Access Custom Settings with Code

Note Formulas include: flows, workflow rules, approval processes, validation rules, formula fields, and Process Builder processes.

Here are some sample code segments:

Formula Fields

Formula fields only work for hierarchy custom settings; they can’t be used for list custom settings.

{!$Setup.CustomSettingName__c.CustomFieldName__c}

Apex

Apex can access both custom setting types.

Samples for List Custom Settings

When you add data to a custom setting, name each data set so that you can distinguish them. The following returns a map of custom settings data. The getAll method returns values for all custom fields associated with the list setting.

Map<String_dataset_name, CustomSettingName__c> mcs = CustomSettingName__c.getAll();

The following example uses the getValues method to return all the field values associated with the specified data set. This method can be used with list and hierarchy custom settings, using different parameters.

CustomSettingName__c mc = CustomSettingName__c.getValues(data_set_name);

Samples for Hierarchy Custom Settings

The following example uses the getOrgDefaults method to return the data set values for the organization level:

CustomSettingName__c mc = CustomSettingName__c.getOrgDefaults();

The following example uses the getInstance method to return the data set values for the specified profile. The getInstance method can also be used with a user ID.

CustomSettingName__c mc = CustomSettingName__c.getInstance(Profile_ID);

SOAP API

Custom settings that have Privacy defined as Public have the same type of exposure to the API as custom objects. When a custom setting is contained in a managed package, and Privacy for a custom setting is Protected, the settings can only be accessed by the Apex code or formulas that are part of the managed package.

Note You can also access custom settings data through a Standard Object Query Language (SOQL) query, but this method doesn't use the application cache. It’s similar to querying a custom object.