---
title: Code Field
label: Code
order: 50
desc: The Code field type will store any string in the Database. Learn how to use Code fields, see examples and options.

keywords: code, fields, config, configuration, documentation, Content Management System, cms, headless, javascript, node, react, express
---

<Banner >
  The Code field type saves a string in the database, but provides the Admin panel with a code editor styled interface.
</Banner>

This field uses `prismjs` for syntax highlighting and `react-simple-code-editor` for the editor itself.

### Config

| Option           | Description |
| ---------------- | ----------- |
| **`name`** *         | To be used as the property name when stored and retrieved from the database.  |
| **`label`**          | Used as a field label in the Admin panel and to name the generated GraphQL type. |
| **`unique`**         | Enforce that each entry in the Collection has a unique value for this field. |
| **`index`**          | Build a [MongoDB index](https://docs.mongodb.com/manual/indexes/) for this field to produce faster queries. Set this field to `true` if your users will perform queries on this field's data often. |
| **`minLength`**      | Used by the default validation function to ensure values are of a minimum character length. |
| **`maxLength`**      | Used by the default validation function to ensure values are of a maximum character length. |
| **`validate`**       | Provide a custom validation function that will be executed on both the Admin panel and the backend. [More](/docs/fields/overview#validation) |
| **`saveToJWT`**      | If this field is top-level and nested in a config supporting [Authentication](/docs/authentication/config), include its data in the user JWT. |
| **`hooks`**          | Provide field-based hooks to control logic for this field. [More](/docs/fields/overview#field-level-hooks) |
| **`access`**         | Provide field-based access control to denote what users can see and do with this field's data. [More](/docs/fields/overview#field-level-access-control) |
| **`hidden`**         | Restrict this field's visibility from all APIs entirely. Will still be saved to the database, but will not appear in any API or the Admin panel. |
| **`defaultValue`**   | Provide data to be used for this field's default value. [More](/docs/fields/overview#default-values) |
| **`localized`**      | Enable localization for this field. Requires [localization to be enabled](/docs/configuration/localization) in the Base config. |
| **`required`**       | Require this field to have a value. |
| **`admin`**          | Admin-specific configuration. See below for [more detail](#admin-config). |

*\* An asterisk denotes that a property is required.*

### Admin config

In addition to the default [field admin config](/docs/fields/overview#admin-config), the Code field type also allows for the customization of a `language` property.

The following `prismjs` plugins are imported, enabling the `language` property to accept the following values:

| Plugin                       | Language |
| ---------------------------- | ----------- |
| **`prism-css`**              | `css` |
| **`prism-clike`**            | `clike` |
| **`prism-markup`**           | `markup`, `html`, `xml`, `svg`, `mathml`, `ssml`, `atom`, `rss` |
| **`prism-javascript`**       | `javascript`, `js` |
| **`prism-json`**             | `json` |
| **`prism-jsx`**              | `jsx` |
| **`prism-typescript`**       | `typescript`, `ts` |
| **`prism-tsx`**              | `tsx` |
| **`prism-yaml`**             | `yaml`, `yml` |

### Example

`collections/ExampleCollection.ts
```ts
import { CollectionConfig } from 'payload/types';

const ExampleCollection: CollectionConfig = {
  slug: 'example-collection',
  fields: [
    {
      name: 'trackingCode', // required
      type: 'code', // required
      required: true,
      admin: {
        language: 'js'
      }
    }
  ]
};
```
