Recently I came to know about this osm feature by SIR Plugin. SIR is already making our life easy. Now let’s understand how it works.
REF: SIR github
Have you ever wondered which fields in your Salesforce org are truly being used and which ones are just taking up space? As Salesforce orgs evolve over time, it’s common to accumulate fields that may have been created for a specific purpose but are no longer relevant. The Field Usage Analysis feature comes in handy here — it helps you identify which fields are actively populated with data and which ones are barely (or never) used.
This kind of analysis is extremely useful before doing org cleanups, data migrations, or optimization exercises. It gives you a clear, data-driven view of field utilization without relying on guesswork or manual checks.
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What Is Field Usage Analysis?
The Field Usage Analysis tool calculates the percentage of records that have non-empty values for each field in a specific SObject.
For example, if the Phone field on the Contact object is filled for 4,000 out of 10,000 records, the usage will be shown as 40%.
This quick insight helps admins and developers make informed decisions about whether a field is still relevant, needs to be retained, or can be safely deprecated.
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How to Use the Field Usage Analysis
1. Navigate to an SObject
• You can select an SObject from the popup or simply navigate to any SObject page in Salesforce.
2. Open the Field Inspection Page
• Click the “Show All Data” button to open the field inspection view.
• This will display a list of all fields for that SObject along with their metadata and current data snapshot.
3. Calculate Field Usage
You can choose to calculate usage at different levels:
• Individual Field: Click on the “Get Field Usage” link next to a specific field to calculate usage for that field only.
• All Fields: Click the refresh icon (🔄) in the “Usage (%)” column header to calculate usage for all fields at once.
4. View Results
• Hover over any percentage value to view the detailed breakdown (for example: 1,247 / 5,000 records (25%)).
• Required fields automatically show 100% usage.
• Some fields (like Textarea, Address, or Rich Text Area) might not be supported and will appear blank.
5. Export the Results
• Use the table settings menu (⚙️) to copy the table or download it as a CSV file for further analysis or documentation.
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Why This Feature Is Useful
• Optimize Data Model: Identify unused or low-usage fields that can potentially be deprecated.
• Improve Performance: Reducing unnecessary fields can enhance API response times and simplify data management.
• Support Migration Planning: Knowing field usage helps ensure you only migrate essential data to new environments.
• Maintain Data Hygiene: Regular reviews help keep your Salesforce org lean, clean, and efficient.
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Important Notes & Recommendations
⚠️ Caution:
The Field Usage Analysis feature consumes Salesforce API calls, which count toward your daily API request limits.
If you’re analyzing a large org or running a full-object scan, it’s recommended to perform this in a sandbox or a full copy of production to avoid hitting your API limits.
💡 Pro Tip:
Run this analysis periodically (for example, every quarter) to proactively identify data fields that are losing relevance. It’s a great way to maintain a healthy and scalable Salesforce org!
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