# monday.com Form Connect Boards & Mirror Column Limitations Canonical: https://www.taskrhino.ca/en-us/monday-com-forms/connect-boards-mirror-columns/ > monday.com Connect Boards and Mirror columns in forms: Connect Boards needs logged-in users, Mirror is not supported. Why, and four ways to link them. Published: 2026-02-26 Updated: 2026-10-29 Author: Rakesh Patel Categories: BoardBridge **Key takeaways** - WorkForms (see our [monday.com forms guide](https://www.taskrhino.ca/en-us/monday-com-forms/)) has a Connect Boards question, but only on forms that require login to monday.com, and only for submitters who can access the connected board(s). - Mirror is not a WorkForms question type, so no form, public or logged-in, can include a Mirror column. - Mirror, Formula, Auto-Number, Last Updated and Creation Log are computed columns that a form can’t write. - For public forms, collect a dropdown choice or an identifier, then link items afterwards: by hand, with a cross-board automation, or through Make, Zapier or the API. - BoardBridge doesn’t support Connect Boards or Mirror either; it updates existing items and writes to two boards without creating links. Connect Boards and Mirror columns are powerful on monday.com boards. In forms? Connect Boards needs a logged-in submitter, and Mirror doesn’t exist. Can you use monday.com Connect Boards and Mirror columns in forms? If you’ve tried building a form that writes to a Connect Boards column — or hoped to show mirrored data from a connected board inside a form — you’ve hit one of [monday.com WorkForms’ hard walls](https://www.taskrhino.ca/en-us/monday-com-forms/workforms-limitations/). WorkForms has a Connect Boards question, but only for submitters who log in to monday.com and can access the connected board; Mirror columns aren’t supported at all ([monday.com Help Center](https://support.monday.com/hc/en-us/articles/22630036771986-WorkForms-question-types)). BoardBridge doesn’t support either column type. This isn’t about [missing features](https://www.taskrhino.ca/en-us/monday-com-forms/features-by-plan/). It’s about how these column types work at the API level. Here’s why they’re limited, what that means for form workflows, and what you can do instead. ## Why monday.com Connect Boards Column Doesn’t Work in Public Forms **The limit:** Connect Boards column can’t be populated via public form submissions monday.com’s official documentation describes the limits ([monday.com Help Center](https://support.monday.com/hc/en-us/articles/22630036771986-WorkForms-question-types)): the Connect Boards question requires “Require login to monday.com” and only shows to submitters who can access the connected board(s), and Mirror is not among the supported question types. An older community thread, “Support for connected board columns in WorkForms”, said connected board, people, mirror, dropdown and country columns were not supported; all but Mirror are supported question types today. ### The Technical Reason Definition **Connect Boards column:** a relational column that stores links to items on other boards instead of text or numbers. Connect Boards is a **relational column type**. It doesn’t store text or numbers — it stores references to items on other boards. When you link two items via Connect Boards, monday.com’s API expects a payload like this: ``` { "item_ids": [123456789, 987654321] } ``` Those numbers are **monday.com item IDs** from the connected board. For a public-facing form to populate a Connect Boards column, it would need to: 1. **Know the item IDs** on the target board before the form is filled out 2. **Let form submitters browse or search items** from the connected board (exposing potentially sensitive data) 3. **Handle multi-select** (Connect Boards allows linking to multiple items) 4. **Validate** that the selected items still exist and are on the correct board This creates a UX problem: how does a client filling out an intake form “select” an item from your internal Vendors board when they don’t have access to that board and don’t know the item IDs? ### Real-World Example: Vendor Selection Scenario: You have a **Projects board** and a **Vendors board**. The Projects board has a Connect Boards column linking to Vendors. You want a client intake form where the client selects a vendor, and that populates the Connect Boards link. **The problem:** - The client doesn’t know your vendor item IDs - The client shouldn’t browse your full vendor list (some may be confidential) - Even if they could browse, they’d see internal data (pricing, notes, past project history) **What users try:** - Use a Dropdown column with vendor names instead → works, but it’s not a “real” Connect Boards link, so Mirror columns pulling vendor data don’t work - Pre-populate the Connect Boards link manually, then send the form to update other fields → works, but defeats the purpose of an intake form ## Why monday.com Mirror Columns Don’t Work in Forms **The limit:** Mirror columns can’t be included in forms, so data that mirrors from connected boards is invisible to form submitters Definition **Mirror column:** shows a column value from items linked through a Connect Boards column; the value lives on the other board. Mirror columns **don’t hold their own data**. They show data from items connected via Connect Boards columns, and an edit made in a Mirror column is written back to the connected item. For example, if your Projects board has a Connect Boards link to Vendors, a Mirror column could display the vendor’s email address, phone number, or status. ### The Technical Reason Mirror columns are **computed** — monday.com calculates their values automatically based on the Connect Boards link. The API can read them but can’t update or clear them; they don’t accept `change_column_value` mutations. Even if you could include a Mirror column in a form, it would only show another board’s value — there is nothing on the form’s own item to write. And since a Connect Boards question needs a logged-in submitter, a public form has no way to establish the relationship that Mirrors depend on. ### Other Read-Only / Computed Columns Mirror columns aren’t alone. Several monday.com column types are auto-calculated and can’t be written to: | Column Type | Why It’s Not Supported | | --- | --- | | **Mirror** | Shows data from Connect Boards links; the API can’t update it | | **Formula** | Auto-calculated based on other columns | | **Auto-Number** | Generated sequentially by monday.com | | **Last Updated** | System timestamp; can’t be manually set | | **Creation Log** | System metadata; can’t be manually set | These columns are useful on boards for tracking and calculations, but they don’t fit the form submission model — forms write data, these columns compute data. ## What the Community Says About Connect Boards and Mirror Columns in Forms Community feature requests to add connected board and mirror columns to forms go back years. Most of the column types those threads asked for (People, Dropdown, Country and Connect Boards) are now WorkForms question types ([monday.com Help Center](https://support.monday.com/hc/en-us/articles/22630036771986-WorkForms-question-types)); Mirror is still missing. Response editing (Enterprise) also can’t change Signature or Connect Boards answers ([monday.com Help Center](https://support.monday.com/hc/en-us/articles/11040473466258)). Even Enterprise customers with monday.com’s [response editing](https://www.taskrhino.ca/en-us/monday-com-forms/response-editing-without-enterprise/) feature can’t edit Connect Boards answers after submission, and public submitters can’t see the question at all. **Competitor limitations:** - **Fillout** markets “choose and filter down records from multiple Monday tables” as a feature — but this creates new items on the form’s target board; it doesn’t write to Connect Boards columns. Source: [Fillout monday.com integration](https://fillout.com/integrations/monday) - **SuperForm** supports many advanced column types (Dependencies, Tags, WorldClock, etc.) and advertises connected boards, mirror columns and data pulled from other boards; its product page doesn’t document whether a submission writes to a Connect Boards column. Source: [SuperForm features](https://spot-nik.com/product/superform/) For public submitters, the usual path is to **[create an item](https://www.taskrhino.ca/en-us/monday-com-forms/creating-workforms/)** on a board that has Connect Boards columns, then link those items after submission. **Stop Creating Duplicates** BoardBridge forms update existing items — no Enterprise plan, no workarounds, no duplicates. [See It In Action](https://calendly.com/rp-spaceo/call-with-rakesh-est-timezone) ## Workarounds That Actually Work for Connect Boards and Mirror Columns Since public forms can’t populate Connect Boards and no form populates Mirror columns, here’s how teams handle relational data: ### Workaround 1: Dropdown with Manual Linking **Setup:** 1. Add a **Dropdown column** (or Status column) to your form’s target board with options matching the connected board’s items: “Vendor A”, “Vendor B”, “Vendor C” 2. Form submitters select from this dropdown 3. After the form is submitted, manually add the Connect Boards link by selecting the corresponding item from the Vendors board **Pros:** - Form submitters see readable names, not item IDs - No security issues (you control what names appear in the dropdown) - Works with any form tool **Cons:** - Requires manual follow-up to establish the Connect Boards link - Dropdown needs updating when new vendors are added - Mirror columns don’t populate automatically (because the Connect Boards link is added after submission) **Best for:** Low-volume intake where manual linking is acceptable ### Workaround 2: Automation After Submission **Setup:** 1. Form creates an item with a **Status** or **Dropdown column** indicating which vendor/item should be connected 2. Use a [monday.com cross-board automation](https://www.taskrhino.ca/en-us/monday-com-automations/cross-board-limitations/) such as “create item in board & connect boards” ([monday.com Help Center](https://support.monday.com/hc/en-us/articles/360011393900-Cross-board-automations)), or a rule per option: “When Status changes to ‘Vendor A’, connect to item ‘Vendor A’ on Vendors board” 3. With the per-option approach, each possible connection needs its own rule **Pros:** - Automated linking after submission - Mirror columns populate automatically once the Connect Boards link is established **Cons:** - The per-option approach needs one rule per option (10 vendors = 10 automation rules) - High maintenance when the connected board changes - Consumes monday.com automation actions **Best for:** Small, stable sets of connections (under 10 options) TaskRhino tip Past 10 options, skip one rule per option: use the “create item in board & connect boards” automation or an API lookup instead. ### Workaround 3: Text Field with Lookup via API **Setup:** 1. Form includes a **Text field** where the submitter enters a vendor name, project ID, or other identifier 2. Use Make, Zapier, or a custom API script to: - Search the connected board for a matching item - Create the Connect Boards link programmatically via API - Populate Mirror columns as a result **Pros:** - Fully automated - Handles large connected boards (100+ items) - Flexible matching (can search by name, ID, email, etc.) **Cons:** - Requires middleware (Make/Zapier subscription) or custom development - More complex to set up and maintain - Slower (introduces delay between submission and linking) **Best for:** High-volume workflows where automation investment is justified ### Workaround 4: Pre-Link, Then Update Other Fields **Setup:** 1. Manually create items on your Projects board with Connect Boards links already established 2. Send form links that **[update existing items](https://www.taskrhino.ca/en-us/monday-com-forms/update-existing-items/)** for other columns (status, notes, dates) but leave the Connect Boards link untouched 3. BoardBridge doesn’t write Connect Boards columns, so the link isn’t overwritten (its per-field overwrite protection covers the columns it does write) **Use case:** Client intake where you [pre-assign a vendor](https://www.taskrhino.ca/en-us/monday-com-forms/pre-fill-without-enterprise/) internally, then send the client a form to fill in project details. The vendor link stays intact; the client updates scope, dates, and deliverables. **Best for:** Update-existing-item workflows where relationships are pre-defined Need help setting up monday.com integration services with automated Connect Boards linking? TaskRhino offers custom workflow automation. **See How BoardBridge Handles Form Updates** Book a free demo to see BoardBridge solve this exact problem — live, with your data. [Book a Free Demo](https://calendly.com/rp-spaceo/call-with-rakesh-est-timezone) ## What Third-Party Apps Offer **SuperForm** — a monday.com marketplace form app ($35-$520/month on paid tiers) — advertises connected boards, mirror columns and data pulled from other boards. From SuperForm’s feature list: > “Supports Connect Boards, Mirror, Formula, Subitems, Dependencies, Tags, Hour, WorldClock, Week, and Item ID column types” Its product page doesn’t document whether a form submission writes to a Connect Boards column, so test that before you rely on it ([Spot-nik](https://spot-nik.com/product/superform/)). **Fillout** advertises “powerful multi-board workflows”; its docs describe update forms and record pickers across monday.com tables ([Fillout](https://www.fillout.com/help/monday-update)). Writing Connect Boards links from a public-facing form remains the hard part, because the submitter can’t see your boards. ## What BoardBridge Doesn’t Do (And Won’t Pretend To) BoardBridge does **not** support Connect Boards or Mirror columns in forms. We’re upfront about this because: 1. **API complexity.** Connect Boards requires item ID lookups, validation, and multi-select handling that breaks the simple form submission model. 2. **Security concerns.** Letting external users browse connected boards exposes internal data they shouldn’t see. 3. **Workarounds are better UX.** Dropdown columns with readable names + automation or manual linking is cleaner than asking form submitters to search for item IDs. We’d rather be honest about limits than ship a feature that’s fragile and confusing. ## What BoardBridge Does Support While we can’t handle Connect Boards or Mirror, BoardBridge does solve several WorkForms gaps: - **[Update existing items](https://www.taskrhino.ca/en-us/monday-com-forms/update-existing-items/)** (not just create new ones) — one of the most-requested WorkForms features since 2020 - **[Dual-board mapping](https://www.taskrhino.ca/en-us/monday-com-forms/write-to-multiple-boards/)** — one form writes to two boards simultaneously (different from Connect Boards — creates independent items, not relationships) - **Conditional logic** with AND/OR operators on any plan — WorkForms logic is OR-only - **Rich HTML emails** with CC/BCC groups and a custom sender name and reply-to - **Field types** with read/write support, including text, email, phone, number, date, dropdown and location For the column types we support, we support them fully — with pre-fill, validation, overwrite protection, and cross-board mapping. ## Common Questions **Q: Can you use Connect Boards and Mirror columns in monday.com forms?** A: Connect Boards, only partly; Mirror, no. WorkForms has a Connect Boards question, but it requires login to monday.com and only shows to submitters who can access the connected board(s). Mirror columns show values from connected items; the API can’t update them, and they aren’t a form question type. **Q: Will Connect Boards support ever be added to forms?** A: It already exists for logged-in submitters who can access the connected board(s). For external users who can’t see your boards, Dropdown + automation is simpler and safer. **Q: Can I at least display Mirror column data in a form?** A: No. Mirror is not a WorkForms question type, and on a public form there is no Connect Boards link for it to pull from. If you pre-link items manually, you could use a Text field to display mirrored data via API — but that’s a custom build, not a native form feature. **Q: What about Subitems — can forms create subitems?** A: BoardBridge does not currently support subitem creation via forms. Subitems require parent item references and nested data structures that don’t fit the standard form submission model. This is another area where manual creation or automation is the better path. **Q: Can I use Connect Boards in the form’s target board, even if the form doesn’t populate it?** A: Yes. Your target board can absolutely have Connect Boards and Mirror columns — they just won’t be editable via a public form. You’d link items manually or via automation after submission. **Q: Why do some apps claim to support Connect Boards if they can’t actually write to it?** A: Check what “support” means. An app may display Connect Boards data (read-only), create items on boards that *contain* Connect Boards columns, or write the link itself. Always test before subscribing. **Q: Can I use monday.com’s automations to link items after form submission?** A: Yes, with limitations. You can set up automations like “When Status = X, connect to Item Y on Board Z” — but a rule per possible connection becomes unmaintainable for 50+ vendors. monday.com also has a cross-board “create item in board & connect boards” automation ([monday.com Help Center](https://support.monday.com/hc/en-us/articles/360011393900-Cross-board-automations)), and logged-in submitters can pick the linked item directly with the Connect Boards question. **Q: What if I use the form to update an item that already has Connect Boards links?** A: The links stay intact. BoardBridge (and most form tools) won’t overwrite columns they don’t support. If your item is pre-linked to a vendor via Connect Boards, sending the form to update project details leaves the vendor link alone. **Q: Can I pre-fill a form with data from a connected board via Mirror columns?** A: No. Since BoardBridge doesn’t read or write Connect Boards/Mirror columns, we can’t pull mirrored data for pre-fill. If you need to display vendor details to the form submitter, use a Text field populated via API before generating the form link. **Q: Are connected board columns and mirror columns supported in WorkForms?** A: Connect Boards is, as a question for logged-in submitters who can access the connected board(s); Mirror is not. Conditional logic uses answers in the form, not live data from other boards. For public forms, use Dropdown + automation as a workaround. ## Who This Matters To This limitation affects teams who: - Need client-facing forms that establish item relationships (projects → vendors, tasks → clients) - Want form submitters to “select a vendor” and have that populate a Connect Boards link - Expected Mirror columns to display related data inside forms - Assumed Connect Boards “just works” like Dropdown or Status columns If your workflow depends on Connect Boards relationships from form submissions, you’ll need automation, middleware, or manual linking as a follow-up step. **Need monday.com forms that update existing items, write to multiple boards, and include conditional logic? BoardBridge by TaskRhino handles what WorkForms can’t — with honest limits on relational columns.** Book a free 30-minute consultation at https://calendly.com/rp-spaceo/call-with-rakesh-est-timezone **Need Help With Your monday.com Setup?** TaskRhino has implemented monday.com for 110+ teams. Get a free consultation. [Schedule Free Consultation](https://calendly.com/rp-spaceo/call-with-rakesh-est-timezone) ## Frequently Asked Questions **Why can’t I select Connect Boards columns when building a monday.com form?** ### The Connect Boards question needs the Require login to monday.com setting, and it only shows to submitters who can access the connected board(s). Mirror columns are not a supported question type at all. \*\*BoardBridge\*\* does not support Connect Boards or Mirror columns either; for public forms, collect an identifier and link items after submission. **What happens if I try to include a Mirror column in a monday.com form view?** ### Mirror columns are unavailable in monday.com forms because Mirror is not among the supported question types. Attempting to add them results in the column not appearing in the form builder. \*\*BoardBridge\*\* does not support Mirror columns either. **How can I workaround the Connect Boards limitation in monday.com forms for customer data linking?** ### Since public forms can’t use the Connect Boards question, collect basic identifiers like email or ID in a text field, then use automations or integrations to match and link to the customer board after submission. This manual linking step ensures data integrity without native form support. \*\*BoardBridge\*\* does not create Connect Boards links, so this follow-up step applies with it too. **Does the 2-hop Mirror column limit affect form submissions in monday.com?** ### The 2-hop limit on mirroring Mirror columns prevents deep chaining but is irrelevant to forms, which don’t support any Mirror columns at all. \*\*BoardBridge\*\* does not support Mirror columns either. **Can I use permissions to make Connect Boards visible in monday.com forms?** ### Partly. The Connect Boards question only shows to submitters who are logged in and can access the connected board(s), so board permissions decide who sees it. Mirror columns are not supported in forms. \*\*BoardBridge\*\* does not support Connect Boards columns, so it cannot help here. **What’s the best way to link form submissions to multiple boards without Connect Boards?** ### Use a unique identifier in the form (e.g., customer ID), then trigger a cross-board automation to create links via Connect Boards column post-submission. Plan limits apply: a board can connect to 1 board on Basic, 5 on Standard, 20 on Pro and 200 on Enterprise, with up to 10,000 linked items per board. \*\*BoardBridge\*\* can write one submission to two boards, but as separate items, not Connect Boards links.