Drupal Text Formats
When to use Basic HTML, Restricted HTML, Full HTML, and Plain text in Drupal field configuration.
Found in: Admin > Structure > Content types > [type] > Manage fields > [text field] > Allowed text formats
Quick Reference
| Format | Who uses it | HTML allowed |
|---|---|---|
| Basic HTML | Editors | Limited — headings, links, lists, bold, images |
| Restricted HTML | Public / untrusted input | Minimal — <strong>, <em>, <a> only |
| Full HTML | Developers / admins | All tags |
| Plain text | Data fields | None — output escaped as-is |
Basic HTML
Use for standard body copy fields on content types (articles, pages, etc).
- Editors get a WYSIWYG toolbar (CKEditor)
- Allows common tags:
<h2>–<h6>,<p>,<a>,<strong>,<em>,<ul>,<ol>,<li>,<img>,<blockquote>,<code> - Strips scripts, iframes, style attributes
- Default choice for most body fields
Restricted HTML
Use when the input comes from untrusted sources or you want tight control over what editors can output.
- Minimal tag allowlist — typically
<strong>,<em>,<a>,<p>,<br> - No headings, no images, no embeds
- Good for: comment fields, short description fields, user-generated content
Full HTML
Use only for developer/admin-managed content where you need to paste raw HTML, embed iframes, or add custom markup.
- No filtering — anything goes
- Never expose to untrusted editors
- Good for: site announcement blocks, custom embed fields, developer-only landing page sections
Plain Text
Use when the field stores data rather than editorial content, or when you want Drupal to escape all markup.
- All HTML is entity-encoded on output (
<strong>renders as<strong>) - No WYSIWYG
- Good for: meta description overrides, alt text fields, short label fields, any field where HTML would break the output
Selecting Multiple Formats
You can check more than one format on a field. Doing so gives the editor a Text format dropdown when filling in the field.
Only do this when editors genuinely need to switch (e.g. a field that is sometimes plain, sometimes formatted). Otherwise lock it to one format to reduce confusion.
Where to Configure Text Formats
Admin > Configuration > Content authoring > Text formats and editors
(/admin/config/content/formats)
Each format has its own filter settings and CKEditor toolbar configuration.