The last name field
Last name is one of the four optional fields, and it is enabled by default.
Where
Events settings → Registration form → Form fields → Last name.
Unchecking it removes the field from that event's form.
What it is for
A door list of first names is ambiguous the moment two people share one. If someone will read names aloud, tick people off a list, or print badges, the last name is what makes that possible.
Behavior worth knowing
When the field is enabled, it is presented to the visitor as a required field in the form, alongside name and email.
Server-side, only name and email are strictly enforced. The practical effect is that a visitor filling in the form normally will be asked to complete the last name, so treat "enabled" as "required" when deciding whether to show it.
If you want a genuinely optional last name, the honest option is to turn the field off and ask for the full name in the Name field instead.
Where the value goes
The last name is stored on the user account created or matched for that email address, so it becomes part of the person's display name in the attendee list.
The attendee panel shows the user name rather than two separate columns, so the list reads as one name per row.
When to enable it
- Door lists and badge printing.
- Formal or professional events.
- Events where the same first names recur — a company, a school, a club.
- Anything where you will match attendees against another list.
When to disable it
- Informal, open events where speed of registration matters more than precision.
- Anything reached from a phone, where every field costs registrations.
- Events with a small, known audience.
Naming across cultures
If your audience is international, be careful about assuming a first-name/last-name structure. Two practical options:
- keep both fields and accept that some people will fill them approximately;
- disable the last name and label your process around a single full name.
Neither is wrong; what matters is that the door list is usable.
Verify
- Toggle the field and save the event.
- Open the form signed out and confirm the field appears or does not.
- Register once and confirm the full name appears in the attendee panel.
- Export the list and confirm the name column is what the door will need.