How to Set Up CAPTCHA

CAPTCHA is important because it blocks bots from spamming your forms, overloading your server, and flooding your inbox with junk submissions. It protects your website, keeps your data clean, and ensures real users can use your forms without issues. In short, CAPTCHA is a simple layer of security that prevents automated abuse.

Here’s a step-by-step guide showing exactly how to add reCAPTCHA v2 or v3 to a WordPress site using Gravity Forms. Gravity Forms includes built-in support for Google reCAPTCHA.

Step 1 - Get your reCAPTCHA keys

1. Go to Google's reCAPTCHA admin page: 
   https://www.google.com/recaptcha/admin/create
2. Log into your Google account.
3. Create a new site.
4. Choose your type:
   • reCAPTCHA v2 → with "I'm not a robot" checkbox
   • reCAPTCHA v2 Invisible
   • reCAPTCHA v3 (Score-based, no checkbox)
5. Add your domain (example: yourdomain.com)
6. Accept terms and submit.
7. Google will give you two keys:
   • Site Key
   • Secret Key

Keep these ready.

Step 2 - Add the keys to Gravity Forms

1. In WordPress, go to: 
   Forms → Settings → reCAPTCHA
2. Select your reCAPTCHA type (v2 or v3).
3. Paste in your:
   • Site Key
   • Secret Key
4. Save.

Step 3 - Add the CAPTCHA field to your form

For reCAPTCHA v2:

1. Edit your form.
2. Open Advanced Fields.
3. Click CAPTCHA.
4. It will automatically load your reCAPTCHA box.

For v3:

• No field appears in the form - Gravity Forms runs it in the background.

Testing Your CAPTCHA

After adding CAPTCHA:

1. Open your form in an incognito window.
2. Submit it without solving the CAPTCHA - it should fail.
3. Solve it properly - it should submit.

Common Problems & Fixes

CAPTCHA not showing up

• Clear caching plugin
• Make sure the domain matches the domain you registered

"Invalid domain for site key"

• Re-add your exact domain 
  (example.com is different from www.example.com)