How to Add a Guest User Flow

With this Guest User signup flow, users can access the app without providing personal details like an email address or username.

For app builders looking to simplify onboarding, the Guest User signup flow is ideal for apps that allow users to get started without providing personal details. It includes the necessary setup, screens, and actions to create a temporary user account.

Before You Begin

• Your app should have a Welcome Screen and a Home Screen already set up. → Learn more about Default Authentication Screens

• Familiarize yourself with Actions in Adalo — this flow relies on a Signup action attached to a button.

• Understand that guest accounts are real entries in your Users collection. They take up space and count toward your record limits just like regular accounts.

Walkthrough

Step 1: Add a Guest Signup Button

1. Open your Welcome Screen in the Adalo Builder.

2. Add a button — label it something like "Continue as Guest" or "Get Started."

3. In the Signup action:

   1. Set a custom formula for both the Email and Username fields.

   2. Use the RAND function to generate random numbers (for example, between 0 and 99999).

   

This ensures each guest user has a unique email address and username, even though they are not entering personal details.

Step 2: Configure Placeholder Credentials

Inside the Signup action, you need to fill the required user fields with auto-generated values so the guest doesn't have to enter anything.

1. In the Email field, set a custom formula using the RAND function. For example: RAND(0, 99999) combined with a placeholder domain (e.g., [email protected]).

2. In the Username field, set a similar custom formula so each guest gets a unique username.

3. Set a Password — this can be a static value since the guest won't need to log in manually.

4. Optionally, set a Full Name field (e.g., "Guest User").

The RAND function generates a random number within your specified range each time the action runs, giving every guest a unique set of credentials.

Step 3: Link to the Home Screen

In the same Signup action, set the link destination to your Home Screen. When the user taps the button, the account is created and they're taken straight into the app — no forms, no waiting.

Upgrading a Guest to a Full Account

If you want guests to optionally create a real account later, add a "Create Account" or "Save Your Progress" screen accessible from within the app. On that screen, use an Update action on the logged-in user to replace the placeholder email, username, and password with real values provided by the user.

This lets guests try the app risk-free and convert to full accounts when they're ready.

---

Troubleshooting & Common Issues

Guest signups are failing

Double-check that the custom formulas for Email and Username are set correctly inside the Signup action. Both fields are required — if either is blank or misconfigured, the signup will fail silently.

Duplicate guest accounts

The RAND function generates random numbers, but with a small range (e.g., 0–100), collisions become likely as your user count grows. Increase the range (e.g., 0–9999999) to reduce the chance of duplicates. Check your Users collection periodically to confirm values are unique.

App feels slow on the Welcome Screen

If the Signup action is stacking with other actions or the Home Screen is data-heavy, there may be a brief delay. Keep the Home Screen lightweight or add a loading state to smooth the transition.

---

Known Limitations

• Guest accounts are real records in the Users collection.

• There is no built-in way to automatically expire or delete guest accounts. You'll need to manage cleanup manually or through an external integration.

• The RAND function does not guarantee uniqueness — it generates random numbers, not unique IDs. With a large enough range collisions are rare, but not impossible.

• If a guest clears their app data or logs out, they cannot recover their guest account since they never set real credentials.