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    Why does the image/file upload field change when a user is logged in or not?

    This discrepancy is down to how ACF renders image and file upload fields in response to WordPress’ own capability checks. When a user is not logged in or lacks the relevant permissions (typically the upload_files capability), ACF falls back to the default/basic HTML upload field and skips enqueuing the scripts and styles that make up the styled WP media uploader version. This is built into ACF’s field rendering logic and it aligns with WordPress’ core requirements for using the media library.

    The basic HTML upload field renders quite differently to the styled version, which is why the two look so different and need their own CSS. If you want the basic uploader to feel more in line with the rest of your form, you may wish to add some custom CSS for it — see this example on CSS-Tricks for a good starting point.

    If you’d prefer a consistent experience for every user regardless of their login status, you can force the basic HTML uploader by setting the uploader display option to basic when displaying your form. This disables the media library UI but doesn’t require special permissions or a logged-in user. See the uploader display argument for examples using both the [advanced_form] shortcode and the advanced_forms() function.

    See also

    Section titled “See also”