Approval forms are essential tools for organizations to streamline decision-making processes.
They allow teams to submit requests, such as project proposals or expense approvals, that require managerial consent.
Approval forms help teams collect requests and get decisions in a consistent, trackable way. When you pair an approval form with dashboards and notifications, you can reduce delays, centralize communication, and keep a clear audit trail of what was requested, approved, or rejected.
In Formaloo, an approval flow usually includes four parts:
A request form (what people submit)
Internal approval fields (status, reviewer comments, decision date)
A reviewer dashboard (Table and optionally Kanban) to track and process requests
Notifications for key stages (submitted, approved, rejected)
Step 1: Start from a template or create a blank form
Option A: Use an approval template (fastest)
Go to Templates.
Search for an approval workflow template (for example, Purchase order approvals ).
Click Use template.
Option B: Create from scratch
From your dashboard, click + New → Form.
Name your form (example: Purchase Request).
💡 Tip: Use Magic Create to generate the first draft (based on your fields)
If you already know what you need, you can use Magic Create and simply describe your approval form, Formaloo generates the structure for you, and you can refine it in the builder.
🔗 Learn more: How to create any form using magic create in Formaloo
Step 2: Build the request section (what submitters fill)
Add the fields people need to submit a clear request. Common examples:
Requester name
Requester email (needed for notifications)
Department / team
Request reason / description
Due date (Date field)
Attachment (File upload)
For purchase orders, a Repeating section is perfect for line items, like:
Item name
Quantity
Unit price
Link / vendor
Step 3: Add internal approval fields (hidden from submitters)
Approval workflows need at least one internal field to track the decision. These fields are typically hidden from submitters and used by reviewers.
Add a Single choice (or Dropdown) field named Approval status.
Add options like:
Pending
In review
Approved
Denied (or Rejected)
Set the field access to Admin-only (so submitters don’t see it).
Add reviewer-only context fields (recommended)
Examples:
Urgency (Low / Medium / High)
Budget code
Approver’s comments
Approved by (short text)
Decision date (date field)
ℹ️ Set Field IDs: Clean field IDs make it easier to reuse values in emails, PDFs, and success pages using answer piping. For example, if your field ID is approval_status, you can show it later using answer piping (for example @approval_status).
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You can edit a field’s name or ID anytime from the right sidebar. If you update an ID, make sure to update it everywhere you’ve used it (logic rules, answer piping, email templates, PDF templates).
🔗 Learn more: How to create and use answer piping
Step 4: Add rules with Advanced Logic (optional but powerful)
Use logic to keep the form clean and route approvals correctly.
Common approval logic examples
If Total amount is above a threshold → show “Extra justification”
If Department = IT → show IT-specific questions
If Urgency = High → trigger a different notification path
To set this up:
Go to Settings → Advanced Logic.
Add Show/Hide rules or conditional requirements.
💡 Tip: To keep every new request consistent, set approval status to pending by default when the request is submitted. This way, every new entry lands in your dashboard with the correct starting status and reviewers do not need to initialize it manually.
Step 5: Choose the right trigger
Formaloo logic triggers control when an automation runs. The two most important triggers for approvals are On submit and On update.
Use On submit for actions that should happen immediately after the requester submits the form, based on the requester’s answers.
Common On submit actions:
Send an email to the right team based on request type
Generate a request PDF
Set values (like approval status = pending)
Example:
If Department is IT, notify IT manager and generate a purchase request PDF.
Use On update for actions that should happen when a reviewer changes an internal field later, especially approval status.
Common On update actions:
Send approved or rejected emails when approval status changes
Notify the requester and include approver comments
Example:
When approval status updates to approved, email the requester confirming approval.
When approval status updates to rejected, email the requester with the rejection reason pulled from approver comments.
💡Tip: You can use AI to draft or improve your email content. In the email template editor, use the AI tools to generate a clear message, then add answer piping (field IDs) to personalize it with the requester’s details, status, and comments.
🔗 Learn more: Generate personalized follow-ups with AI Email Assistant
Step 6: Create an approval dashboard (Table + Kanban)
Approval workflows work best when submitters only use the request form, and reviewers handle everything else in an internal portal. In this step, you’ll create a simple reviewer dashboard using a Table view and (optionally) a Kanban board, then restrict access so only reviewers can manage approvals.
1) Add a reviewer page in your portal
Create a portal and add pages such as All requests.
2) Set up a Table view for review and filtering
Use a Table view to help reviewers process requests quickly. Include the key columns they need at a glance, such as requester, department, submitted date, and approval status. Reviewers can then filter by status (for example, pending), search by department, and sort by urgency or due date.
3) Add a Kanban view for workflow stages
Add a Kanban view and group it by your approval status field (for example, pending, in review, approved, rejected). This makes it easy to track progress and move requests through stages. When a reviewer moves a card, the status field updates, so your workflow stays consistent.
4) Set access for reviewers only
Open each portal page’s Access settings and allow access only to the reviewer role or internal team members.
🔗 Learn more: How to create a portal and manage users' access
ℹ️ Keep Approval status as your single source of truth, and group Kanban columns by that field to avoid mismatches and confusion.
🔗 Learn more: Create and use Kanban views
Step 7: Publish and share
Once your request form, logic, and reviewer portal are ready, publish your project and share the correct link with the correct audience.
Share the request form with submitters
Copy the form link and share it with the people submitting requests. If needed, embed the form on your website or internal page so it’s easy to access.
Share the portal with reviewers
Share the portal link with approvers and team members so they can review submissions, leave comments, and update approval status. Reviewers should not need to edit the original form, everything should happen from the portal pages.
At this point, your approval workflow is ready, requesters can submit the form, reviewers can manage requests from the portal, and status changes can trigger the right next steps automatically.
For more insights, you can read about how to Streamline your business with approval forms and workflows on our blog.
⚠️ Before sharing it with your team, run one full test submission end-to-end (submit as a requester, review in the portal, update the status, and confirm emails and permissions work as expected).
Once everything looks right, you can publish and roll it out with confidence.