How to Make a Fillable Form in Microsoft Word

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• You need to enable the Design tab using the Developer mode.
• Make sure to customize control based on your need
• Ensure that the form edit is restricted to only filling out; the end user will delete the elements.

1. Enable the Developer Tab

Step 1: Open a new Word document, go to the File tab, and click on Options.

Step 2: That will open the Word options window. Now, select Customize Ribbon and click on the Choose commands from dropdown.

Step 3: From the scrollable list in the first column, select Main Tabs. In the window below, you’ll see a Developer (Custom) option. Please select it and move it to the right side.

Step 4: Select OK to save the changes once you’ve finished. You’ll see a new tab named Developer on the Ribbon menu.

The block beside the Add-in block marked Controls will contain all the control elements, such as text boxes, drop-downs, and text boxes.

Step 2: Add Form Elements To Word Document

Now, all you need to do is add the Content Control Elements. If it is a simple form with text boxes, you may want to add a table while designing the form. While the standard control panel lets you experiment with new elements, you can also play around with legacy controls.

Start by clicking on Design Mode. Position your cursor where you want to add the elements and select one of the many control elements.

Note that the default style doesn’t have any formatting options. You won’t be able to see any borders, which can be problematic for first-time users. To see a page’s content control elements, tap on Design Mode, which will highlight all the placeholders.

At the same time, to access the legacy controls, click on the little briefcase-shaped icon, as shown in the screenshot below.

Step 3: Customize the Elements for Form

Microsoft Word also lets you edit and customize the properties of the elements. From simple things like changing the placeholder color to adding the element title and adding locking mechanisms, you can do plenty with this simple control.

Select an element to open the Properties box and click on Properties from the top ribbon. Next, double-click the content control element to change the instructional text.

Step 4: Restrict Editing of Forms in Word Document

It’s pretty easy to edit a form in Word. All you need is a person who knows their way around MS Word’s fillable form features to change a form’s structure completely. However, you would also want users to be able to fill the form out quickly. Thankfully, this can be avoided by locking the form.

Step 1: Use the Ctrl+A keyboard shortcut to select all the form elements, then click the Restrict Editing button at the top of the ribbon.

Step 2: Next, select the modes of restriction. Tap on Editing restrictions (option #2), select the Allow only this type of editing in the document checkbox, and then select the Filling in forms option from the drop-down. Enter a password if you want to, and then press the Ok button

Content Control Elements and Their Meaning

Quite naturally, the first two options, Plain Text Content Control and Rich Text Content Control, are for adding text elements to the form. Users can add text in various formats, but they won’t be able to add multiple lines by default. Thankfully, it is easily correctable.

Step 1: Click on properties and check the Allow Carriage returns checkbox.

Note: However, it’s not as simple for the other elements, like the drop-down list and date picker, where you’d need to add the values beforehand when you submit the form.

Step 2: For drop-downs, select the element and click on Properties. Next, tap on Add and add the name and the value. Do this for the rest of your options. You can even move the values up and down on the list.

Step 3: Similarly, you can choose the date format, calendar type, and the like. Like the above one, open the Properties controls for the calendar and make changes. Hit Ok when done.

However, the best tool is the Repeating Section tool. This one lets you repeat any form element on your form. That is a container for other content tools you want to repeat in the different parts of the form.

To use it, tap on the icon and add the tools you want inside it. Once you’ve done this, click on the Add icon. All the elements will be repeated neatly.