Upload a PDF
Upload a PDF and Formesign finds the fields, signers, and consent wording for you. Keep your exact layout, or turn the PDF into an editable form.
Reviewed 2026-10-30 · Formesign guides
Quick Answer
How do I add signature fields to a PDF?
Go to formesign.com/document-to-signature-form and upload the PDF. Choose Yes, keep my PDF exactly as it is, or No, turn it into a form I can edit. Formesign finds the fields and signers and places them on the page. Check the boxes against your original, then click Proceed.
You don't place the fields by hand. Formesign reads the PDF, finds the blanks and signature lines, works out who signs, and puts the boxes on the page for you.
We'll use a one-page Equipment Loan Agreement with blanks for a name, the equipment, and a start date, and signature lines for an employee and a manager.
Upload and choose a layout
Upload the PDF
Open formesign.com/document-to-signature-form, or choose Upload a PDF to collect signatures from the chooser. Drag your file into the box, then click Proceed.
Decide whether to keep the layout
Formesign asks Do you need the signed document to match your original PDF? This is the most important choice on this page. See the table below.
Let Formesign place the fields
Click Continue. Formesign shows what it finds as it works: the answer fields, the signers, any consent wording, and any sensitive fields. This took under a minute for our one-page document.
Check every box against your original
The document opens with the boxes in place. Green boxes are answers and blue boxes are signatures. Compare them with your original, page by page.
Proceed to the document editor
Click Proceed. The full document editor opens, with every field listed on the right. Fix anything that's wrong, then check the signing order and share it.
Keep the PDF, or turn it into a form?
| Yes, keep my PDF exactly as it is | No, turn it into a form I can edit | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Statutory, regulatory, or official documents | Custom documents |
| Signers see | Your PDF, with fields to fill in and sign | A mobile-friendly form |
| The signed PDF | Your original layout | Follows the new form layout |
| Changing wording later | Change your PDF and upload it again | Edit questions and wording any time |
Six-page limit when you keep the layout
Keeping the original layout works for documents up to 6 pages. For a longer document, split it, or choose No, turn it into a form I can edit.
Fix a field
Fix boxes in the document editor before you share. Clicking a box selects it, and its name appears above it.
| To | Do this |
|---|---|
| Move a box slightly | Select it and use the arrow keys |
| Resize a box | Drag the handles at its ends |
| Remove a box | Select it and press Delete, or use the trash icon on its row in the list |
| Add a blank that was missed | Click + Add |
The field list also shows what isn't on the page. Grey fields, such as a signer's email, are still collected but don't print on your document. That's often what you want. Check that nothing you need printed is grey.
What signers see
When you keep the layout, signers work through four steps: Read, Fill, Review, and Submit.
Read. They see your actual page. Later signers' boxes are greyed out and labelled, so nobody signs in the wrong place. The page tells them how many fields they have to fill. Click PROCEED.
Fill. Answers go in an ordinary form rather than on the page, so it works well on a phone. Then a second page has their name, email, signature, and the date, which fills in by itself.