---
title: Property format
slug: cms-saas/docs/property-format
docTags: 
createdAt: 2026-07-30T20:18:09.000Z
---

A property format is a set of rules that apply to a content type's property. It can define validation rules, which editor to use, and settings for that editor. A property format is associated with a specific data type.

The available property formats are limited to formats defined by Optimizely Content Management System (SaaS) and cannot be modified.

The property format resource contains the following fields:

- `key` – A string identifying the property group in the API.
- `dataType` – The data type to which you can apply this format. It must be one of the data types. See [Data types in Content types](docId\:IIrc48HRxDZe6C7wiVBVT).
- `displayName` – A user-friendly name for the group displayed to end users.

## Pre-defined formats

The following formats represent pre-defined behaviors in the system. You can assign these to a content type property when such a behavior is preferable.

- `selectOne` (`string`) – Indicates that the string should be one of a list of pre-defined values.
- `selectMany` (`string`) – Indicates that the string should be one or more values of a list of pre-defined values.

## List property formats

Retrieve a list of property formats through the `propertyformats` API. See [List property formats](docId\:QgdLQRDR0J8SQ8ogWbbST) API reference.

```http
GET https://api.cms.optimizely.com/v1/propertyformats
```

```json
{
    "items": [
        {
            "key": "shortString",
            "dataType": "string",
            "displayName": "Short string"
        },
        {
            "key": "switch",
            "dataType": "boolean",
            "displayName": "Switch"
        }
    ],
    "pageIndex": 0,
    "pageSize": 50,
    "totalCount": 2
}
```

## Get a property format

Retrieve a specific property format through the `propertyformats` API using its unique key. See [Get property format](docId\:V6bymE3bFpQjKMzVSy-tr) API reference.

```http
GET https://api.cms.optimizely.com/v1/propertyformats/shortstring
```

```json
{
    "key": "shortString",
    "dataType": "string",
    "displayName": "Short string"
}
```