Sharing Forms

FastForms makes it easy to share your forms through unique, clean URLs. This guide covers everything about publishing, sharing, and managing public access to your forms.

Understanding Form URLs

Every form in FastForms gets a unique identifier called a slug when created. This slug enables public access through a clean, shareable URL.

URL Structure

https://yourdomain.com/f/[slug]

For example:

https://yourdomain.com/f/a1b2c3d4-e5f6-7890-abcd-ef1234567890

The slug is automatically generated as a UUID when you create a form. It’s unique, unpredictable, and permanent for the lifetime of the form.

Public vs Private Forms

Forms have two states:

Unpublished (Private)

Default state for new forms
Not accessible via public URL
Only you can view in preview mode
Safe for drafts and testing

Published (Public)

Accessible via /f/[slug] URL
Anyone with the link can submit
Starts collecting responses
Can be unpublished anytime

Publishing Your Form

Publishing makes your form available to respondents through its public URL.

Navigate to Your Form

Go to your form’s detail page at /forms/[formId]. You’ll see a preview of your form with all fields disabled.

Click Publish Form

At the bottom of the preview, you’ll see a publish section. Click the green “Publish Form” button.

The button will show “Publishing…” briefly while the status updates.

Copy Your Shareable Link

Once published, the interface changes to show:

Your public form URL
A “Copy Link” button for easy sharing
An “Unpublish Form” button (red) to revoke access

Share the Link

Copy the URL and share it via:

Email
Social media
QR codes
Embedded in websites
Text messages

The “Copy Link” button copies the full URL to your clipboard. After clicking, it changes to “Copied!” for 2 seconds to confirm.

The Publishing Interface

Before Publishing

When your form is unpublished, you’ll see:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ This form is not published yet.         │
│ Publish it to get a shareable link.     │
│                                         │
│  [Publish Form]                         │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘

After Publishing

Once published, the interface shows:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Share this form:                        │
│                                         │
│ https://...com/f/abc123  [Copy Link]   │
│                                         │
│  [Unpublish Form]                       │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘

Unpublishing Forms

You can revoke public access at any time by unpublishing your form.

Important: Unpublishing immediately makes the public URL inaccessible. Anyone who tries to access it will see an error.

How to Unpublish

Navigate to your form’s detail page
Scroll to the sharing section (visible when published)
Click the red “Unpublish Form” button
The form instantly becomes private

What happens when you unpublish?

Public URL (/f/[slug]) becomes inaccessible
Existing responses remain intact
You can still view and export responses
Form returns to preview-only mode
You can republish anytime to restore access

When to Unpublish

Consider unpublishing when:

✅ You’ve collected enough responses
✅ The form deadline has passed
✅ You need to make changes to the form
✅ The event or campaign has ended
✅ You want to temporarily pause submissions

Unpublishing does NOT delete responses. All existing submissions remain in your database and can be viewed and exported.

When to Keep Forms Private

Keep forms unpublished while:

Testing

Test your form thoroughly before sharing. Check all field types, validation, and required fields in preview mode.

Drafting

While you’re still refining questions, field order, or validation rules.

Preparing

Before your campaign launch date or event registration opens.

Reviewing

When stakeholders need to approve the form before it goes live.

When to Publish

Publish your form when:

✅ All fields are finalized and tested
✅ Validation rules are working correctly
✅ You’re ready to start collecting responses
✅ Your audience is ready to respond
✅ Associated campaigns or events are active

Pro tip: Create your form a few days before you need it, test thoroughly while unpublished, then publish exactly when you’re ready to collect responses.

Email Campaigns

Include the form link in email newsletters or invitations:

<a href="https://yourdomain.com/f/abc123">Complete the Survey</a>

Or provide the full URL for plain text emails.

Social Media

QR Codes

Generate a QR code from your form URL for:

Printed materials (flyers, posters)
Event signage
Business cards
Conference presentations

Website Embedding

Link to your form from your website:

<a href="https://yourdomain.com/f/abc123" target="_blank">
  Fill out our contact form
</a>

Or embed in an iframe (advanced users).

URL Security Considerations

Slug Privacy

While your form URL is “public” when published, the UUID-based slug provides security through obscurity:

Not guessable: UUIDs are essentially impossible to guess
Not indexed: Search engines won’t discover unpublished forms
Not enumerable: Attackers can’t iterate through form IDs

Anyone with the URL can access your published form. Don’t publish forms containing sensitive logic or information you want restricted.

Access Control

FastForms uses a simple binary access model:

State	Public URL Access	Preview Access	Who Can Submit
Unpublished	❌ Denied	✅ Owner only	Nobody
Published	✅ Allowed	✅ Owner only	Anyone with link

There’s no built-in password protection or authentication for public forms. If you need restricted access, keep forms unpublished and share them individually, or build custom authentication.

Tracking Form Status

You can identify whether a form is published from several places:

In the Form Detail Page

The publish/unpublish section clearly shows current status:

Green “Publish Form” button = Currently unpublished
Red “Unpublish Form” button + shareable URL = Currently published

Via the API

The form object includes an isPublished boolean:

{
  "id": "cm123456789",
  "title": "Contact Form",
  "slug": "a1b2c3d4-e5f6-7890-abcd-ef1234567890",
  "isPublished": true,
  "createdAt": "2026-03-03T10:30:00Z"
}

Common Workflows

Pre-Launch Testing

Create and preview

Generate form with AI, review in preview mode

Keep private

Leave unpublished while refining

Internal testing

Share the form ID with team members for preview

Publish on launch day

Click publish when ready to collect responses

Limited-Time Campaigns

Publish at start

Publish form when campaign begins

Share widely

Distribute link via all channels

Monitor responses

Check response count regularly

Unpublish at deadline

Unpublish when campaign ends

Export data

Download CSV of all responses

Evergreen Forms

Publish once

Publish for ongoing use

Set and forget

Leave published indefinitely

Regular exports

Download responses weekly/monthly

Monitor activity

Check for spam or issues periodically

Troubleshooting

Form link shows 'Form not found'

Possible causes:

Form is unpublished (check status in dashboard)
Wrong slug in URL (verify the exact URL from the copy button)
Form was deleted

Solution: Ensure form is published and URL is correct.

Copy Link button doesn't work

Possible causes:

Browser doesn’t support clipboard API
HTTPS not enabled (clipboard requires secure context)

Solution: Manually copy the URL from the input field, or use a modern browser with HTTPS.

Want to change form URL

Current limitation: Slugs are permanent and cannot be changed.Workaround: Create a new form with AI (you can describe it the same way) to get a new slug.

Need password-protected forms

Current limitation: FastForms doesn’t support password protection.Workaround: Keep forms unpublished and only share the preview with authorized users, or implement custom authentication in your deployment.

Quick Reference: To share a form, navigate to /forms/[formId], click “Publish Form”, then click “Copy Link” and share via your preferred channel.

Get Started

Core Features

Guides

Understanding Form URLs

URL Structure

Public vs Private Forms

Unpublished (Private)

Published (Public)

Publishing Your Form

The Publishing Interface

Before Publishing

After Publishing

Unpublishing Forms

How to Unpublish

When to Unpublish

When to Keep Forms Private

Testing

Drafting

Preparing

Reviewing

When to Publish

URL Security Considerations

Slug Privacy

Access Control

Tracking Form Status

In the Form Detail Page

Via the API

Common Workflows

Pre-Launch Testing

Limited-Time Campaigns

Evergreen Forms

Troubleshooting

Get Started

Core Features

Guides

​Understanding Form URLs

​URL Structure

​Public vs Private Forms

Unpublished (Private)

Published (Public)

​Publishing Your Form

​The Publishing Interface

​Before Publishing

​After Publishing

​Unpublishing Forms

​How to Unpublish

​When to Unpublish

​Best Practices for Sharing

​When to Keep Forms Private

Testing

Drafting

Preparing

Reviewing

​When to Publish

​Sharing Strategies

​URL Security Considerations

​Slug Privacy

​Access Control

​Tracking Form Status

​In the Form Detail Page

​Via the API

​Common Workflows

​Pre-Launch Testing

​Limited-Time Campaigns

​Evergreen Forms

​Troubleshooting

Understanding Form URLs

URL Structure

Public vs Private Forms

Publishing Your Form

The Publishing Interface

Before Publishing

After Publishing

Unpublishing Forms

How to Unpublish

When to Unpublish

Best Practices for Sharing

When to Keep Forms Private

When to Publish

Sharing Strategies

URL Security Considerations

Slug Privacy

Access Control

Tracking Form Status

In the Form Detail Page

Via the API

Common Workflows

Pre-Launch Testing

Limited-Time Campaigns

Evergreen Forms

Troubleshooting