I’m trying to set up an automated workflow between Airtable and Zapier. The goal is to check if a number in one field is odd, and if it is, then change the value in a different status field automatically.
I’ve been looking around online but I’m having trouble figuring out the correct formula to use in the search step. The formula syntax seems tricky and I can’t get it to work properly.
Has anyone done something similar before? Any guidance on the search formula would be really helpful!
Had the exact same problem building our client tracking system. Skip the search formulas and extra steps - just use Zapier’s conditional logic directly in the update action. When you’re setting up your Airtable update, there’s a conditions option at the bottom. Add a condition where your number field modulo 2 equals 1, and it’ll only update odd numbers. Way cleaner than splitting everything across multiple workflow steps. I’ve been running this setup for six months with zero issues, and it’s so much easier to tweak the logic later. Everything stays in one place with your field mappings instead of being scattered around.
just use an IF statement in zapier’s formula step: IF(MOD({{your_number_field}}, 2) = 1, 'update', 'skip'). check if it outputs ‘update’ before running your airtable action. way simpler than paths or code.
don’t overthink it - just add a helper field in airtable that uses MOD(number,2) to check if it’s odd. then set zapier to trigger when that field equals 1. way easier to test and debug when the logic stays in airtable.
Hit this exact problem three months ago building our analytics pipeline. Everyone’s overcomplicating it.
Use Zapier’s Math utility - it’s bulletproof in production. Add “Utilities by Zapier” after your trigger, pick “Numbers” > “Perform Math Operation”. Set your number as first value, operation to “Mod”, second value to 2. You get clean 0 or 1 output.
In your Airtable step, reference that result. If it’s 1, update your status. If it’s 0, skip.
This crushes other approaches because of error handling. Weird data like nulls or text? Math utility handles it gracefully instead of breaking everything.
Picked up most of this from solid tutorials on formula logic. This one nails the patterns for Airtable automations:
Running this setup for months across multiple high-volume workflows. Zero issues. Way better than debugging search formulas or custom code.
I’ve been dealing with the same Zapier-Airtable automation headaches for our order system. Here’s what nobody mentions - you can fix this right in the trigger setup. When you’re configuring your Airtable trigger, go to the advanced filter options and drop in a formula field condition: MOD({YourNumberField}, 2) = 1. Done. Now your zap only fires on odd numbers from the start. No messy downstream filters or workarounds needed. Just trigger → update. That’s it. I made this switch after our high-volume workflows kept timing out because all those extra filter steps were slowing everything down.
Had this exact problem last year with our customer data sync.
Everyone suggests different fixes, but here’s what actually works in production. Skip the filters and code - use Zapier’s Path feature instead.
Set up your Airtable trigger normally, then add a Paths step with two routes:
Path A: Continue if {{number_field}} % 2 equals 1
Path B: Do nothing (or handle even numbers however you want)
Under Path A, add your Airtable update to change the status field.
Paths are bulletproof because they handle logic visually. No formula syntax to debug, no code breaking, and you can see exactly what’s happening in your runs.
Mine’s been running for months across multiple workflows without issues. Other methods work too, but Paths scale way better when you need more conditions later.
Honestly, just use a lookup table in Airtable. Create a separate table with numbers 1-100 and mark the odd ones, then link your main table to it. Sounds weird but it works way better than formulas when you’ve got tons of records updating constantly.
Hit this exact problem building automated lead scoring workflows. The search formula approach is broken - Airtable’s search syntax can’t handle math operations cleanly, plus you get those API field naming conflicts everyone’s talking about. Skip the search steps entirely. Use Zapier’s Logic feature instead - it’s way simpler than Paths for basic conditions. Set your trigger, add Logic > Only continue if, then set it to {{number_field}} MOD 2 equals 1. You get clean visual feedback in task history and it handles null values better than raw formulas. Logic was built for conditional workflows like this and works seamlessly with Airtable updates without formatter steps or custom code.
Had this exact problem a few months ago automating our project tracking.
Modulo works, but I’d skip the formula approach and just use Zapier’s filter action. Set your Airtable trigger, add a Filter step that only continues when the number field MOD 2 equals 1.
Been automating Airtable workflows for three years and hit this exact issue tons of times. Everyone’s focusing on Zapier, but I handle the logic in Airtable with a formula field instead. Make a checkbox called “Is Odd” with MOD({YourNumberField}, 2) = 1, then set Zapier to trigger only when it’s checked. This way your business logic stays in Airtable where non-tech people can see what’s happening, and Zapier just does the simple trigger stuff. When things change later, you tweak the formula instead of rebuilding zaps. Way easier to maintain for complex workflows.
Had the same problem with our inventory workflows. Search formulas suck for this - they’re built to find records, not check conditions. I switched to webhooks instead. Set up your Airtable trigger, then drop in a Zapier Code step with basic JavaScript: if (inputData.number % 2 === 1) { return {continue: true} }. Way more control and handles weird stuff like empty fields or text where numbers should be. Code steps look scary but they’re actually way more reliable than fighting with Airtable’s search syntax. Plus when you need to expand this later, you’re not stuck.
This is super common with Zapier-Airtable setups. Skip the complex search formulas - just add a Formatter step before your update action. Use Formatter by Zapier > Numbers > Perform Math Operation, then do modulo with 2 as the divisor. You’ll get a clean 1 or 0 that’s easy to work with. Then add simple conditional logic in your update step to check if the result equals 1. Way cleaner workflow and much easier to debug when stuff breaks. Search steps work but they’re overkill for something this simple.
Had this exact problem when I built automation for our invoice processing. Zapier’s search formulas don’t work for math operations - they’re just for finding records. Storage feature saved me here. Set up your Airtable trigger like normal, then add a Storage step that calculates the modulo. Put {{number_field}} % 2 in the value field and call it something like ‘odd_check’. Then just check if that stored value equals 1 in your next steps. Way better error handling since Storage steps almost never break, and you can reuse the calculated value without doing the math again. I’ve been running this for eight months with zero issues, and it handles decimals way better than trying to do formulas directly.
hey! skip checkin the search step, just use a filter. try {{field_value}} % 2 = 1 to check for odd nums, then link that to update ur status field. zapier formulas can be tricky but this should do the trick!
