---
sourceDocument: Zurich ServiceNow AI Platform Administration
sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/zurich/platform-administration

 Release :

    - zurich

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Zurich ServiceNow AI Platform Administration

ft:clusterId :

    - platadm

bundleId :

    - platadm

workflow :

    - Platform


---

# Display values

# Display values {#ariaid-title1}

* Release version: Zurich
* 
* Updated July 31, 2025
* 
* ![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 1 minute to read

Reference fields store a sys_id for each referenced record in the database, but the
sys_id is not shown.

The reference field shows the display value. For example, an incident's Assigned to field stores the sys_id of a particular user, but actually displays the user's
name. The following example shows how Charlie Witherspoon, which is the
display value of a user record, is shown in the Assigned to field.  
Figure 1. Display value xml  
{#c_DisplayValues__table_wf1_rw1_dr__entry__4}

| Reference field | Value stored in database | Display value field of source table | Value displayed in UI |
|-|-|-|-|
| Assigned to \[task.assigned_to\] | 46b87022a9fe198101a78787e40d7547 | Name \[sys_user.name\] | Charlie Whitherspoon |
[Table 1. Reference field]

{#c_DisplayValues__table_wf1_rw1_dr}  
Reference fields show display values in:

* [Lists](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=c_UseLists&version=zurich&pubname=zurich-platform-user-interface&ft:locale=en-US)
* Forms
* Reports
* [Auto-complete suggestions](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/WbyafaNHE4dr3GfSsixjAQ#c_AutoCompleteForReferenceFields "By default, a reference field auto-completes as the user types in the field.")
* Slushbuckets
{#c_DisplayValues__ul_uzj_1x1_dr}
**Related concepts**   

* [Unique record identifier (sys_id)](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/a9Gom_w7iaSyXklLIVpwMQ#c_UniqueRecordIdentifier "A unique 32-character GUID (Globally Unique ID), called a Sys ID (sys_id) identifies each record in an instance.")