Sort Entity drop-down lists by public ID?

[Chr1sG]

Select fields act like types, so if you want to reference them in a formula, you need to reference a field, like Name.
If I have a database called DB, with a select field called Select, then in a formula, I can get the chosen Select for a given DB entity using the formula
Select.Name

And when you say

@Mikkling

they should appear in logical order in the selection drop-down list

then it should be the case that the possible options for select drop-down are returned in the order in which they have been configured (not alphabetical order).

You can rearrange the order using the ‘handle’ →

@Mikkling

Say i have an if() automation for Contacts that should return the single-select field value “Tier 1” on true and “Tier 2” on false, how do i reference them in the formula?

I’m not sure I understand what you’re trying to achieve here. Do you mean that you want to be able to set the value of a select field using an automation?
If so, then you’ll want to read this:

Button formula: How to update a single-select field

A good way to visualise it (literally) is to actually open a single-select value (alt-click on its name) and you will see all its properties (colour, icon and linked entities). Try it