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How-to guide

Set up a mass quick action on a list view

Set up a mass quick action so users can update many records from a list view at once. You first build a Create a Record or Update a Record quick action, then expose it on the object's List View Button Layout. The steps below cover a standard list view in Lightning Experience.

By Dipojjal Chakrabarti · Founder & Editor, Salesforce DictionaryLast updated Jun 16, 2026

Set up a mass quick action so users can update many records from a list view at once. You first build a Create a Record or Update a Record quick action, then expose it on the object's List View Button Layout. The steps below cover a standard list view in Lightning Experience.

  1. Create the quick action

    In Setup, open Object Manager and pick your object. Under Buttons, Links, and Actions, click New Action. Choose action type Update a Record (or Create a Record), set a label, and select the fields users should set during the mass action.

  2. Open List View Button Layout

    Still in Object Manager for that object, go to List View Button Layout and edit the List View layout. This is where you control which actions appear in the list view action bar.

  3. Add the action to the Lightning section

    In the List View Actions in Lightning Experience section, move your new quick action into the selected list. Only actions placed here become available for multi-record use. Save the layout.

  4. Test on the list view

    Open a list view for the object, select a few rows with the checkboxes, and click your action in the bar. Confirm the change applies to all selected records and that validation rules behave as expected.

Action typeremember

Update a Record changes fields on the selected rows; Create a Record makes a new related record per row. Pick the one that matches the bulk task.

Action fieldsremember

The fields you add to the quick action are exactly what users can set during the mass action. Keep the set small and relevant to the repeated task.

List View Actions in Lightning Experienceremember

Only quick actions placed in this section of List View Button Layout surface in the action bar for selected records.

Enhanced List (related lists)remember

To run the action from a related list, set Related List Type to Enhanced List and turn on Show list view action bar in Lightning App Builder.

Gotchas
  • A mass quick action processes at most 100 records per run; larger batches need Data Loader or the Bulk API.
  • For a related list, create the quick action on the child object, not the parent, or it will not appear.
  • Mass quick actions respect validation rules and required fields, so part of a batch can fail if some records violate a rule.
  • If actions do not show on a related list, check that the list is set to Enhanced List with the action bar enabled.

See the full Mass Action entry

Mass Action includes the definition, worked example, deep dive, related terms, and a quiz.