Column Types

A column type is like the label on a box in your kitchen — it tells the box what belongs inside, so a jar marked "spices" never ends up holding forks. In a Nirvai database, each column has a type that says what kind of information it holds (a name, a date, a price, a yes-or-no answer), and Nirvai uses that type to keep the data tidy, show it nicely, and make it easy to search.

Nirvai offers 17 column types, grouped below by what they're good for. Picking the right one means your data stays clean and your filters, sorting, and forms just work.

Image: Grid view showing several different column types side by side

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Basic types

The everyday building blocks — plain text, numbers, dates, and simple yes-or-no answers.

Text

Free-form text for names, descriptions, notes, or anything you'd type in a sentence.

Setting	Description	Default
Max length	The most characters a cell can hold	255

When the max length goes above 65,535, the column switches to unlimited text storage behind the scenes.

Number

Numeric values — whole numbers, decimals, or money amounts.

Setting	Description	Default
Format	integer, decimal, or currency	integer
Precision	Total digits (decimal only)	10
Scale	Decimal places (decimal only)	2

Examples: 42, 19.99, 1000

Date

A calendar date, with an optional time of day.

Setting	Description	Default
Include time	Store a time alongside the date	No

• Without time: 2024-03-15
• With time: 2024-03-15 14:30

Checkbox

A simple yes-or-no toggle, shown as a checkbox you tick on or off.

Setting	Description	Default
Default value	Whether new records start ticked	No

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Choice types

For when each record should pick from a fixed list of options — think of a drop-down menu of labels you've decided on ahead of time.

Status

Stages in a pipeline, shown as colored labels. Great for tracking where something is in a process.

Setting	Description	Default
Options	The list of status values (up to 10)	—
Default value	The status new records start with	—

Examples: "New", "In Progress", "Review", "Done"

tip

Status columns are what power Kanban views — each status option becomes its own column on the board.

Select

A drop-down where each record picks one option from a list you define. Like Status, but for general categories rather than pipeline stages.

Setting	Description	Default
Options	The list of choices (up to 20)	—

Examples: "High Priority", "Bug", "Feature Request"

Multi Select

The same idea as Select, but a record can pick several options at once. Each choice shows as a colored badge.

Setting	Description	Default
Options	The list of choices (up to 20)	—

Examples: Tagging a record with ["Design", "Frontend", "Urgent"]

Image: Multi select column showing colored tag badges

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Contact types

For the details you'd find on a business card — email, website, phone, and the people involved.

Email

Email addresses, checked for the right shape. Shown as clickable links.

Setting	Description	Default
Max length	The most characters a cell can hold	320

URL

Web addresses. Shown as clickable links that open in a new tab.

Setting	Description	Default
Max length	The most characters a cell can hold	2048

Phone

Phone numbers. Shown as clickable links that start a call.

Accepted format: Digits, spaces, dashes, parentheses, and an optional + at the start (3-20 characters).

Example: +1 555-123-4567

Person

Assign one or more people (members of your organization, or guests) to a record. Shown as a stack of profile pictures.

Image: Person column showing assigned team members with profile pictures

The people drop-down shows everyone who can access the database:

• The database owner
• Members of your organization (if the database is shared)
• Guests from any view's guest list

info

Person columns aren't available in public forms, because a form visitor isn't signed in, so there's no way to know which people to offer.

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Media types

For attaching files and for unique reference codes.

File

Upload and attach a single file per cell. Works with any file type — documents, images, spreadsheets, archives, and more.

Setting	Description	Default
Max size (MB)	The largest file you can upload	10

Image: File column showing an uploaded document with its file-type badge and size

What you can do:

• Drag and drop or click to upload
• See image thumbnails for picture files
• See a color-coded file-type badge (red for PDF, blue for DOC, green for XLS, and so on)
• Download with one click
• Remove to delete the file from storage

UUID

An auto-generated unique code (a UUID, short for Universally Unique Identifier — a long string of letters and numbers that's guaranteed not to repeat). Handy when another system needs a stable way to point at each record.

Setting	Description	Default
Auto generate	Create a code automatically for each new record	Yes

Example: 550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000

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Measurement types

For numbers that mean something visual — ratings, money, progress, and time spent.

Rating

Star ratings within a range you choose. Shown as filled and empty stars.

Setting	Description	Default
Max stars	The highest rating (3-10)	5

Click a star to set the rating. Click the same star again to clear it.

Image: Rating column showing star ratings

Currency

Money amounts, formatted for the right region automatically. The currency symbol and the way decimals are shown follow the currency code you pick.

Setting	Description	Default
Currency code	The three-letter currency code	USD

Supported currencies: USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, MXN, BRL, CAD, AUD, CLP, COP, ARS, PEN

Examples: $19.99 (USD), 19,99 EUR (EUR), $19.990 (CLP — no decimals)

Progress

A percentage from 0 to 100, shown as a colored progress bar.

• Amber when below 50%
• Blue between 50-99%
• Green at 100%

Image: Progress column showing colored bars at different percentages

Duration

A length of time, stored as a total number of seconds and shown in a friendly format.

How it shows: Xh Ym (for example, 1h 30m for 5400 seconds)

When you edit a cell, you type the value in minutes. In forms, you get separate boxes for hours and minutes.

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Reference types

For linking one record to a record in another database.

Relation

Link a record to a single record in another database. Useful for connecting related information — for example, a Deal linked to a Contact, or a Task linked to a Project.

Image: A table with a Relation column linking each record to a record in another database

How it works: Click an empty relation cell to open a three-step picker:

1. Pick a space — choose which space holds the database you want to link to
2. Pick a database — choose the database to link from
3. Search and pick a record — type to search, then click a result to link it

Cells that already have a value jump straight to step 3, so you can swap the linked record without re-picking the space and database.

How it shows: Each linked record appears as a single chip with its icon and title. In Kanban or Calendar views, click the chip to see the compact display.

info

Relation columns aren't available in public forms, because a form visitor isn't signed in, so there's no way to search the other database's records.

tip

Relations point one way only — linking Deal A to Contact B doesn't automatically link Contact B back to Deal A. If you want the link both ways, add a relation column on the other side too.

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Column type summary

Type	Stored as	Filterable	Sortable	Available in forms
Text	Text	Yes	Yes	Yes
Number	Whole or decimal number	Yes	Yes	Yes
Date	Date or date-and-time	Yes	Yes	Yes
Checkbox	Yes-or-no	Yes	Yes	Yes
Status	Text	Yes	Yes	Yes
Select	Text	Yes	Yes	Yes
Multi Select	List of values	Yes	Yes	Yes
Email	Text	Yes	Yes	Yes
URL	Text	Yes	Yes	Yes
Phone	Text	Yes	Yes	Yes
Person	List of people	Yes	No	No
File	File attachment	Limited	No	Yes
UUID	Unique code	Yes	Yes	No
Rating	Whole number	Yes	Yes	Yes
Currency	Decimal number	Yes	Yes	Yes
Progress	Whole number	Yes	Yes	Yes
Duration	Whole number (seconds)	Yes	Yes	Yes
Relation	Linked record	Limited	No	No

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What's next

• Filtering & Sorting — narrow down and order your records once your columns are set up
• Records — add and edit the data that fills your columns
• AI Features — search your data in plain language and let agents update it for you