Power Apps or a SharePoint list form: which one do you need?

Use the built-in SharePoint list form first and tune it with column and form formatting. Use a Power Apps custom form (Integrate, Power Apps, Customize forms) only when you need things formatting cannot do, such as a profile photo, a different control type or a custom action on save.

What you get with the built-in list form

Every SharePoint list already has a form for adding, viewing and editing items. You do not build it. It follows your columns. Add a column and it shows up in the form.

You can change how it looks without Power Apps:

Column formatting changes how a value is displayed in a list view, for example colors, icons and bars. Microsoft says it does not change the data in the item, only how it is shown.
List form formatting lets you add a custom header and footer and group fields into sections. It also does not change the data.
The built-in form can also show or hide a field based on another field's value, using a conditional formula in Edit columns.
Microsoft's Configure the list form page also describes a read-only setting for form fields (fieldsettings, with readonly set to true). The field shows without an editable box on the Edit form and is not shown on the New form. Test it on a copy of your list first.

Formatting uses small pieces of JSON text that you paste in. Microsoft gives copy-and-edit examples. Anyone who can create and manage views in a list can use them, per the pages above. Exact names may differ on your screen.

What a Power Apps custom form adds

A Power Apps custom form replaces the built-in form for that list. You design it in Power Apps Studio. Microsoft's overview page says customization includes the following. The tutorial page also notes that Title and Attachments are predefined cards, locked by default, and need to be unlocked before you change them.

Adding or removing fields
Changing the control type for a field
Changing the layout and number of columns
Formatting such as alignment, color and borders
Actions when a save works or fails

The tutorial shows two typical examples: making the Title field view-only, and hiding a field when another field has a certain value. It also shows how to put a user's profile photo on the form.

To start, open the list, choose Integrate, then Power Apps, then Customize forms. Exact names may differ on your screen. When you finish, you save and publish to SharePoint. The version people see in SharePoint is the most recently published one.

Power Apps with a SharePoint list

Microsoft's overview page says a list from SharePoint or Microsoft Lists can be a data source in Power Apps, either through the Data menu of an app or through the Integrate menu on the list. When you view a SharePoint list, you automatically go to Microsoft Lists, where the Integrate option sits.

Power Apps can also be a full app

A custom form is one use. Power Apps can also build a separate app on top of a list. Microsoft describes this. The generated app lets people browse items, view details, and add, edit or delete records, and it adjusts to phone and tablet. This is a different thing from the form. Use it when people need a mobile-friendly screen for the list, not just a nicer form.

Side by side

Setup. Built-in form: nothing to set up. Custom form: you build and publish it.
Change a field. Built-in form: edit the column and the form follows. Custom form: you may also need to update the form.
Look. Built-in form: header, footer, sections, and column display formatting. Custom form: full control over layout and controls.
Rules between fields. Built-in form: show or hide a field based on a value, plus a read-only field setting. Custom form: more rules, such as changing what Save does.
Who can use it. Built-in form: people with access to the list. Custom form: Microsoft says anyone with at least Read or Restricted View access to the list inherits access to the form. Users with permission to only specific items do not get the customized form.
Upkeep. Built-in form: low. Custom form: someone must know Power Apps to change it later.

Pick the built-in form if

The form works as it is and only needs a tidier look.
You want a header, sections, or colored status values.
Several people may need to change the list later and none of them knows Power Apps.
You want the fewest moving parts.

Pick a Power Apps form if

You need more than show, hide or read-only, for example an action when a save works or fails.
You need a different control type, a profile photo or other extra element.
You need exact layout control over where each field sits.
You have someone who will own the form after it is built.

Pick a full Power Apps app if

People fill in the list mostly on a phone, away from a desk.
You want a custom screen to browse and edit items, not just a form.
You accept that you now have an app to maintain, not just a list.

Licensing and cost

The Microsoft pages above list a subscription to Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Power Platform as a prerequisite for using SharePoint and Power Apps together. What your own plan includes is a question for your admin. Check with your admin before you build, and do it first so you do not build something you cannot share.

A simple list to try both on

Use a small request list, with a Title column named something useful like "Request summary".

Add these columns:

Asked by (Person)
Due (Date)
Urgency (Choice, with values 1 Today, 2 This week, 3 Later)
Stage (Choice, with values 1 Received, 2 Working, 3 Closed)
Notes (Multiple lines of text)

Step 1. Use the built-in form for a week. Add three or four real items.

Step 2. Add column formatting to Stage, so Closed looks different from Received.

Step 3. Configure the list form with two sections: "Request" and "Notes".

Step 4. Write down what annoys people. Be specific, for example "Notes is shown even for simple requests".

Step 5. Only if that list names something the built-in form cannot fix, try a Power Apps custom form.

What to avoid

Do not start with Power Apps because it sounds more advanced. A custom form is something you must keep up.
Do not copy JSON from the internet without testing it on a copy of the list first. Use Preview before you save.
Do not hide a field in a form and assume it is secret. Hiding a field changes what people see in the form. It is not permission control.
Do not build a custom form for a list that changes every week. Each change in columns may mean a change in the form.
Do not give the form to one person only. If they leave, nobody can change it.
Do not skip a test with a person who has limited access. They may not see what you see.

Honest limits

Column formatting and form formatting change how things look. They add no business rules. The built-in form can show or hide a field by a formula. A Power Apps form adds more rules, custom controls and full layout control, but it takes more skill and more upkeep. Neither one replaces a clear list design. If the columns are wrong, a nicer form will not fix it. For the base list, see "Replace a spreadsheet tracker with a SharePoint list". For an example form that feeds a list, see "How to set up a project intake form in SharePoint". If the people filling it in are outside your team and have no access to the list, see "Save Microsoft Forms answers to a SharePoint list".

When to get help

You can build all of this yourself in Microsoft 365. If you would rather have it built and tested for your team, I do that. A tracker like this is a fixed price: $5,000 for one, built in 2 weeks. See "What a SharePoint tracker costs to build". Bring one example of the problem to a free call.

Tell me what's still manual

I am Al Davies. I run 250 High Street LLC and build SharePoint trackers and Power Automate flows for operations teams. I work remotely. The first call is free, and I will not try to sell you anything.

See trackers I built: Tools I built

FAQ

Do I need Power Apps to change how a SharePoint form looks?

Not always. Column formatting and list form formatting change the look without Power Apps. The built-in form can show or hide a field by a formula, and form configuration has a read-only field setting. A custom form is for custom controls, full layout control and custom save actions.

Who can use a Power Apps custom form?

Anyone with at least Read or Restricted View access to the list gets the form. People with permission only to specific items do not.

How do I customize a SharePoint list form with Power Apps?

Open the list, select Integrate, then Power Apps, then Customize forms. When done, save and select Publish to SharePoint. The version in SharePoint is the most recently published one.

Is Power Apps included with my Microsoft 365 plan?

Check with your admin. Microsoft's pages list a Microsoft 365 and Power Platform subscription as a prerequisite, but what your plan includes can differ.

Can I use a SharePoint list as a Power Apps data source?

Yes. Microsoft says a list from SharePoint or Microsoft Lists can be a data source, by connecting through the Data menu of an app or through Integrate on the list.