Available on plans:

Global variables

Global variables are custom variables that you create and share across all users in your account. You can identify variables in Zaps, as they appear with the globe icon and are blue. 

Create a global variable

To create a variable in the Zap editor:

1. In the bottom left, click Library . A dialog box will appear with the library.
2. In the upper right, click + Create variable. You will be redirected to the Create variable section.
3. In the Variable Name field, enter a name for your variable.
4. In the Variable Type field, select an option from the dropdown menu.
   • Text.
   • Number.
   • Date.
   • Email.
   • Phone.
   • Link.
   • Code.
5. Click Save. You will be redirected back to the Variables section.

After you create a global variable, you can map it to fields in any action step in your Zap.

Manage global variables

You can manage variables in the Variables library. The library lists all variables created in your account. If you have a Team or Enterprise account, all created variables are accessible to all members.

To view your Variables library:

1. Go to the Zap editor.
2. In the bottom left, click Library . A dialog box will appear with the Variable library.
3. All variables created in your Zapier account will appear in the Global tab.

It lists variables in chronological order of when you created or last updated them, with newest on top. If you are on a Team or Enterprise plan, variables you own will appear before variables owned by other users in your account. You can manage each variable by clicking its settings icon to open the dropdown menu. Then select an option:

• Edit: redirects you to the Edit variable section where you can change the variable name, type, or value.
• Duplicate: duplicates the variable.
  • You will see a (1) appended after the name to indicate it’s a copy of the original variable.

• Delete: deletes the variable.
  • Anywhere it was mapped, your Zap will replace it with Undefined variable X, where “X” is the ID of the deleted variable.
  • Your Zap will return a null value when it runs.

Limitations

• You cannot use global variables in trigger steps.
• Each variable must have a unique variable name. You cannot reuse variable names.
• You can have up to 1000 global variables in your account.
  • If you are on a Team or Enterprise plan, this limit is across all users in your account.
• Variable values are strings, which are simple alphanumeric values and/or special characters. They do not support complex values like line items.
• Zapier recommends that you do not use variables to store or share sensitive information, such as passwords, authorization credentials, or tokens.
  • Variables are shared with all users on your account.
  • Variables are not encrypted.
• All users in your account can edit a variable, even if they did not create or own it.
• The user who created the variable, account super admins, or the account owner can delete a variable.

Character limits

• Variable names: 128 characters.
• Variable values: 5,000 characters.
• Character counts include alphanumeric values, spaces, and other special characters.

System variables

System variables are predefined variables that exist for all users in your account. Use them to insert timestamps or Zap metadata in your Zaps. You can identify system variables in Zaps, as they appear with the file box icon and are pink. You can find them in the Variables library:

1. In the bottom left, click Variables. A dialog box will appear with the Variables library.
2. In the top left, select the System tab to view all available system variables.

You can map system variables to fields in any action step in your Zap.

Available system variables

Name	Description
Current time	Date and time of the step run for your Zap’s timezone setting Example: MM/DD/YY hh:mmAM/PM
Current time (UNIX)	Date and time of the step run in UNIX format Example: 1753953840
Current time: UTC (ISO)	Date and time of the step run in UTC-0:00 Example: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss+00:00
Current time: EST (ISO)	Date and time of the step run in UTC-05:00 Example: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss-05:00
Current time: EDT (ISO)	Date and time of the step run in UTC-04:00 Example: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss-04:00
Current time: CST (ISO)	Date and time of the step run in UTC-06:00 Example: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss-06:00
Current time: CDT (ISO)	Date and time of the step run in UTC-05:00 Example: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss-05:00
Current time: MST (ISO)	Date and time of the step run in UTC-07:00 Example: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss-07:00
Current time: MDT (ISO)	Date and time of the step run in UTC-06:00 Example: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss-06:00
Current time: PST (ISO)	Date and time of the step run in UTC-08:00 Example: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss-08:00
Current time: PDT (ISO)	Date and time of the step run in UTC-07:00 Example: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss-07:00
Run ID	ID of the specific Zap run Example: 550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000
Step ID	ID of the step where this variable is mapped Example: 987654321
Zap ID	ID of the Zap where this variable is mapped Example: 123456789

Tip

You can use a Formatter step to reformat your timestamp. You can also adjust system variable timestamps with date and time modifiers.

Limitations

You cannot use system variables in trigger steps.