Choose How to Start
Compare starting from a form name, PDF, Google Form, Google Doc, Google Sheet, or template, and pick the one that keeps your wording and layout.
Reviewed 2026-10-30 · Formesign guides
Quick Answer
Should I upload a PDF or import a Google Form?
Upload a PDF when the signed document must look exactly like your original, such as official or regulatory documents. Import a Google Form when you already collect answers there. Enter a form name when you're starting from nothing. Formesign's chooser at formesign.com/signature-form offers these three.
Open formesign.com/signature-form, or click Create new form on your dashboard, to see the three main choices.
Compare the options
| Start from | Best when | What signers see | Guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| A form name | You have no form yet | A mobile-friendly form | From a name |
| A PDF, kept as is | The signed copy must match your original exactly | Your PDF with fields on it | Upload a PDF |
| A PDF, turned into a form | You want to keep editing the wording | A mobile-friendly form | Upload a PDF |
| A Google Form | You already collect answers in Google Forms | A Formesign version of your form | Import a Google Form |
| A Google Doc | Your team maintains the document in Docs | Your document as a PDF with fields | Sign a Google Doc |
| A Google Sheet | The thing to sign is a spreadsheet tab | The tab as a document | Sign a Google Sheet |
| A template | Your process is common, like consent or an inspection | A ready-made form | Templates |
Three questions that decide it
Does the signed copy have to look exactly like your document? Use a PDF and choose Yes, keep my PDF exactly as it is. Statutory and official documents usually need this.
Will the wording keep changing? Use a form name, a template, or a PDF turned into a form. You can edit the questions any time.
Do people need to answer from a phone? A form works best on a small screen. A kept-as-is PDF works on a phone too, but signers are reading a full page.
One person signing, or several?
That's a separate decision, and you make it after creating the form. Every starting point supports a signing order, so you can add signers later.
Next steps
- Not sure? Follow the Quickstart with a practice form first.
- Moving an existing process? Check how copying works before you import.