Skip to main content

Updating from Freeform 1.x

Updating from Craft 2.x to Craft 3.x is a much bigger task than typical minor updates of course. Not to mention, things have changed greatly in how plugins are installed and updated due to the new Plugin Store, etc. Because of this, we've prepared a special documentation guide to help you upgrade from Freeform 1.x to Freeform 3.x.

Key ChangesKey Changes
Review the list of key changes made to Freeform 3.
Updating from 2.xUpdating from 2.x
Instructions for updating from Freeform 2.x to Freeform 3.x.
TroubleshootingTroubleshooting
Solutions for common issues after upgrading.
ChangelogChangelog
Review the list of releases and changes for Freeform.

​Key Changes

Freeform 3 brings some exciting new features to Freeform, but there have also been a few changes to what's offered between the Lite and Pro editions. The chart below will explain those changes so you know how to account for them in the future.

↻ Improved  |  × Removed  |  ✓/× No Change

Pricing & Support

Lite 3

Pro 3

Confirm field type×✓
Number, Phone, Website field typesUses designated input types nowUses designated input types now
Ability to rename the plugin×✓

​Updating from 1.x

​To transition from Freeform 1.x to Freeform 3.x, please follow the instructions below very carefully.

All Freeform customers' v2 Lite licenses have been upgraded to v3 Pro licenses as of June 11, 2019. If your Freeform license(s) have expired, and you wish to renew to get access to Freeform 3, please be aware that your old Lite license is now a single Pro license and your old Pro and/or old Payments license(s) are discontinued. This means that if you originally had old Lite and old Pro, you now have new Pro (all you need) and your old Pro (separate plugin license) essentially no longer exists. Renewals will only require renewing your new Pro license.

If you wish to downgrade your new Pro license to a new Lite license, please contact the Craft Support Team for assistance, and they'll be happy to help. We apologize for any confusion and inconvenience. Just be aware that some features from Freeform 2 Lite are no longer available in Freeform 3 Lite (see below).

First things first, for Craft 3, you cannot use your old Solspace-generated license for Freeform. You'll need to contact us to have a new Craft Plugin Store specific license generated for you. Please let us know the following info:

  • Your Solspace.com account email address
  • Plugin name & Solspace license key (listed together if you have more than 1 to transfer)
  • Your Craft ID account email address

Please note that all existing Freeform 1.x licenses have passed their 1 year expiry date by now. Any requests for transferring a Freeform 1.x license to a Craft Plugin Store license for Freeform 3.x will be provided as an expired license. This means that you will need to purchase a discounted renewal fee of $49/$79 (depending on edition) to proceed with this update.

If you have a Freeform Lite + Mailchimp license for Craft 2.x, you are entitled access to a Freeform Pro 3.x license. If you'd like to have the Pro license, please let us know when requesting transfer of license to the Plugin Store. Please note that the Pro license renewal is a higher price than Lite, if you wish to make this switch.

Once you have your new license, follow the steps below:

  1. BACKUP YOUR SITE FILES AND DATABASE.
  2. Follow the Craft Documentation for Upgrading from Craft 2.
  3. Carefully review the changelog for Freeform 3.x as well as the new key features/changes table above.
  4. Follow the regular installation instructions for Freeform 3.x. You essentially have to "install" Freeform again as if it's a fresh install, but Freeform/Craft will detect that you have old Freeform data in the database and perform a migration instead of a fresh install. You have the following options for installing Freeform 3 on Craft 3:
  5. Once installed, you can paste in your new Freeform 3 license into the license key area beside the plugin name (Craft CP -> Settings -> Plugins). By default, you'll be given access to the Lite edition. If you have a Pro license, or wish to trial it or upgrade to it eventually, follow the steps below:
    • Click on the Lite flag/button beside the plugin name, which will take you to the Freeform product page inside the Craft Plugin Store.
    • Click on the Reactivate (or Try) button to activate the Pro edition for your site.
    • Alternatively, you could edit the edition setting inside Craft's Project Config file to have a value of pro.
  6. If your Freeform license is currently expired (purchased more than 1 year ago), you will need to renew the new Freeform 3 license. Your license can either be renewed directly inside your control panel, or through the Craft ID site.
  7. Carefully review Freeform inside the control panel and in your templates and ensure that everything works correctly and/or necessary updates to forms/templates/settings are made. If you ever use the demo templates to review/test/experiment, please note that we've made large updates to the demo templates for Freeform 3.x, so you may wish to reinstall them.
Page Feedback