How to Display a Combo Box Value in Another Access Text Box
Question details
The user wants to display a specific value from a combo box selection inside a separate text box in Microsoft Access.
- Product
- Microsoft Access
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Designing a form in Microsoft Access where selecting an item from a combo box needs to automatically populate related information in a separate text box.
- Observed behavior
- The user needs the text box to instantly show the selected value by referencing the combo box column property, without storing a duplicate value in the database table.
Ensure your Microsoft Access form is open in Design View and that your combo box is configured to include the columns containing the data you want to display.
Reference the Combo Box Column Property in the Text Box
Use this method to display data from a specific column of the combo box (which might be hidden from the user) directly in your text box.
By setting the Control Source of a text box to an expression that references the combo box's Column property, you can display related data automatically. This approach keeps the text box unbound, meaning it displays information without saving duplicate records to your database.
Right-click your form in the Navigation Pane and select Design View.
Click on the target text box. Press F4 to open the Property Sheet if it is not already visible.
Navigate to the Data tab in the Property Sheet. In the Control Source property box, enter the expression =YourComboBoxName.Column(x).
Replace 'YourComboBoxName' with the actual name of your combo box, and replace 'x' with the target zero-based column index.
Reference the Bound Column Value Directly
Use this simpler approach if the value you want to display is already the primary bound value of the combo box.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my text box show #Name? instead of the value?
This usually happens if the combo box name is misspelled in the expression. Double-check the exact name of your combo box in the Property Sheet and ensure your expression matches =YourComboBoxName.Column(x) exactly.
Can I use this method to store the displayed value in a table?
No, using an expression starting with '=' in the Control Source makes the text box unbound, meaning it only displays data and does not save it to the underlying table. To store the value, you would need to use VBA in the combo box's AfterUpdate event to assign the value to a bound text box.
Why is my combo box column not showing the expected data?
Ensure the 'Column Count' property of your combo box includes all the columns you are trying to reference, and that the 'Row Source' query actually pulls in those specific fields.
