> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://learn.withessential.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://learn.withessential.com/administration/using-the-essential-assistant/ask-the-assistant-to-fill-in-a-form.md).

# Ask the Assistant to fill in a form

You can ask the Essential Assistant to open one of Essential's forms and fill in fields for you while you keep editing. It works on the same screen you would use yourself: the Assistant opens the form, types in the values you asked for, and leaves **Save** (or **Send**, **Charge**, and other final actions) to you.

> **Where to find it:** Open the Assistant from any page and ask in plain language, for example "start a new customer called Acme Fire with Bob Smith as the contact" or "fill in the visit notes on this form". You can also ask "which forms can you fill in?" for the list your role allows.

## How it works

1. Ask for the form and the values, or ask the Assistant to help with a form you already have open.
2. The Assistant opens the form if it is not open yet, navigating to the right page or modal, and fills in the fields it can. It tells you which values it applied and which it could not.
3. Keep editing as usual. The Assistant reads the form's current values, including anything you typed but have not saved, so you can ask it to correct or complete what is on screen.
4. When the form looks right, select **Save** yourself. The Assistant never saves, sends, charges, or submits a form for you.

If you have unsaved changes in another form, the Assistant will not open a new one over them. Save or discard those changes first. To keep working on a form that already has edits, ask the Assistant to read and update that open form.

## What it fills in

The Assistant can work with most create and edit forms in Essential, including:

* Customers, properties, contacts, and billing profiles.
* Quotes, invoices, subscriptions, and the visit scheduling form.
* Assets, asset groups, recurring services, inspection report setup, and deficiency tasks.
* Purchase orders, inventory adjustments, transfers, and receiving.
* Emails for quotes, invoices, receipts, inspection reports, and work acknowledgments, plus timeline comments and personal to-dos.
* Settings pages, from business profile and users to templates, automations, and Customer Portal options.

It only offers the forms your role can already open. Attachments, file uploads, signatures, and card entry are not fields the Assistant can fill.

For an existing draft quote or invoice, changes to items, discounts, and the description appear as a [proposal to approve](/administration/using-the-essential-assistant/editing-a-quote-or-invoice-through-the-assistant.md), even when its editor is open. New quote and invoice forms, and other document fields, still use form filling.

You can ask for related settings in one request, such as changing a custom field to a choice field and adding its choices. When the Assistant opens a form in a settings tab, that tab is brought into view.

## Your edits win

The Assistant only changes the fields you ask about and leaves the rest alone. If you change a field after the Assistant last read it, the Assistant will not overwrite your value; it tells you what you typed and asks how to proceed. Fields that are disabled or fail validation are reported back rather than forced.

One exception: the Job Summary panel on a visit saves automatically as you write, so the Assistant's changes there persist the same way your own typing does. Publishing and emailing the summary is still your click.

## Related guides

* [Asking the Assistant to do things: actions you confirm](/administration/using-the-essential-assistant/asking-the-assistant-to-do-things-actions-you-confirm.md)
* [Editing a quote or invoice through the Assistant](/administration/using-the-essential-assistant/editing-a-quote-or-invoice-through-the-assistant.md)
* [What the Essential Assistant can and can't do](/administration/using-the-essential-assistant/what-the-essential-assistant-can-and-cant-do.md)


---

# Agent Instructions
This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com.

## Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the following URL with the `ask` and `goal` query parameters:

```
GET https://learn.withessential.com/administration/using-the-essential-assistant/ask-the-assistant-to-fill-in-a-form.md?ask=<question>&goal=<user_goal>
```

`ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
`goal` is what the user is ultimately trying to achieve, the reason they need the answer. Sharing it helps GitBook give you a better, more relevant answer. A goal is most helpful when it describes the outcome the user wants rather than restating the question. For example, with `ask=how do I create an API token`, a goal like `automate deployments from our CI pipeline` lets GitBook tailor the answer to that use case.

The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.