Pasting Content into Data Grids

WS Form lets you paste comma-separated (CSV) or tab-separated (TSV) or data directly into a Data Grid used to configure field options in Select, Checkbox, and Radio fields.

Pasting multiple rows and columns at once is a much faster way to build out long lists of options compared to typing them in one cell at a time, and it works seamlessly with data copied directly from spreadsheet apps such as Microsoft Excel, Apple Numbers, and Google Sheets. Unlike CSV import, pasted data does not use the first row as column headings. Every pasted row is treated as normal data.

How It Works

When you paste into a data grid cell, WS Form looks at the contents of your clipboard and decides what to do:

  • If the clipboard contains a single value, it pastes into the focused cell as normal.
  • If the clipboard contains multiple lines, each line becomes a new row.
  • If each line contains tabs or commas, each value becomes a separate column. The first pasted row is treated as data, not as column headings.

Pasting always starts from the cell you have focused. Existing rows below and columns to the right are overwritten, and new rows or columns are added automatically if the pasted data is larger than the current grid.

Pasting Multiple Rows

To paste multiple rows into a data grid:

  1. Copy your data from a spreadsheet, text editor or any other source.
  2. Click the cell in your data grid where you want the paste to start.
  3. Press Ctrl + V on Windows or Cmd + V on Mac.

For example, if your data grid already has three rows and you click into the first column of the second row, the pasted data will overwrite row 2 onward and add new rows beneath as needed.

Pasting Multiple Columns

WS Form automatically detects the column delimiter in your pasted data:

  • Tab characters are used as the column delimiter when present (this is the default format used by Excel, Numbers and Google Sheets when you copy cells).
  • Commas are used as the column delimiter if no tabs are found (standard CSV format).

If your pasted data contains more columns than the data grid currently has, WS Form will add new columns automatically, up to the maximum allowed for that data grid. Pasting only adds column cells and values. It does not create column labels from the first row. To define column headings, use the CSV import feature instead.

Quoted Values

Standard CSV quoting rules (RFC 4180) are supported, which means values containing commas, line breaks or quote characters can be wrapped in double quotes. To include a literal double quote inside a quoted value, escape it by doubling it up. For example:

  • "apple, red","crisp and sweet" → two columns: apple, red and crisp and sweet
  • "He said ""hello""" → one column containing: He said "hello"

Copying From a Spreadsheet

The easiest way to populate a data grid is to copy directly from a spreadsheet:

  1. In your spreadsheet, select the range of cells you want to copy.
  2. Press Ctrl + C on Windows or Cmd + C on Mac.
  3. In WS Form, click into the data grid cell where you want the paste to start.
  4. Press Ctrl + V or Cmd + V to paste.

Spreadsheet apps copy cells using tab delimiters by default, so values with commas in them are preserved correctly without any extra quoting on your part.

Examples

Example 1: Build a Country List

Copy a list of countries from a spreadsheet and paste them into the first cell of a Select field’s data grid. WS Form creates a new row for each country.

United States
Canada
Mexico
Brazil
United Kingdom
France
Germany
Japan
Australia
South Africa

Example 2: Build a Price List

In a Price Select field, you can paste multiple columns at once, such as a product label and price copied directly from a spreadsheet.

Small Coffee,2.50
Medium Coffee,3.25
Large Coffee,4.00
Blueberry Muffin,2.95
Chocolate Croissant,3.50
Bagel with Cream Cheese,4.25
Orange Juice,3.75
Bottled Water,1.50

After pasting, the first column becomes the option label and the second column can be mapped to a price or value column.

Example 3: Build a Multi-Column Product Grid

You can paste larger datasets with several columns at once.

Laptop Stand,LS-100,Office,49.99
Wireless Mouse,WM-220,Electronics,24.95
Mechanical Keyboard,MK-500,Electronics,89.00
Notebook Pack,NB-010,Office,12.50
Desk Lamp,DL-330,Office,39.95
USB-C Cable,UC-120,Accessories,14.99
Webcam,WC-800,Electronics,79.00
Monitor Riser,MR-210,Office,34.50

If the pasted data contains more columns than the current data grid, WS Form automatically creates the additional columns for you, but pasted rows never define column labels.

Example 4: Paste Tab-Separated Spreadsheet Data

Spreadsheet applications such as Excel, Numbers and Google Sheets copy data using tab characters instead of commas. WS Form detects this automatically.

The example below shows the same data represented with tabs between values:

Basic Plan	basic	9.99
Standard Plan	standard	19.99
Professional Plan	pro	29.99
Enterprise Plan	enterprise	99.99
Student Plan	student	4.99
Nonprofit Plan	nonprofit	7.99

When pasted into a data grid, each tab-separated value becomes its own column automatically.

Example 5: Paste Quoted CSV Values

Quoted CSV values are useful when your data contains commas, quotation marks or line breaks.

"New York, NY","United States"
"Paris","France"
"Berlin","Germany"
"Sydney","Australia"
"Toronto","Canada"
"He said ""hello""","Example with quotes"

WS Form correctly parses quoted values according to standard CSV formatting rules.

Example 6: Append Rows to an Existing Grid

You can click into the first empty row of an existing data grid and paste additional rows without affecting earlier data.

Visa
Mastercard
American Express
Discover
PayPal
Apple Pay
Google Pay

This is useful when gradually building up a long list of options over time.

Example 7: Paste Data With Empty Cells

Empty values are preserved when pasting multi-column data.

Red,#ff0000,Primary
Blue,#0000ff,Primary
Green,#00ff00,Secondary
Black,#000000,
White,#ffffff,
Orange,#ff9900,Secondary
Purple,#800080,Secondary

Blank cells remain empty in the data grid and can be filled in later if needed.

Tips

  • Pasting always starts from the focused cell, not from the top of the grid. Click the exact cell where you want the paste to begin before pressing paste.
  • Existing values in cells covered by the paste are overwritten. If you want to keep your existing rows, click into the first empty row before pasting.
  • For very large datasets, or to replace the data grid entirely, consider using the built-in CSV import feature. Note that you can also drag and drop CSV files into the data grid to import them.