How to Autofill and Autocomplete PDF Forms.

Filling out forms is something we all do in our professional and personal lives. We regularly complete various types of business forms, legal and government forms, application forms, registration forms, and more.

It can be tedious and time-consuming having to type information over and over into forms, and sometimes they’re not completed the way you intended. The solution? Create interactive and fillable PDFs with the auto-complete feature enabled. And add interactive form fields with a PDF creation tool. Read on to learn out to create interactive documents and autofill PDFs.

What you’ll learn

• Uses for PDF forms
• Advantages of auto-completing PDF forms
• How to create autocomplete fields in a PDF form
• Other features to use with PDF forms
• Best practices for using PDF autocomplete
• Completing a PDF form online

Uses for PDF forms.

PDF forms have a wide range of uses across various industries and contexts. Adobe invented them to meet that need. They’re versatile and easy to use. PDF forms preserve the document formatting across any device, and anyone can complete a PDF form with free Adobe Acrobat Reader. Three common ways PDF forms are used include —

• Business administration forms and legal contracts.
  There’s no limit to when you might use PDF forms in a business environment. For example, forms can be included in contracts. There’s a range of documentation new employees and contractors need to complete. Regular expense claims and reports need to be completed. Purchase orders and invoices need to be filled in, and so on.

• Application and registration forms.
  If you want to do something, often you must apply or register to do it. PDF application and registration forms are used by everybody from government departments to academic institutions, from event organizers to volunteer organisations and charities, and beyond. PDF forms in these settings may include documents such as permit applications, registrations of interest, student applications, donation forms, etc.

• Surveys and feedback forms.
  Knowing who your customers are and what they want is how you make your business thrive. PDF forms are often used for customer surveys, feedback, and evaluation forms to gather market research insights, and customer and client satisfaction.

Advantages of auto-completing PDF forms.

The advantages of using autocomplete features with interactive PDF forms go both ways — it’s a win-win for both businesses and individuals. Some of these advantages are —

• Time efficiency.
  Manually filling in repetitive information can take a lot of time. When you use form fields in a PDF, and enable the Auto-complete feature in Adobe Acrobat, once details have been entered once, they can be automatically populated across form fields. This reduces the time to enter information in a form.

• Consistency and accuracy.
  When people aren’t comfortable using technology or must complete multiple documents in succession, errors can occur. Using autofill features in PDFs helps to ensure that you record and capture accurate and consistent information.

• User experience.
  For people who aren’t comfortable filling in forms or have a lot of forms to complete, PDF auto-complete features simplify the process. Less effort is needed on the part of the person completing the form, and the overall experience reflects favourably on the business or entity that has issued the form.

How to create autofill fields in PDF forms.

Getting the design of PDF forms right is vital to capture the information you want. Use interactive form fields to help users complete your PDF forms. Enabling PDF auto-complete and autofill features to help make form completion happen is the cherry on top. You’ll reduce the need to type and help ensure the data captured on your PDF forms is accurate every time.

1. Open your Adobe Acrobat application. If you don’t already have a subscription, you can try these PDF form features for free with the Adobe Acrobat free trial.

2. Click on “Create” to start a new file from scratch or select a PDF form you have already created, or one in another format, such as Word or Excel.

3. From the Menu in the top left corner, select “Preferences,” then “Forms.” You’ll see that the Auto-Complete setting, by default, is set to “Off.” Select from the dropdown options to use Basic or Advanced auto-complete settings. Click “Okay” when you have chosen.
   

4. From the Tools menu on the left-hand side, select “Prepare a Form,” select from the file options, then “Create form.”

5. From the “Add form components” menu on the left-hand side, select from the options with features that are going to help others fill in your PDF form quickly and accurately. If you hover over the icon and name, you’ll see a description for each item.
   
   For example, text fields allow others to type information into a field. Use drop-down lists to allow others to select only one item from a list that you have pre-determined. Create list boxes when you want users to be able to select one or more pre-determined items.
   

6. In the “Fields” displayed on the right-hand side, right-click on field names to select from other options, such as “Set as Required Field” to ensure it is completed. You can also adjust the appearance and position of your form fields here, set calculation options, date formats, and more.

7. Fine-tune your form fields as necessary, then use the “Preview” button on the bottom left and test that your fields are functioning correctly.

8. After you exit the preview, click on the three horizontal dots in the top right to clear the form and make any adjustments.

Other features to use with PDF forms.

Explore some of the many other features that you can use in Adobe Acrobat with PDF forms. For example, you can adjust settings to —

• Distribute forms directly to email recipients and track responses
• Enable people using Adobe Acrobat Reader to save their form data
• Export data directly from multiple PDF form fields

Best practices for using autocomplete in PDFs.

Follow some best practices when you design your PDF forms using the autocomplete features to achieve positive results. Some best practices for using PDF autofill features include —

• Use descriptive field names.
  Ensure that the field names in your PDF form are clear and descriptive. This helps users understand what information should be entered in each field and assists the autocomplete feature in suggesting relevant options.

• Utilize dropdown lists.
  For fields with predefined options, use dropdown lists combined with autocomplete. This allows users to select options from a list or start typing to filter and find the desired choice quickly.
  

• Protect sensitive information.
  Always use robust security measures and the settings available in Adobe Acrobat to safeguard any private and sensitive information captured and saved in PDF forms. ensure that the autocomplete feature does not store or display sensitive data unless necessary.

• Provide clear and concise instructions.
  Give brief instructions or add tooltips to form fields to guide users on how to utilize the PDF autocomplete feature effectively. Clear instructions will help with understanding and encourage full completion of your PDF forms.

• Test and repeat.
  After you have finished designing your PDF form using autocomplete test that it is functional and working as you intended across different devices and platforms. Get feedback from the people who complete and submit your forms so you can make changes and improve your autocomplete PDF forms as needed.

Complete a PDF form online.

Don’t have to have an application to read or create PDFs installed on your device to complete a PDF form? You don’t need to. If you’ve got internet access, you can access the free and secure Adobe Acrobat Online services.

Simply drag and drop or upload a document to fill in a form online with Adobe Acrobat.Along with completing form fields, you’ll be able to type, draw or upload an image of an electronic signature, add your initials, tick marks and cross marks, and more.

Related content.

Keen to keep reading? Check out some of our other articles on how to work with PDF forms —

• How to Create Fillable PDF From Word
• Capture Data with PDF Forms in Your Business
• Gauge Your Customer Satisfaction — Create Customer Feedback Form PDFs
• Streamline Your Home and Family Life with PDF Forms