Troubleshooting: HTTP 422 Errors with Ontraport Integration

Troubleshooting: HTTP 422 Errors with Ontraport Integration

Common Causes of 422 Errors with Ontraport

ERROR 422 can appear on:

• Opt-in forms
• Order forms
• Login forms with auto-login
• Profile update forms
• Custom operation forms

Most common root causes with Ontraport:

1. Missing required fields in Ontraport that aren’t in your form
2. Field type mismatches (e.g., text sent to numeric field)
3. Ontraport API connection issues
4. reCAPTCHA configuration problems (Error codes [02014], [02015], [02011])
5. Login widget captcha conflicting with auto-login
6. Invalid or duplicate email addresses
7. Custom field mapping errors

Quick Diagnosis: What Type of 422 Error Do You Have?

Step 1: Check if you see an error code

If you see an error code like [02014], [02015], or [02011] alongside the 422 error:

• This is a reCAPTCHA configuration issue
• See our Error Code Reference Guide
• Follow the reCAPTCHA troubleshooting steps
• Check if you have login widget captcha conflicts

If you see ERROR 422 without an error code:

• This is likely an Ontraport API or field validation issue
• Continue with this guide

Troubleshooting Steps for Ontraport 422 Errors

Step 1: Verify Ontraport API Connection

Check if AccessAlly can connect to Ontraport:

1. Go to WordPress Admin
   • Navigate to AccessAlly → Settings
   • Find the Ontraport connection section
2. Verify API Credentials
   • Confirm App ID is entered correctly
   • Confirm API Key is entered correctly
   • No extra spaces before or after credentials
3. Test Connection
   • Look for “Test Connection” or similar button
   • If test fails, API credentials are incorrect or expired
   • Generate new API credentials in Ontraport if needed
4. Check Ontraport Account Status
   • Log into Ontraport admin
   • Verify account is active (not suspended for payment issues)
   • Check if API access is enabled for your account tier

Step 2: Identify Missing Required Fields

Ontraport may require fields that aren’t visible in your form:

1. Check Required Fields in Ontraport
   • Log into Ontraport
   • Go to Contacts → Contact Information → Contact Fields
   • Look for fields marked as “Required”
   • Common required fields: First Name, Last Name, Email
   • Your account may have custom required fields
2. Add Missing Fields to Your Form
   • Edit your form in AccessAlly form builder
   • Add any required fields that are missing
   • Map them to the correct Ontraport fields
3. Test with Minimal Data
   • Submit form with only required fields filled
   • If it works, the issue was missing required fields
   • If it still fails, continue troubleshooting

Step 3: Check Field Type Mismatches

Ontraport validates field types strictly:

Field Type in Ontraport	What AccessAlly Must Send	Common Mistakes
Email	Valid email format ([email protected])	Missing @ symbol, spaces in email
Numeric	Numbers only (no letters, spaces, or symbols)	Sending “N/A” or text to numeric field
Phone	Depends on field settings (may require specific format)	Including country code when not expected
Date	Format matching Ontraport settings (YYYY-MM-DD or MM/DD/YYYY)	Wrong date format, invalid dates
Dropdown (Single Select)	Exact match to one of the dropdown options	Sending value not in dropdown list
Checkbox (Multi-Select)	Comma-separated values matching options exactly	Typos in option names, wrong separator

How to fix field type mismatches:

1. Review your form field mappings in AccessAlly
2. For each field, verify it sends data in the format Ontraport expects
3. Add field validation to your form (e.g., email validation, numeric-only validation)
4. Test with valid data that matches expected formats

Step 4: Check for Duplicate or Invalid Emails

Ontraport may reject submissions if:

• Email already exists and you’re trying to create a new contact (instead of updating)
• Email format is invalid
• Email domain doesn’t exist or is blacklisted

Test this:

1. Submit form with a brand new email (use a temp email service like Mailinator)
2. If it works, the issue is related to existing contacts or email validation
3. Check your form settings: Is it set to “Create New Contact” or “Update Existing”?
4. For opt-in forms, use “Update if exists, create if new” setting

Step 5: Review Custom Field Mappings

Custom field mapping errors are a common cause:

1. List All Custom Fields
   • In Ontraport: Contacts → Contact Information → Contact Fields
   • Note the exact field names (case-sensitive)
   • Note the field types (text, number, date, etc.)
2. Check AccessAlly Mappings
   • Edit your form in AccessAlly
   • Review custom field mappings
   • Ensure field names match EXACTLY (including capitalization)
   • Verify you’re sending the right data type
3. Test Without Custom Fields
   • Temporarily remove custom field mappings
   • Test with only standard fields (email, first name, last name)
   • If it works, the issue is in one of your custom field mappings
   • Add custom fields back one at a time to identify the problem field

Step 6: Enable Debug Logging

If the issue persists, enable debug logging to see the exact error:

1. Enable AccessAlly Debug Mode
   • Go to AccessAlly → Settings → Advanced
   • Look for “Debug Mode” or “Enable Logging”
   • Enable it
2. Submit the Form Again
   • Trigger the 422 error
   • Check the debug log for detailed error messages
3. Review the Log
   • Look for Ontraport API response
   • It will show which field caused the validation error
   • Example: “Field ‘phone’ expected numeric value”
4. Fix the Specific Issue
   • Address the exact error from the log
   • Test again

Ontraport-Specific Known Issues

Issue: “Contact merge” settings causing 422

Symptom: Form submission fails with 422, but same data works in Ontraport directly.

Cause: Ontraport’s contact merge settings may prevent API submissions that would create duplicates.

Solution:

1. In Ontraport: Administration → Contact Merge Settings
2. Review which fields are used for duplicate detection
3. Ensure your form provides unique values for those fields
4. Or adjust merge settings to allow updates instead of rejecting duplicates

Issue: Tag or sequence doesn’t exist

Symptom: Form submission fails when trying to apply tag or add to sequence.

Cause: Tag or sequence ID in AccessAlly doesn’t exist in Ontraport (may have been deleted or renamed).

Solution:

1. Review tags and sequences applied by your form
2. Verify each tag/sequence still exists in Ontraport
3. Update IDs in AccessAlly if they’ve changed
4. Remove references to deleted tags/sequences

Issue: Campaign or automation trigger failing

Symptom: Form submits contact but doesn’t trigger expected campaign or automation.

Cause: Campaign/automation settings in Ontraport may have changed or been disabled.

Solution:

1. Check campaign/automation in Ontraport
2. Verify it’s active
3. Check trigger conditions are met by form submission
4. Test trigger manually in Ontraport

When 422 Error Appears AFTER Fixing Captcha Issues

If you previously had reCAPTCHA errors (like [02014]) and fixed them, but now see ERROR 422:

This is actually progress! It means:

• ✅ reCAPTCHA is now working correctly
• ❌ But there’s a separate form validation issue

Follow this troubleshooting sequence:

1. First, ensure reCAPTCHA is completely resolved (no error codes)
2. Then, work through the Ontraport troubleshooting steps above
3. Most likely cause: Missing required field or field type mismatch

Still Getting 422 Errors? Check These Edge Cases

WordPress or Server Issues

• PHP memory limit too low: Increase to at least 256MB
• PHP execution time too short: Increase to at least 60 seconds for forms
• Firewall blocking API calls: Whitelist Ontraport’s IP addresses
• SSL certificate issues: Ensure valid SSL certificate on your site
• Outdated AccessAlly version: Update to latest version

Ontraport Account Limitations

• API rate limiting: Too many API calls in short time (wait 5 minutes and retry)
• Account tier restrictions: Some features require higher-tier Ontraport plans
• Contact limit reached: Free/trial accounts may have contact limits

Step-by-Step Troubleshooting Checklist

Work through this checklist systematically:

1. ☐ Verify no reCAPTCHA error codes ([02014], [02015], [02011]) appear with the 422
2. ☐ Test Ontraport API connection in AccessAlly settings
3. ☐ Verify API credentials are correct and not expired
4. ☐ Check Ontraport account is active and API access is enabled
5. ☐ List all required fields in Ontraport
6. ☐ Ensure all required fields are in your form
7. ☐ Verify field type mappings (email, numeric, date formats)
8. ☐ Test with a brand new email address (not existing contact)
9. ☐ Review custom field mappings for exact name matches
10. ☐ Test form with only standard fields (remove custom fields temporarily)
11. ☐ Enable debug logging to see exact error message
12. ☐ Check Ontraport contact merge settings
13. ☐ Verify tags and sequences referenced by form still exist
14. ☐ Check for WordPress/server issues (memory, timeout, SSL)
15. ☐ Test in incognito browser to rule out caching

Prevention: How to Avoid 422 Errors

Best practices to prevent future 422 errors:

1. ✅ Document Ontraport required fields – Keep a list of required fields for reference when creating forms
2. ✅ Use field validation – Add client-side validation to forms (email format, required fields, etc.)
3. ✅ Test forms after Ontraport changes – Any time you modify Ontraport fields or settings, test all forms
4. ✅ Keep AccessAlly updated – Bug fixes and API improvements in newer versions
5. ✅ Monitor API connection – Set up periodic checks that API credentials are still valid
6. ✅ Version control your field mappings – Document which form fields map to which Ontraport fields
7. ✅ Avoid manual Ontraport changes – If you delete/rename fields in Ontraport, update all forms referencing them

Getting Help from Support

If you’ve worked through this guide and still have 422 errors, contact AccessAlly support with:

1. Form type: Opt-in, order, login, profile update, etc.
2. When it started: Always had this issue, or started after a specific change?
3. Error message: Screenshot of the exact error (include any error codes)
4. Debug log: Export of debug log showing the API error
5. Troubleshooting completed: Which steps from this guide you’ve already tried
6. Form configuration: Which fields are in the form and how they’re mapped
7. Ontraport required fields: List of required fields in your Ontraport account

Related Articles

• Error Code Reference (including reCAPTCHA errors [02014], [02015], [02011])
• Login Widget Captcha Conflicts with Auto-Login Forms
• Setting Up reCAPTCHA for Spam Protection

💡 Pro Tip: Keep a “test contact” in Ontraport specifically for testing forms. Use a unique email like [email protected] (Gmail ignores anything after +). This way you can repeatedly test form submissions without cluttering your contact list, and you can easily search for this contact to verify data came through correctly.