---
title: "Opening and editing entry details in a lightbox (modal/popup)"
date: 2026-04-23
updated: 2026-10-20
author: "GravityKit"
link: "https://www.gravitykit.com/docs/gravityview/view-setup/opening-and-editing-entry-details-in-a-lightbox-modal-popup/"
category: "GravityView > View Setup"
---

A lightbox opens an entry's details, or its Edit Entry form, in a popup over the page, so people stay on the list of entries they came from. You can open a View's entry links in a lightbox, and links you make with the `[gv_entry_link]` shortcode.

## Open a View's entry links in a lightbox

- Edit the View.
- In the **Multiple Entries Layout**, click the gear icon of the field that links to the entry, such as a name column.
- Check **Link to single entry**, then check **Open in a lightbox?**.
- Close the settings and click **Update**.

![Field settings for a Full name column, with Link to single entry checked and Open in a lightbox? checked and outlined](https://www.gravitykit.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/gravityview-field-settings-open-in-lightbox.png)A **Link to Single Entry** or **Link to Edit Entry** field always links to the entry, so its settings have no **Link to single entry** checkbox. Checking **Open in a lightbox?** turns off **Open link in a new tab or window?**.

The lightbox shows the entry with the fields of the View's Single Entry layout.

### Move between entries

The arrows at the sides of the lightbox open the previous or next entry listed on the page. The close button at the top right closes the lightbox.

![A volunteer's entry details open in a lightbox over the page, with arrows on the left and right and a close button at the top right](https://www.gravitykit.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/gravityview-entry-lightbox-arrows.png)

## Edit entries in the lightbox

Add a **Link to Edit Entry** field to the Multiple Entries layout. In its settings, check **Open in a lightbox?**. The link shows only to users who can edit that entry, such as the person who created it when the View has [Allow User Edit](https://www.gravitykit.com/docs/gravityview/edit-entry/user-edit-allow-users-to-edit-their-own-entries/) turned on.

![The Edit Entry form for a volunteer open in a lightbox, with Update and Cancel buttons](https://www.gravitykit.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/gravityview-edit-entry-lightbox.png)
When an entry is open in the lightbox, a **Link to Edit Entry** field in the Single Entry layout opens the Edit Entry form in the same lightbox
Settings on the **Edit Entry** tab of the View's **Settings** box decide what happens next:

- After **Update**, the lightbox stays open and shows "Entry Updated." To close it and reload the page instead, set [Redirect After Editing](https://www.gravitykit.com/docs/gravityview/edit-entry/view-settings-redirect-after-editing/) to **Redirect to Multiple Entries**.
- **Cancel** closes the lightbox. To show the entry's details in the lightbox instead, set **Cancel Link Action** to **Redirect to Single Entry**.

## Open a lightbox from a shortcode

Add `lightbox="true"` to the `[gv_entry_link]` shortcode. On a page or post, the shortcode also needs `view_id` and `entry_id`, plus `secret` when the View has [Enhanced Security](https://www.gravitykit.com/docs/gravityview/getting-started-gravityview/enable-enhanced-security-the-secret-attribute-for-shortcodes/) on. Without the secret, visitors see no link.

```
[gv_entry_link entry_id="123" view_id="2" lightbox="true" secret="abc123"]View profile[/gv_entry_link]
```

With `action="edit"`, the link opens the Edit Entry form, for users who can edit the entry:

```
[gv_entry_link action="edit" entry_id="123" view_id="2" lightbox="true" secret="abc123"]Edit profile[/gv_entry_link]
```

When the View has **Prevent Direct Access** checked, or the `gravityview/view/output/direct` filter blocks it, the lightbox opens the entry only from a page that embeds the View. On other pages, visitors see "The requested entry could not be found." in the lightbox.

In a [Custom Content field](https://www.gravitykit.com/docs/gravityview/getting-started-gravityview/using-the-custom-content-field/) of the View itself, each link goes to the entry it belongs to, so the shortcode needs only `lightbox="true"`:

```
[gv_entry_link lightbox="true"]Open profile[/gv_entry_link]
```

A shortcode link opens its entry alone, without the arrows. To keep a link out of the lightbox, leave out `lightbox`. All the attributes are listed in [The  shortcode](https://www.gravitykit.com/docs/gravityview/shortcodes/gv-entry-link/).

## Video walkthrough

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8Uui0SyO4U