Tests whether a value is blank or a table contains no records.
Overview
Blank is a placeholder for "no value" or "unknown value." An input-text box is blank if the user hasn't typed any characters in it. The same control is no longer blank as soon as the user types a character in it.
Any property or calculated value can be blank. For example, a Boolean value normally has one of two values: true or false. But in addition to these two, it can also be blank. This is similar to Microsoft Excel, where a worksheet cell starts out as blank but can hold the values TRUE or FALSE, among others. At any time, the contents of the cell can be removed, and it would return to a blank state.
Empty is specific to tables that contain no records. The table structure may be intact, complete with column names, but no data is in the table. A table may start as empty, take on records and no longer be empty, and then have the records removed and again be empty.
Description
The IsBlank function tests for a blank value. Blank values are found in situations such as these:
- A control property has no formula set for it.
- No value is typed into an input-text control, or no selection is made in a listbox. You can use IsBlank to provide feedback that a field is required.
- A string that contains no characters has a Len of 0.
- An error occurred in a function. Often, one of the arguments to the function wasn't valid. Many functions return blank if the value of an argument is blank.
- Connected data sources, such as SQL Server, may use "null" values. These values appear as blank in PowerApps.
- The else portion of an If function wasn't specified, and all conditions were false.
- You used the Update function but didn't specify a value for all columns. As a result, no values were placed in the columns you didn't specify.
The IsEmpty function tests whether a table contains any records. It's equivalent to using the CountRows function and checking for zero. You can use IsEmpty to check for data-source errors by combining it with the Errors function.
The return value for both functions is a Boolean true or false.
Syntax
IsBlank( Value )
- Value – Required. Value to test.
IsEmpty( Table )
- Table - Required. Table to test for records.
Examples
IsBlank
Create an app from scratch, add an input-text control, and name it FirstName.
Add a label, and set its Text property to this formula:
If( IsBlank( FirstName.Text ), "First Name is a required field." )
By default, the Text property of an input-text control is set to "Input Text". Because the control contains a value, it isn't blank, and the label control doesn't display any message.
Remove all the characters from the input-text control, including any spaces.
Because the control no longer contains any characters, its Text property will be blank, and IsBlank( FirstName.Text ) will be true. The required field message is displayed.
You can perform validation by using other tools. See the Validate function and working with data sources.
Other examples:
| Formula | Description | Result |
| IsBlank( "" ) | A string that contains no characters. | true |
| IsBlank( "Hello" ) | A string that contains one or more characters. | false |
| IsBlank( AnyCollection ) | Because the collection exists, it isn't blank, even if it doesn't contain any records. To check for an empty collection, use IsEmpty instead. | false |
| IsBlank( Mid( "Hello", 17, 2 ) ) | The starting character for Mid is beyond the end of the string. The result is an empty string. | true |
| IsBlank( If( false, false ) ) | An If function with no ElseResult. Because the condition is always false, this If always returns blank. | true |
IsEmpty
Create a collection named IceCream by setting the OnSelect property of a button to this formula and then pressing the button:
Collect( IceCream, { Flavor: "Strawberry", Quantity: 300 }, { Flavor: "Chocolate", Quantity: 100 } )
The collection contains this data:
This collection has two records and isn't empty. IsEmpty( IceCream ) returns false, and CountRows( IceCream ) returns 2.
Empty the collection by changing the OnSelect property of the button to this formula and then pressing the button:
Clear( IceCream )
The collection is now empty:
The Clear function removes all the records from a collection, resulting in an empty collection. IsEmpty( IceCream ) returns true, and CountRows( IceCream ) returns 0.
You can also use IsEmpty to test whether a calculated table is empty, as these examples show:
| Formula | Description | Result |
| IsEmpty( [ 1, 2, 3 ] ) | The single-column table contains three records and, therefore, isn't empty. | false |
| IsEmpty( [ ] ) | The single-column table contains no records and is empty. | true |
| IsEmpty( Filter( [ 1, 2, 3 ], Value > 5 ) ) | The single-column table contains no values that are greater than 5. The result from the filter doesn't contain any records and is empty. | true |