user->user_email, // Update the Custom Code field itself
        37     => $user->display_name, // Update field with ID 37
    ];
}, 10, 2);

This code automatically populates two fields — name and email — from the current user’s data, streamlining form setup significantly.

Using Conditional Logic for Gravity Forms Field Values

With Gravity Forms Custom Code, you can even add conditional logic to dynamically populate a field based on other field values or external conditions.

Let’s say you want to populate a discount code field only if the user is logged in:

add_filter('zgp_gf_custom_code_FORMID_FIELDID', function ($value, $current_field_values) {
    if (is_user_logged_in()) {
        return 'DISCOUNT10';
    } else {
        return 'Sign in to get your discount!';
    }
}, 10, 2);

Here, the discount code is only shown to logged-in users, providing a more personalized experience.

Conclusion: Why Use Gravity Forms Custom Code?

The Gravity Forms Custom Code plugin gives WordPress developers the ability to integrate dynamic data into Gravity Forms with ease. From custom user data to information pulled from an API, the plugin’s PHP hook makes setting custom field values straightforward and versatile. Using Gravity Forms Custom Code:

• Enhances Automation – Populate fields without user input, saving time and effort.
• Supports Any Data Source – If you can access it via PHP, you can add it to your form.
• Flexible Field Updates – Populate one field or an entire form with data using a single function.

For anyone seeking to enhance their Gravity Forms setup, Gravity Forms Custom Code is a game-changer. Whether you’re looking to improve user experience, boost form accuracy, or incorporate data from anywhere on the web, Gravity Forms Custom Code lets you do it all with a single PHP hook.