The global settings page is your central control panel for everything that applies across all your forms. This is where you configure default notification emails, connect external services, set up spam protection keys, and manage integration credentials. Individual forms can override some of these settings, but configuring good defaults here saves you time on every form you create.
Think of global settings as your organization-wide defaults. Instead of entering the same Slack webhook URL on every form, you set it once here and every new form inherits it automatically.
How to Access Settings
Go to Fillin Forge > Settings in your WordPress dashboard. The settings are organized into tabs.
Settings Reference
| Tab | What you configure | When to set it up | Free or PRO |
|---|---|---|---|
| Default notification email address and sender name | Right after installation | Free | |
| Anti-Spam | reCAPTCHA v3 Site Key, Secret Key and Threshold | When you want advanced spam protection | Free |
| Stripe | Publishable Key, Secret Key, Webhook Signing Secret, Test/Live mode | Before adding payment fields | PRO |
| Maps | Google Maps or Yandex Maps API key | Before adding map address fields | Free |
| Slack | Default Slack Incoming Webhook URL | When you want Slack notifications | PRO |
| Discord | Default Discord Webhook URL | When you want Discord notifications | PRO |
| Telegram | Chat ID from @ForgeAPINotifyBot | When you want Telegram notifications | PRO |
| Mailchimp | API key connection | Before enabling Mailchimp on forms | PRO |
| Google OAuth connection (for Sheets and Calendar) | Before using Google Sheets or the Calendar Picker’s Google Calendar sync | PRO | |
| HubSpot | Private App Token connection | Before enabling HubSpot on forms | PRO |
Recommended Setup Order
- Email — Do this first. Confirm the default notification address is correct.
- Anti-Spam — The honeypot and time check are always on. Add your reCAPTCHA v3 keys if you want a stronger layer.
- Messaging (Slack, Discord, or Telegram) — Set up whichever your team uses.
- Remaining integrations — Configure only the services you plan to use immediately. You can always add more later.
Settings Best Practices
| Best practice | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Configure Email first | Affects every form; most important setting |
| Set up Anti-Spam early | Prevents spam from day one |
| Only configure integrations you use | No benefit to connecting unused services |
| Test after every settings change | Submit a form to verify the change works |
| Use a shared inbox for notifications | Prevents one person from being a bottleneck |
> Tip: The Settings page shows connection status for each integration. Green “Connected” means the integration is ready to use. If you see an error or “Disconnected” status, click the integration tab for details. When you change any setting, a fixed unsaved-changes bar appears at the bottom of the screen with Save Settings and Reset actions so you do not have to scroll to the bottom to save.
> Good to know: Global settings are defaults that any form can override. You can have one form send notifications to [email protected] and another to [email protected], even though the global default is [email protected]. This flexibility lets you use one Fillin Forge installation for multiple teams and purposes.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Changing settings and closing the page before saving. Use the fixed Save Settings bar; Fillin Forge warns before you leave, connect, or disconnect an integration with unsaved settings.
- Configuring all integrations at once before testing any of them. Set up one, test it with a form submission, then move to the next.
- Sharing API keys or tokens with others. Settings contain sensitive credentials. Limit WordPress admin access to trusted team members.
[Screenshot: The Fillin Forge Settings page showing the Email tab selected with the default notification email field, and integration tabs along the top (Anti-Spam, Stripe, Maps, Slack, Discord, Telegram, Mailchimp, Google, HubSpot)]
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