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What is pre-fetching?

Pre-fetching means retrieving existing data before a form is displayed and automatically filling in the fields with that data.

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How it works

Typically, a form loads with empty fields. With pre-fetching, the form first looks up data from your database using an identifier (like an email), which you can use to pre-fill fields. For example, you can send users a link like: https://yourform.com/update-profile?email=juan@email.com When the form opens, it uses the email parameter to find a matching record in your database and fills in fields like:
  • Name: Juan Dela Cruz
  • Email: juan@email.com
  • Birth Date: Dec 2, 1992
  • Position: Finance Manager
Users can then review and update field answers as needed.

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Common use cases

  • User Profiles: Let users update their personal information with pre-populated fields
  • Account Settings: Enable users to modify preferences without re-entering existing selections
  • E-commerce Checkout: Pre-fill saved shipping and billing details for faster checkout
  • Admin Dashboards: Allow administrators to edit existing records with pre-loaded data in forms
  • Content Management: Let users edit existing posts or pages with previously saved content

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Fetch data into your form

1

Connect to Zite Database

Open your Fillout form and click Integrate on top to link it to your Zite Database.
2

Open Database connection

Go back to Integrate and click Zite Database.Screenshot 2026 03 30 At 7 10 01 PM
3

Add records to pre-fetch

Click Pre-fetch records followed by + Add new. In our example, we’ll have a form where clients can update their delivery address. Instead of filling everything from scratch, their existing details will be pre-filled.Screenshot 2026 03 30 At 7 13 35 PMIn the popup, Name your record. This is just a label to help you identify this pre-fetch setup when using it in your form.
4

Test fetch (Optional)

Select the Table you’d like to fetch records from. Then + Add condition to Filter by.Screenshot 2026 03 30 At 7 18 00 PMChoose a database column from the left, then match this a url parameter, static value, or login fields (from your login page) on the right . This condition is how the form identifies which record to fetch.For our example, we’ll fetch records with their Email.
5

Publish and share

Click Publish in the upper right corner share your form using a link that includes the identifier. For example: https://yourform.com/update-profile?email=juan@email.com