Update/Calculate field condition is not working

I am building a form for my business where customers order personalized letters. There are 16 different versions of letters. My goal is for the form to automatically determine the correct letter version based on the customer’s answers, store that version in a hidden field (“Letter Version – admin only”), and then send me an email notification with the matching PDF attached.

Here’s what ChatGPT and I have done so far:

• Created 16 PDFs in the PDF Editor (one for each letter version).
• Added a hidden field called Letter Version (admin only).
• Built Update/Calculate Field conditions so that when specific answers are chosen, the condition should write the correct string (like “Original – English – Male Pet”) into the hidden field.
• Set up Change Email Recipient conditions so that when the hidden field equals a specific value, it should trigger the corresponding notification email with the correct PDF attached.

The problem is: when I test the form, the hidden field never populates (the “Letter Version – admin only” column in Tables is always blank), which means none of the email conditions are firing. I have confirmed the DO section in the conditions is set to “Calculate Field Value → String,” and the summary is pointing to the hidden field. I’ve also double-checked that the emails and PDF attachments are set up correctly.

In short: the conditions are not writing into the hidden field at all, so the automation chain breaks. Can you help me identify why the hidden field isn’t updating, and what I might be missing?

Screenshots for reference (all on one screenshot):

1. Screenshot of one condition (showing the IF rules and DO → Calculate Field Value → Letter Version setup).
2. Screenshot of my Jotform Tables view (showing the “Letter Version – admin only” column staying blank after submissions).
3. Screenshot of my Email Notification settings (showing the condition that should trigger the email + PDF).

Please help!

Hi Heaven_Sent_Pets,

Thanks for reaching out to us for help. As you mentioned, the issue probably lies within the condition to autofill the Letter version field.

Now, I cloned your form and I can easily replicate the issue. After thoroughly checking the fields and condition, I notice you have the field "Is this a non-furry pet? Examples: Fish, Bird, Horse, Other." included in the condition. That field is currently hidden in the form, so technically, it doesn't get filled out. I'm referring to this:

Is that field suppose to be filled out? If so, making it visible in the form should fix the issue, so that it gets filled out, to trigger the conditions. Let me walk you through how to make that field visible.

1. In Form Builder, look for the Is this a non-furry pet? Examples: Fish, Bird, Horse, Other. field and select it.

2. Then, right click on that field and click on Show.

Check out my result:

Let us know if there's anything else we can help you with.

Thank you very much for your reply.

You are correct. Allowing the customer to answer that hidden question does solve the problem.

Given that the question "is this a non-furry pet?" was supposed to be a hidden helper field and the question is honestly odd and difficult to understand for the customer, do you have another recommendation that is an easy fix.

I don't have an IT background and I am relying on ChatGPT to help out. I have 16 letters and have already written a number of conditions. I am hoping to minimize my work because so many things trigger or affect something else

Here are the alternative ideas it came up with:

• Keep the helper question in your form.
• Let customers actually answer Yes/No after selecting the pet type.
• Your existing 16 conditions keep working as-is (no need to rebuild dozens more).
• Downside: It adds one extra click for the customer.

• Leave Non-furry pet? hidden.
• Create new logic:
• IF Type of Pet = Dog, Cat, Rabbit → set Non-furry = No.
• IF Type of Pet = Bird, Fish, Horse, Other → set Non-furry = Yes.
• Now your original 16 conditions still work (they see Yes/No).
• Customers never see the helper question.
• This is basically restoring the shortcut behind the scenes.

• As you said, this means blowing up 16 conditions into 40–60 depending on how many animals map to each letter.
• Most time-consuming, but technically the cleanest if you want full control by pet type.

Fixed the problem! Thank you!

Hi Heaven_Sent_Pets,

I see you have already created conditions to insert an answer in the "is this a non-furry pet?" field:

But, condition 17 is similar with condition 19. Can you also check and delete the other one to avoid conflicts in the condition? Once done, the conditions should work and no need to show the "is this a non-furry pet?" field

Give it a try and let us know if you have any other questions.

Thank you for catching that and I greatly appreciate the help!