Extra blank paragraphs & line breaks added in RTE fields - Custom PowerApps form (SharePoint List)

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Posted on by DD-21041932-0

Hi everyone,

I'm hoping someone can help me with a frustrating rich-text issue in a customized Power Apps form.

Problem:
I have a SharePoint list with several rich-text columns (e.g., "Job Location", "Additional Job Description", etc.). I’m using the standard customized form created via Integrate → Power Apps → Customize forms.

Whenever the form loads an existing item for editing (or during a "Needs Revision" workflow), the rich-text fields consistently get extra blank paragraphs and line breaks added at the top and/or bottom of the content. These extra lines are then saved back to SharePoint and appear in the PDFs generated by my Power Automate flows.

Important notes:

Users are not manually adding these breaks.
When I temporarily switch back to the default SharePoint form (or Edit in Grid View), the issue disappears.
The problem only occurs with the customized Power Apps form.

What I’ve already tried:

Setting the Default property of the Rich Text Editor controls with aggressive cleaning using Substitute, Trim, and <div></div> fallback.
Adding cleaning logic in the screen’s OnVisible event using UpdateContext.
Modifying the Update property on the DataCards.
Using the official Rich Text Editor control.

Despite all of the above, the extra spacing still appears when the form loads for editing.

Goal:
I want the rich-text content to load cleanly (without extra blank paragraphs/line breaks) when the form opens for editing, and I want the data saved to SharePoint to be clean.
Has anyone encountered this before? Is there a reliable way to prevent SharePoint/Power Apps from injecting these ghost paragraphs in customized forms?

Any suggestions or known workarounds would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance,
David

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Building Power Apps

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WarrenBelz 155,838 Most Valuable Professional on at

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Hi @DD-21041932-0,,

This is a bit unusual, so getting down to the issue: -

Does the cleaning in the Update of the data card fix the SharePoint saving issue (this is an important first step).

Does "clean" SharePoint Point data load correctly ?

What does the data look like in a plain text label (what has been added) ?

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Power Platform Guy 220 on at

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@DD-21041932-0,

Instead of finding the solution in the Edit Mode of the Control We will focus on the DataCard Update property while saving the record in the database.

Power Fx (Formula)

With(

    {

        _html: RichTextEditor1.HtmlText

    },

    Substitute(

        Substitute(

            _html,

            "<p><br></p>",

            ""

        ),

        "<p> </p>",

        ""

    )

)

Provide this formula in the relevant datacard update property, this will remove the blank paragraph.

☑️Accept as Solution to help others 💙 A Like is appreciated ❓Tag @PowerPlatform Guy for any queries

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WarrenBelz 155,838 Most Valuable Professional on at

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Hi @DD-21041932-0,

A quick follow-up to see if you received the answer you were looking for. Happy to assist further if not.

Please ✅ Does this answer your question if my post helped you solve your issue. This will help others find it more readily. It also closes the item. If the content was useful in other ways, please consider answering Yes to Was this reply helpful? or give it a Like ♥
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11manish 3,333 on at

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You cannot fully stop Power Apps from generating these ghost paragraphs at load time.

The only reliable fix is:

sanitize at the point of save and/or before downstream processing (Power Automate).

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Power Platform Guy 220 on at

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@DD-21041932-0,

A quick follow-up to see, does the suggestion worked for you or still you were looking for any other approaches or assistance.

☑️Accept as Solution to help others 💙 A Like is appreciated ❓Tag @PowerPlatform Guy for any queries

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