Form submission not saving or exporting: How to diagnose

Misty Flowers

July 16, 2026 20:12

This article covers common submission issues in Finalsite Forms, including submissions not appearing in the Submissions tab, export problems, and deleted form recovery.

💡 Quick answers

Submissions not appearing in the Submissions tab: what to check first? Confirm the form is toggled to Active in the Forms module. Inactive forms render on the page but do not record submissions.
The export is empty or missing data: why? The CSV export starts automatically and completes via email notification. If results are missing, check that the date range filter covers the expected submission period.
The form appears on the page but takes no submissions: what is the issue? The wrong element may be embedded. The "Forms" element (plural, with a New badge) is for New Forms; the "Form" element (singular, no badge) is for Legacy Forms Manager only.
A form was deleted: can it be recovered? Contact Finalsite Support immediately. Deleted forms cannot be recovered through the interface and recovery is only possible within a limited window.

Troubleshoot submissions not appearing

When a form appears to accept submissions on the front end but no data appears in the Submissions tab, work through the checks below. In all cases, no error message is shown to the visitor, so the cause must be diagnosed from context.

Confirm the form is set to Active

In the Forms module, open the form and check the Active/Inactive toggle at the top. Inactive forms render on the page and allow visitors to fill in fields, but do not record incoming submissions. Toggle the form to Active and ask the visitor to resubmit. See Build a form for details on the Active toggle and form tabs.

Verify required fields and submit configuration

Some configurations silently block a submission when a required field is left empty on the visitor's end. Confirm that all required fields are filled in completely before submitting. Also confirm the form's submit behavior is configured correctly, including admin notification and confirmation email settings. See Customize form Submit options for details.

Confirm the correct Forms element is on the page

In Composer, there are two similarly named elements: the "Forms" element (plural, with a New badge) for New Forms, and the "Form" element (singular, no badge) for Legacy Forms Manager. If the legacy element is embedded, the form will appear on the page but submissions will not be recorded in New Forms. Remove the incorrect element and add the "Forms" element from the Module Element tab in the Element Library. See Display and share a form for embedding steps.

Check permissions

Viewing and managing submissions requires at least View or Admin Global Level permissions in the Forms module. If the Submissions tab appears empty or inaccessible, confirm the account has the correct permissions assigned by the main site admin. See Forms permissions for the full permissions breakdown.

Troubleshoot export issues

Submissions are exported from the Submissions tab as a CSV file. The export starts automatically and a notification email arrives when it is ready. If the export returns no data or errors, try the following.

Clear cache and try a different browser

Export issues are often device- or browser-specific rather than system-wide. Work through these steps in order:

Clear the browser's cache and cookies using Shift + Command + Delete (Mac) or Ctrl + Shift + Delete (PC), then retry the export.
Open an incognito or private window and attempt the export again to rule out browser extensions or cached data.
Try an alternate browser (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge) to determine if the issue is browser-specific.
Switch networks: local network security or firewall settings can block file downloads. Test on a cellular hotspot or different network to confirm.

Review date range filters

If the Submissions tab shows data but the exported CSV is empty or incomplete, check that the date range filter on the Submissions tab covers the full expected submission window. Adjust the range and re-run the export.

Contact support for deleted form recovery

Deleted forms are not accessible in New Forms and cannot be recovered through the interface. If a form was deleted in error, contact Finalsite Support as soon as possible. Recovery is not guaranteed and is only possible within a limited window. Include the form name and the approximate date and time it was deleted to help locate it.

Contact Finalsite Support

If the steps above do not resolve the issue, contact Finalsite Support for further investigation.