Availability: Business and Enterprise plans
Note: This article covers the Fill in document details step in the new template experience. If your workspace hasn't been updated yet, see Create forms (classic experience).
The Fill in document details step adds a web form to your template. The form collects the information needed to populate your document's variables — from a team member creating a document, or from anyone who opens your public link.
Note: You can have only one Fill in document details step per template.
How to add the step to your template
Open your template and go to the Build your workflow sidebar.
Select + Add step, then select Fill in document details.
Select the step in the sidebar, then select Edit form to open the form editor.
Customizing your form
When you add the step, PandaDoc automatically generates a form from your template. Each role gets a Contact preset block (email, first name, last name, and company by default) — roles with pre-assigned contacts are excluded. Each variable gets a question field with a label derived from the variable name.
In the form editor you can:
Rename the form — the title recipients see when they open it
Change field types — Short text, Long text, Number, Email, Phone number, Date, Multiple choice, Checkboxes, Dropdown, and layout blocks (Title, Image)
Mark fields as not required — uncheck Required in the right panel
Add new fields — hover between fields until the blue indicator appears, then select + Add field
Link fields to variables — use the Linked variable dropdown in the right panel
Generate a new variable — select + Generate variable for any new field that has no matching variable
Note: Contact preset, Image, and Title blocks cannot be switched to another type. The Contact preset block for a role cannot be deleted.
Note: If you haven't saved the form yet, it re-generates automatically each time you add a variable to the template. Once you save it for the first time, the question order locks — new template variables still appear in the form, but the saved order is preserved.
To rename the form, select its title at the top of the canvas and enter the new name in the Title field on the right panel.
To change a field type, select the field type button in the top-right corner of the field and choose a different type from the dropdown.
To add a field, hover above or below a field until the blue indicator line appears, then select + Add field and choose the block type.
To customize a field, select it and adjust settings in the right panel.
Tip:
To speed up document creation and ensure data consistency, you can transform any variable into a selection list.
In the form editor, select a field (like Client.ServiceProjectType).
Change the field type to Dropdown in the right panel.
Add your standard options (e.g., "Managed Services," "Consulting") as items.
The sender or recipient selects from the list instead of typing freeform text.
Two ways to use your form
1. Filling in document details when creating a document
When a team member selects Use this template, the form appears as a step in the guided document creation flow after they assign recipients.
Flow: assign recipients → fill in document details → review the document → send it.
Instead of opening the document to fill in variables directly, the team member answers structured questions — dropdowns, date pickers, validated text fields — before the document is generated. Form responses automatically populate the template's variables. Documents created this way are stored in your normal document storage.
Tip: This step makes the biggest difference for template-heavy workflows. The more variables your template has, the more it simplifies the process for everyone using it — and configuring the form once means everyone follows the same process every time.
2. Sharing as a public form — anyone with a link
Warning: The public form is not compatible with creating documents via a CRM.
You can share a public link that lets anyone initiate a document from the form.
To share the form publicly:
Open the template.
Select the chain link icon next to Use this template at the top. The tooltip reads Share as public form.
In the panel that opens, select Copy public link or Copy embed code.
If the template has multiple roles, select which role fills out the public form from the Who will fill out the form? dropdown.
Flow: opens the link → fills in the form → document is generated automatically → reviews and signs the document.
Documents from the public form are stored in a folder named after the template, under Documents > All documents.
Warning: The document is not automatically sent for signing if the template has any of the following conditions:
An approval workflow configured
Payment not properly configured (gateway and/or payer not specified)
Unfilled variables
Unassigned fields
No recipients assigned
A required smart content block with pre-selected content
Resolve these issues in the template before sharing the public link.
Note: The Anyone with the link can respond toggle controls access to the form. When it's off, anyone opening the link sees "This form is no longer accepting responses."