Global

A Global field is a reusable group of fields. Define it once and use it across multiple content types in your stack. This helps you avoid recreating the same set of fields repeatedly.

You can update the following properties of a Global field at any time:

• Select Global Field
• Display Name
• Unique ID
• Instruction Value
• Help Text
• Multiple
• Non-localizable
• Mark as Global Field Title

Note You can now show a Global field as a separate tab in the entry editor for better organization and navigation. Learn how to enable the Show as Tab option.

When designing your content model, choose the appropriate field type based on reuse and flexibility needs:

Guideline: If a field structure is reused across two or more content types, consider using a Global Field.

For website-focused projects, you can standardize commonly reused field structures by creating Global Fields such as:

SEO

• Meta Title (meta_title)
• Meta Description (meta_description)
• Open Graph Title (open_graph_title)
• Open Graph Description (open_graph_description)
• Open Graph Image (open_graph_image)
• Enable Search Indexing (enable_indexing)

CTA

• Label (label)
• URL (url)
• Variant (variant)

Author Summary

• Name (name)
• Role (role)
• Avatar (avatar)
• Short Bio (bio_short)

These are example structures. Adapt field names and configurations based on your project requirements.

For example, to standardize SEO metadata across all pages, you can create a Global field named SEO and add the following subfields:

• Meta Title (meta_title)
• Meta Description (meta_description)
• Open Graph Title (open_graph_title)
• Open Graph Description (open_graph_description)
• Open Graph Image (open_graph_image)
• Enable Search Indexing (enable_indexing)

Once created, add the SEO Global field to all relevant content types. When content creators add entries, the SEO field appears automatically with these predefined subfields, ready to use.

Note Updating fields in an existing content type may result in data loss. Before making changes, refer to the Content Type Change Management documentation.

Field Unique IDs (UIDs) are used in API responses and act as stable identifiers for fields.

• Use consistent and descriptive UIDs when creating fields.
• Avoid changing UIDs after integrating with frontend applications.
• If a UID must change, update all dependent systems and validate API responses.

Example:

• Display name: Hero Title
• UID (used in API): hero_title

When configuring Global Fields:

• Use non-localizable fields only when values must remain the same across all locales.
• Use localizable fields for content that varies by region (for example, SEO metadata or page titles).

Plan localization behavior early to avoid inconsistencies across entries.

Before updating a Global Field used in live content:

• Identify all content types that use the Global Field.
• Determine whether the change is additive (safer) or breaking (for example, renaming, deleting, or changing field types).
• Review the impact on existing entries and API consumers.
• Test changes in a non-production environment.
• Publish and validate content using the Delivery API.

Content managers can copy the values of an instance within a Global field and paste them into:

• Another instance within the same entry.
• A matching instance of the same Global field in a different entry.

This simplifies content duplication and speeds up entry creation.

To copy and paste field values across group fields, log in to your Contentstack account and perform the following steps:

1. In the Global field, select the instance, click the vertical ellipsis, and select Copy Field Values.
2. In the target entry or instance, click the vertical ellipsis again and select Paste Field Values.

   Note The destination instance must match the original instance’s name and structure.

   Click to enlarge