Learn the core concepts you need to get started with formulas. Understand Coda's formula language and get started with a few key formulas.

With hundreds of formulas to offer, the Coda formula language is the key to unlocking endless possibilities as you build out your docs. It’s part of the secret sauce that makes Coda super powerful. You can add formulas to the canvas, to table columns, to buttons, to automations, and more.

This article will help you develop a strong foundation and understanding of the Coda formula language and get you up and running with a few key formulas. Get ready to level up your productivity and make magic happen with Coda’s Formula language! 🚀

The Coda Formula Language explained

The Coda formula language is similar to spoken or written words; it's a language. This means that although there are rules to improve efficiency and comprehension, there is no one specific way to accomplish anything.

For example, a greeting could look like:

Hello!
Hey there!
Greetings, fellow Coda user!

All different greetings, but they accomplish the same thing. If you think of all the ways to greet someone, some of them are longer, and some are more efficient, and some might make more sense given the context of where you are and who you’re interacting with.

So when working with the Coda formula language, you’ll have your way of writing it, which might differ from the way other Makers write their formulas, and that’s okay!

The other thing to remember is that you don’t need to know every word in the dictionary in order to be a proficient speaker.

The same goes for the Coda formula language. You don’t need to know every formula to be successful, but we do have our formula dictionary should you ever need it 🧠

Breaking down a Coda formula

Coda formulas are made up of two major components: Objects and Functions.

To stay with our language analogy, you can think of Objects as Nouns, and Functions as Verbs.

Nouns = Objects

If you’ve ever used Excel or Google Sheets, you may be used to using coordinates to pinpoint a cell. In Coda, all objects have names. No coordinates needed! Simply type the name of the object you want to reference.

Objects hold the data we want to work with:

A table is an object
A column is an object
A row is an object

Verbs = Functions

Functions are things that we want to do to the given object:

Filter() - filter the given dataset down based on specific criteria
Count() - count the given dataset
ToText() - convert the given dataset to plain text values

Formula chips

Chips are your Nouns, aka, Objects. When you click on a chip, you can learn more about that specific Object:

When we click on Fruit chip in this formula example above, we can see that this is an option in the Fruit or Vegetable column in the Produce table.

Color coding tells you the location

Formula chips of the same color mean that those objects are located in the same table:

Take a look at the example above. Based on the color of the chips, you can see that Produce and Fruit or Vegetable are part of the same table, and thisRow.Category is part of the Categories table.

Icons tell you the type of data, and how many

Take a look at the reference below. These icons will be at the far-right of each chip in your formulas, and will note what type of data you are working with.

The icon will also tell you whether you are referencing a singular value vs a list of values, or an array of values — a list or array is more than one value. Notice the “stacked” icons for lists:

Formula syntax

The Coda formula language is a little bit Excel, a little bit JavaScript. What we mean by that is that you can choose to use the wrapping method, or the chaining method while writing your formulas.

In Excel’s formula language, you use a lot of parentheses:

Modified(thisDocument)

This is called wrapping. This syntax is totally valid in the Coda formula language, but as your formulas become longer and more complex, this method can become a bit difficult to read as the number of parentheses increases.

In Coda, you can also get the same answer this way:

thisDocument.Modified()

This is called chaining. The chaining method allows you to write your formulas in a more sentence structured way, similar to JavaScript syntax.

Either way works! It all comes down to personal preference and what feels best to you!

Parentheses

Things inside of parentheses can be viewed as one statement, or one sentence. Coda is going to look at that one statement and evaluate it as a whole.

In lengthy formulas, parentheses will help note where one sentence ends and the next begins. You can click on a parenthesis to see it’s highlighted pair. This will show you where your sentence begins and ends.

Additionally, just like in math problems, you'll use parentheses to separate multiple AND and OR functions so that all of your calculations happen in the right order. Coda will calculate anything inside of a parentheses first:

(2*2)/(4+4) = .5

In the example above, we will execute 2*2 and 4+4 before doing the division.

In the same way, use parentheses to specify how multiple AND or OR functions should be grouped.

By default, the formula applies the logic from left to right in the order that it appears. If you want to specify a specific order, just use parentheses 😉

The Dot Operator

With the help of the Dot Operator, you can using the chaining method to write formulas for better readability.

Chaining separates steps in your formula by using a dot operator which is just a fancy descriptor for a .

At its most basic level, chaining looks like this:

The formula builder

Coda’s formula builder is where you will write all your formulas, whether they are located in a table or directly on the canvas.

Open up the formula builder

You'll find the formula builder in many places across Coda: in buttons, automations, controls, and more. But the two most common ways you'll access the formula builder are either directly on the canvas or in a table column.

To open the formula builder on the canvas:

Click anywhere on your page canvas and type =
Start typing your formula

💡 Trying to type = and not open the formula builder? Press Esc on your keyboard to exit the formula builder and keep the = character on your canvas.

To open the formula builder in a specific table column:

Navigate to the column you want to add a formula to.
Right click on that column to open up the column menu, or click on the column-type icon to access the column menu
Click Calculate to open up the calculation builder
In the lower left corner of the menu, click on the small italicized f to open the formula builder for that specific column.

💡Tip: You'll see this small italicized f symbol in many places across Coda (buttons, table filters, automations, conditional formatting, and more). This is in indicator that you can use a formula. Simply click the icon to open the formula.

Auto-suggestions, formula details, and errors

Coda’s formula builder tries to make writing formulas as easy as possible for you. Here’s a few cool things within the formula builder that will help you in writing great formulas for your docs:

As you write your formula in the formula builder, Coda will provide you with auto-suggestions for the data you might be trying to target with your formula.

To the right of the list of auto-suggestions, if you select a formula rather than a table or column, you can access the details of a formula like the correct inputs, expected outputs, and examples on how to use them.

If you write a formula that won’t compute, the formula builder will let you know where the error is and what might be missing. Look for the red squiggle lines you might find under a misspelled word, and the error code displayed in the Formula Builder. Check out this article for more tips on troubleshooting your formulas.

Expand the editor and auto-formatting

If you’re writing a formula and feel like you want a little more space to work, you can expand the formula builder to a modal view:

Open the formula builder
Click the Expand icon in the bottom-right corner of the formula builder.

In the expanded view modal, you now have the option to auto-format your formula for clarity.

To do so, click auto-format in the top-right corner of the expanded formula builder modal:

The top 5 formulas you need to know

There are five formulas in the Coda formula language you’ll use in doc after doc after doc. Let’s add these MVP formulas to your toolbox.

Filter

You’ll use the Filter formula when you want to look at part of a table to answer a question. The criteria for this formula can be as simple or as complex as you need.

The basic structure of filter is:

[Table you want to look at].Filter([Part of the table you are interested in]).[What you want Coda to do with this piece of data]

User

The User() formula simply returns the user’s name. In your Coda doc, open the formula builder in the canvas and add this:

User()

Then hit Enter. This should now display your name!

Next try this:

Concatenate("Welcome to Coda ", User(), ". Have a lovely day!")

The User object in Coda holds a few key pieces of information:

The user’s name
The user’s email address
The user’s Coda avatar (photo)

You can use the Dot Operator to access these pieces of information held within the user object. Try out the following in your Coda doc:

User().Name
User().Email
User().Photo

Beyond using this formula for custom greetings, you can use it to:

automatically assign tasks to whoever clicks a button
Combine it with Filter() to create a dynamic “My Tasks” view of a table that automatically filters the tasks to whoever is logged in a viewing that table.

thisRow

In Excel, the smallest unit is a cell. Since Coda is a database at heart, the smallest unit is a row. Working with rows, we're able to access all of the contextual details for each value (aka columns or attributes of the row).

Additionally, it gives you the ability to take all of the contextual details of an item with you, and the ability to use thisRow to focus your formulas.

Because rows always travel together, you can use the thisRow formula component to do a few things within your formula, and you can combine this with the Dot Operator to show more of the context:

Contains

The Contains formula checks if a list contains a specified value. If the value is found, it returns true:

List("Dog", "Giraffe").Contains("Cat", "Mouse", "Dog") = true

Additionally, with multi-select columns where you might have multiple values in that column for a given row, Contains() will be your best friend, especially combined with the Filter() formula!

If and SwitchIf

The If() formula
The If formula allows you to handle if/then logic. The basic structure of the If() formula is as follows:

If(Condition, What you want to happen if this condition is true, What you want to happen if this condition is false)

The SwitchIf() Formula

The SwitchIf formula lets you get a value conditionally. It handles multiple conditions with a fallback.

💡 You can use the SwitchIf() formula instead of long if/then statements with the If() formula.

The basic structure of the SwitchIf() formula is as follows:

SwitchIf(Condition, What you want to happen if Condition 1 is true, Condition 2, What you want to happen if Condition 2 is true, Condition 3, What you want to happen if Condition 3 is true, ...)

SwitchIf() Outputs the first value where condition is true and exits the formula. If the first condition is false, it cycles through the rest of the conditions until it finds a true condition. If none of the conditions are true, it outputs an optional final value.

For example:

SwitchIf(Today() > Date(2030, 01, 20), "Hello future!", Year(Today()) = 2023, "Hello present!", Today() < Date(2023, 17, 07), "Hello past!")

FAQs

What is the “dot operator?”

With the help of the Dot Operator, you can using the chaining method to write formulas for better readability.

Chaining separates steps in your formula by using a dot operator which is just a fancy descriptor for a .

What other operators can I use in my formulas besides the Dot Operator?

Equal to: =
Not equal to: !=
Less than: <
Greater than: >
Less than or equal to: <=
Greater than or equal to: >=
And: && or AND *(not case-sensitive)
Or: || or OR *(not case-sensitive)

What is a formula chip, and how do I read it?

Chips represent the objects you are referencing and pulling information from in your formula. When you click on a chip, you can learn more about that specific Object.

Can I auto-format my formulas?

Yes! Auto-formatting is an option in the expanded view of the formula builder. Once you’ve expanded the editor, click auto-format in the top-right corner.

Can I expand the formula builder to make the writing surface larger?

Yes! If you’re writing a formula and feel like you want a little more space to work, you can expand the formula builder to a modal view:

Open the formula builder
Click the Expand icon in the bottom-right corner of the formula builder.

Can I add comments to my formula?

Yes! In the formula builder, use // before one-line comments, or wrap your longer (more than one line) comments in /* and */:

// This is an example of a one-line comment.

/* This is an example of a much longer comment. These are great to use to help others in your doc understand what a particular formula is doing, or to simply remind yourself while you learn! */

Can I add formulas to the canvas, or can I only use them in tables?

You can use formulas in both the canvas and in table columns💥

Column formulas are formulas in a table that perform calculations on the table data. Canvas formulas are formulas embedded in the canvas. They can be freestanding and independent or tied to data from anywhere else in the document to help summarize or aggregate key data or metrics.

In the example shown below, we have a table for your shopping list of fruit, with a column that calculates the cost of each fruit type. But we also want to know the total cost of all fruit in the table, and we want this value displayed on the canvas. That's where a canvas formula could come in handy. All we need to do is hit = while typing in the canvas to open up the formula builder.

Can I name a formula I’m going to use multiple times so I don’t have to re-write it?

Yes! As you start building out your docs, you may find that you want to use one of your handy formulas in multiple places.

Rather than having to copy/paste, or remember your work, you can name a formula and use it like a doc variable.

You can name your formula by clicking Add Name in the Formula Builder above where you’ve written your formula.

What are some best practices for writing formulas?

Check out this article for best practices for writing formulas, and be sure to check out the resources linked below!

Related resources