What Is a Profile in CiviCRM?
Profiles are one of the most versatile tools in CiviPlus.They allow you to display, collect, or update contact information across a variety of contexts — such as forms, events, memberships, and more.
A Profile is a reusable collection of fields drawn from contacts, contributions, activities, or custom data. You can think of it as a custom form component used to collect, edit, or display specific fields in a consistent layout.
How to Create and Manage Profiles
Creating a New Profile
Navigate to Administer -> Customise Data and Screens -> Profile.
You will see a list of existing profiles configured in your CiviPlus system (User-Defined and Reserved) click ADD PROFILE to create a new one.
Fill in:
Profile Title – Internal name (e.g., “Volunteer Signup Form”)
Public Title - External name (often the same as internal, but doesn't have to be
Profile Description - For example, "Used to gather information for a new Volunteer"
Used For - Profiles can be used in many different ways (and a single profile can be used in multiple contexts). For example,
You can collect additional information about a donor or event participant by including profiles directly in Online Contribution Pages and Event Registration forms. When using a profile in this manner you do not need to check any of the "Used For" checkboxes.
Check Standalone Form or Directory if you want it to use this profile for custom forms, or contact listing and view screens (from the civicrm/profile path).
Check Search Results to use this profile to display an alternate set of results columns for CiviCRM Basic and Advanced Search.
Check User Registration if you want this Profile to be included in the New Account registration form.
Check View/Edit User Account to include it in the view and edit screens for existing user accounts.
Order - This controls the order in which profiles are presented when more than one profile is included in User Registration or My Account screens.
Pre-Form Help and Post-Form Help - Text that is shown before and after profile create/edit screens only.
Is this CiviCRM Profile active? Check to enable this profile.
Under Advanced Settings:
Limit listings to a specific Group? - You can select a group if you are using this profile for search and listings, AND you want to limit the listings to members of a specific group.
Add contacts to a group? You can select a group if you want contacts to be automatically added to that group when the profile is submitted.
Notify when profile form is submitted? If you want member(s) of your organisation to receive a notification email whenever this Profile form is used to enter or update contact information, enter one or more email addresses here.
Redirect URL - If you are using this profile as a contact signup or edit form, and want to redirect the user to a static URL after they've submitted the form enter the complete URL here. You can also use contact tokens in URL
Include Cancel Button? Enable/Disable this checkbox to add/remove cancel button on the profile form.
Cancel Redirect URL - If you are using this profile as a contact signup or edit form, and want to redirect the user to a static URL if they click the Cancel button - enter the complete URL here.
Cancel Button Text - Override the default button text for the cancel button for this profile
Submit Button Text - Override the default button text for the submit button for this profile
Include reCAPTCHA? - When reCAPTCHA is enabled for a profile form, anonymous users are required to read an image with letters and numbers and enter the value in a field. Refer to this article on using Captcha with CiviPlus forms.
Drupal user account registration option? If you are using this profile as a contact signup form, using it in an online contribution page OR an event registration page, anonymous users will be given the option to create a Website User Account as part of completing the form.
What to do upon duplicate match - If you are using the profile as a contact signup and editing form this option controls what happens if the data matches an existing contact record.
Proximity Search - If you are using this profile as a search form, you can choose to include proximity searching. When enabled, a proximity search block will be added to the search criteria. This block will contain fields to set the proximity start address, and a field to set a 'Radius' (distance from that address).
Enable mapping for this profile? If enabled, a Map link is included on the profile listings rows and detail screens for any contacts whose records include sufficient location data for your mapping provider.
Include profile edit links in search results? Check this box if you want to include a link in the listings to Edit profile fields. Only users with permission to edit the contact will see this link.
Include Drupal user account information links in search results? Check this box if you want to include a link in the listings to view contacts' Drupal user account information (e.g. their 'My Account' page). This link will only be included for contacts who have a user account on your website.
Click SAVE to save the profile record.
Now you can start adding the individual fields to the profile by completing the form for each:
Field Name - Select the type of CiviCRM record and the field you want to include in this Profile.
Field Label - The field label displayed on the form (over-ride the default field label here, if desired).
Required? - Are users required to complete this field?
View Only? - If checked, users can view but not edit this field.
Visibility - Is this field hidden from public search ('User and User Admin Only'), or is it visible to the public and potentially searchable in the Profile Search form ('Public Pages' or 'Public Pages and Listings')? ('User and User Admin Only') fields can still be used for Edit and Create mode.
Field Pre Help and Field Post Help - Explanatory text displayed to users for this field (can include HTML formatting tags).
Order - Controls the order in which fields are displayed within a profile.
Active? - Disable this option to remove the field from the profile without deleting it.
6. Click SAVE AND NEW to save this field and start entering the next one
7. This is an example of the fields on the completed example Profile we have created:
Manage and Edit Existing Profiles
Navigate to Administer -> Customise Data and Screens -> Profiles.
You will see a list of existing profiles configured in your CiviPlus system (User-Defined and Reserved) click ADD PROFILE to create a new one. Use the Settings or Fields actions at the right of the row to edit the Profile .
Using Profiles
Profiles can be embedded or applied in the following areas:
Once you have created your profile you can try it our by selecting one of the Actions against the Row.
Use - Create Mode Enables the profile to be used as a data collection form to create new records — especially new contacts.
Use - Edit Mode
Common Uses of Profiles
Use Case | Example Description |
Data collection forms | Create newsletter sign-up or volunteer registration forms |
Event registration | Collect custom fields during event sign-up |
Contribution pages | Use a profile to gather donor details |
Membership joins or renewals | Ask for contact updates during renewal |
Public directories | Display filtered lists of contacts, e.g. “Find a Volunteer” |
Contact editing | Allow logged-in users to update their info via portal |
Examples of Useful Profiles
Profile Title | Purpose | Example Fields Included |
Volunteer Sign-Up | Collect info on new volunteers | Name, Email, Skills, Availability |
Newsletter Opt-In | Build your mailing list | First Name, Email, Consent Checkbox |
Event Participant Info | Supplement event sign-up | Dietary Needs, Emergency Contact |
Donor Info Update | Let donors update contact info | Address, Preferred Contact Method |
Public Directory - Staff | Show list of staff on your website | Name, Role, Bio, Profile Picture |