Should I use ISBLANK or ISNULL in Salesforce?

Use ISBLANK in new formulas. Salesforce still supports ISNULL, so old formulas do not need changing, as the Salesforce Help ISNULL reference explains.

Does ISBLANK treat zero as blank?

No. A field containing zero has a value, so ISBLANK returns FALSE, as the Salesforce Help ISBLANK reference states. An empty number field is different and depends on Blank Field Handling.

Can you use ISBLANK on a picklist in Salesforce?

Yes, by wrapping the field first: ISBLANK(TEXT(Industry)). The TEXT call converts the selected item into a text value that ISBLANK can test.

How do you check for blank strings in Apex?

Call String.isBlank(value). It returned true for an empty string, for spaces and for null in our test, while String.isEmpty returned false for spaces.

Why does ISNULL return FALSE on my empty text field?

Text fields are never null in formulas, so ISNULL returns FALSE even when the field looks empty. Our Northfield Credit Union record showed exactly that on its blank Website.

Salesforce ISBLANK vs ISNULL: Syntax and Examples

ISBLANK returns TRUE when a field or expression has no value and FALSE when it has one:

ISBLANK(expression)

Salesforce ISBLANK works in formula fields and validation rules, and it replaces ISNULL for new formulas. Use this sheet to copy a working pattern, see how ISBLANK and ISNULL differ on real records, and avoid the field types that give a wrong answer.

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