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How to use Neural Forms

This is a quick start guide to help you go from install to your first working form in under 10 minutes. Detailed documentation with screenshots is coming soon. For specific questions, reach us through the contact form.

Getting started

Step 1: Install Neural Forms

Go to your WordPress dashboard, navigate to Plugins > Add New, search for “Neural Forms”, and click Install Now followed by Activate. The plugin is also available as a direct download from WordPress.org.

Once activated, you will see a new “Neural Forms” menu item in your WordPress admin sidebar.

Step 2: Create your first form

You have two options:

Option A: Start from a template

  1. Go to Neural Forms > Templates
  2. Browse the available form templates
  3. Click Import on any template you like
  4. The form is imported and a draft page is created with your form embedded

Option B: Build from scratch

  1. Go to Neural Forms > Forms
  2. Click Add New
  3. Use the drag and drop builder to add fields from the field library on the left
  4. Configure each field by clicking on it and using the settings panel on the right
  5. Click Save when done

Step 3: Embed your form

You can embed your form anywhere on your site using one of three methods:

Method 1: Gutenberg block (recommended)

  1. Open any page or post in the WordPress block editor
  2. Click the plus button to add a new block
  3. Search for “Neural Forms” and select the block
  4. Choose your form from the dropdown
  5. Customize the styling using the block settings panel on the right

Method 2: Shortcode

Add this shortcode anywhere a shortcode works (page content, sidebar widget, classic editor):

This form is currently unavailable. Please try again later.

Replace 42 with your actual form ID, which you can find in Neural Forms > Forms.

Method 3: Divi 5 module (Pro)

If you have the Divi 5 theme and Neural Forms Pro, use the Neural Forms module inside the Divi Visual Builder. Search for “Neural Forms” in the module library.

Working with form fields

Neural Forms includes 18 field types in the free version:

  • Text: single-line text input
  • Email: email address with validation
  • Textarea: multi-line text input
  • Select: dropdown menu
  • Checkbox: single yes/no checkbox
  • Checkboxes: multiple options the user can select
  • Radio: single option from multiple choices
  • Number: numeric input with min and max
  • Phone: phone number with format validation
  • URL: web address with format validation
  • Date: date picker
  • File Upload: let users attach files
  • Range: slider for numeric range selection
  • Acceptance: agreement checkbox for terms and conditions
  • Hidden: pass values without showing them to users
  • Rating: star or numeric rating scale
  • Poll: collect single or multiple choice opinions with results tracking
  • Quiz: create scored quizzes with correct answer logic

To add a field, drag it from the field library on the left into the form canvas in the center. Click any field to configure its label, placeholder, validation rules, and other settings.

Multi-step forms

To break a long form into multiple steps:

  1. Open your form in the builder
  2. Drag a Step block from the field library into the form
  3. Place fields under each Step
  4. Save the form

Visitors will see a progress indicator and Previous and Next buttons as they move through the form. Each step validates its fields before allowing the user to proceed.

Managing your lead inbox

Every form submission lands in the Neural Forms inbox.

To access your inbox:

  1. Go to Neural Forms > Entries in your WordPress admin

What you can do in the inbox:

  • View all submissions across all forms in one place
  • Filter by form using the left sidebar
  • Filter by status: new, read, spam, trash
  • Star important leads to mark them for follow-up
  • Search submissions by keyword
  • Filter by date range
  • Open any submission to see the full content
  • Reply to a submission directly from the entry detail view
  • Mark entries in bulk using checkboxes and the bulk actions menu

To export entries:

  1. Open the inbox and select a form from the sidebar
  2. Filter by date range if needed
  3. Click Export CSV at the top of the entries list
  4. A CSV file downloads with all matching entries

Setting up AI features

AI features are optional. They give you automatic submission analysis, draft replies, and spam detection.

To enable AI:

  1. Go to neuralforms.ai and create a free account
  2. Copy your free API key from your account dashboard
  3. In your WordPress admin, go to Neural Forms > Settings
  4. Paste your API key into the Neural Forms API Key field
  5. Click Test Connection to verify the key works
  6. Click Save Settings

Once connected, you will see 100 free AI credits available on your account. Every form submission consumes one credit. Once your free credits are used up, AI features pause until you upgrade to Starter or Agency.

What AI does on every submission:

  • Generates a one or two sentence summary of the submission
  • Assigns a category (such as inquiry, support, sales, complaint)
  • Calculates a priority score from 0 to 100
  • Drafts a reply you can review and send

You always stay in control. The AI drafts and suggests. You decide what to send.

Setting up email notifications

To get notified when someone submits a form:

  1. Open your form in the builder
  2. Click the Settings tab at the top
  3. Open the Notifications section
  4. Configure the admin notification email: who receives it, subject line, body content
  5. Optionally enable the autoresponder to send the visitor a confirmation email
  6. Use tokens like {site_name}, {form_name}, and {field_id} to insert dynamic content
  7. Save the form

You can also configure the From name and From email used for outgoing notifications.

Adding spam protection

Neural Forms supports two CAPTCHA providers in the free version:

Cloudflare Turnstile (recommended)

  1. Sign up at cloudflare.com and create a Turnstile site
  2. Copy your site key and secret key
  3. In WordPress, go to Neural Forms > Settings
  4. Select Cloudflare Turnstile as your CAPTCHA provider
  5. Paste your site key and secret key
  6. Save settings

The CAPTCHA will now appear automatically on all your forms.

Google reCAPTCHA v2

  1. Sign up at google.com/recaptcha and create a reCAPTCHA v2 site
  2. Copy your site key and secret key
  3. In WordPress, go to Neural Forms > Settings
  4. Select Google reCAPTCHA v2 as your CAPTCHA provider
  5. Paste your site key and secret key
  6. Save settings

For paid plans, Neural Forms also includes AI spam detection that analyzes submission content for spam patterns without requiring a CAPTCHA challenge.

Migrating from Contact Form 7

If you already use Contact Form 7, you can migrate your forms in one click:

  1. Go to Neural Forms > Migration
  2. Click Scan for CF7 Forms
  3. Review the detected forms
  4. Click Import on each form you want to migrate

The migration tool maps fields, labels, and validation rules automatically. Your original CF7 forms are not modified or removed. You can keep both plugins active and migrate forms at your own pace.

Privacy and GDPR

Neural Forms includes privacy controls to help with GDPR and similar regulations:

To enable Privacy Mode:

  1. Go to Neural Forms > Settings
  2. Open the Privacy section
  3. Toggle Privacy Mode on
  4. Save settings

When Privacy Mode is on, the plugin stops storing visitor IP addresses and user-agent strings with form submissions. Form content is still stored as usual.

Important notes:

  • You are responsible for your site’s privacy policy
  • Inform your visitors what data your forms collect
  • Disclose whether you have enabled AI processing for form submissions
  • Obtain any consent required by applicable law

For full data handling details, see our privacy policy.

Troubleshooting common issues

My form is not appearing on the page

Make sure you selected the correct form in the Gutenberg block or used the correct form ID in the shortcode. The form ID is shown next to each form in Neural Forms > Forms.

I am not receiving notification emails

Check that your WordPress site can send email. Many hosts require an SMTP plugin to reliably deliver emails. Test by going to Neural Forms > Settings > Notifications and clicking Send Test Email.

My AI features are not working

Verify that your Neural Forms API key is entered correctly in Settings. Click Test Connection. If the test fails, log into your account at neuralforms.ai and confirm the API key is active. Also check that you have AI credits remaining on your account.

The CAPTCHA is not loading

Confirm your site key and secret key are entered correctly. Both Cloudflare Turnstile and reCAPTCHA v2 require both a public site key and a private secret key. Also check that your domain is registered with the CAPTCHA provider.

CSV export is not downloading

Some browsers block automatic downloads. Try in a different browser or check your browser’s download permissions for your WordPress admin domain.

Getting more help

For questions not covered here, use our contact form. Select the appropriate topic from the dropdown so we can route your question to the right team.

For Pro plan customers, priority support is available with one business day response time on weekdays.

What’s next

We are continuously expanding Neural Forms with new features. Check our changelog to see what we have shipped recently. To request a feature or report a bug, use our contact form and select the appropriate topic.

If you are using Neural Forms Lite and want unlimited AI credits, integrations with HubSpot, Mailchimp, Zapier, WhatsApp, and Google Forms, plus the Divi 5 module, see our pricing page for Pro plan options starting at $99 per year for unlimited sites.