Why Records Open in the Wrong Field Order When Using Airtable’s Search Extension

You are using the Search extension in Airtable to quickly find records across a table.

It works exactly as expected for searching. You type a keyword, find the right record in seconds, and click on it.

But when the record opens, Airtable shows all the fields, not in the order you carefully set up in your preferred view. Some fields you intentionally hid are visible. Important fields appear much lower than expected. The field order does not feel easy or natural to work with.

You have already spent time organizing a grid view with a specific field order, visibility, and flow that makes sense for your workflow.

Naturally, you expect that when you click a record from the Search extension, it would open using the same field order as that well organized view.

Unfortunately, that is not how Airtable works.

Airtable uses the field order from the first collaborative grid view

The key thing to understand is that the Search extension does not respect the field order of the view you personally use most.

Instead, when you open a record from the Search extension, Airtable uses the field order from the first collaborative grid view in the table.

This view controls the field order that appears when a record is opened from Search.

That is why you keep seeing fields in an unexpected order. Airtable is simply following a different view than the one you are thinking about.

How to control the field order correctly

Once you know this rule, the solution is straightforward.

Go to the table where you are using the Search extension.

Find the first collaborative grid view. This is the top most grid view under the Collaborative Views section. If you do not have any personal or locked views, it will simply be the first grid view in the table.

Now treat this view as the default record layout for Search.

Reorder the fields exactly the way you want them to appear when a record is opened.

Hide any fields you do not want visible. Arrange the fields in a logical top to bottom flow.

Once you set up this first collaborative grid view intentionally, the Search extension becomes much more pleasant to use with your workflow.

You can quickly find a record, click on it, and immediately see the exact information you care about, presented in the order you expect.

No extra scrolling. No confusing field layouts. Just fast searching and easy record updates.