3 ways to add a signature in Microsoft Forms

Microsoft Forms doesn’t have a native field for drawing or adding electronic signatures. However, you can use workarounds to simulate signatures or acknowledgments in Microsoft Forms.

In this article, we show you how to add a signature in Microsoft Forms in three different ways. We’ll also discuss the limitations and use cases of these workarounds. And for those who want a dedicated e-signature field or a complete signing experience, we’ll introduce you to Jotform — a sophisticated form builder that lets you draw or type your signature. 

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Start From Scratch

1. Add a typed-name acknowledgment

The fastest, simplest way to work around the lack of a Microsoft Forms signature field is to use a typed-name acknowledgment instead of a signature. This approach is acceptable for simple internal acknowledgments, but it does not capture a drawn signature within a form.

Here’s how to use this Microsoft Forms signature workaround:

1. Open the relevant Microsoft Form.
2. Click + Quick start with.

3. Select Text.

4. Add an instruction in the question field that directs the respondent to type in their full name as a digital acknowledgment. Toggle the Required setting on.

Form respondents can then type in their name, which you can consider a digital acknowledgment in place of an electronic signature.

2. Ask respondents to upload an image of their signature

Another workaround for a digital signature in Microsoft Forms is to ask respondents to upload an image of their signature. You can do this by using a “file upload” question type. Note that while this approach can work in some instances, it does come with several limitations:

• This question type isn’t available in the free plan: The file upload question type is only included in paid Microsoft 365 business, education, or enterprise licenses. 
• It works for internal use only: The file upload question type requires form settings to be set to “Only people in my organization can respond.” This means you can’t use this workaround for public-facing or external forms.
• It adds an administrative burden: This workaround requires the respondent to take extra steps to convert their electronic signature into an image file that can be uploaded. It adds a considerable amount of friction to the process.

What’s more, there’s no way to verify whether the form respondent is uploading their own signature. That makes this Microsoft Forms signature workaround problematic in many use cases.

3. Send a follow-up approval with Power Automate

If all you need is a mechanism for internal approvals, you can try using Power Automate, a cloud-based low-code platform, together with Microsoft Forms to enable a user to approve or deny a specific request. Power Automate has an approval flow that can be used to create an internal workflow for routing, recording, and acting on approvals. Note that it doesn’t add an actual signature field to the form. 

This approach works well for internal processes that require sign-offs, such as leave requests, expense reports, or other business processes. 

Here’s an overview of how to do it:

1. Create a Microsoft Form: Build your form to collect the information you need reviewed or approved.
2. Create a flow in Power Automate: Set up a workflow that automatically starts when someone submits your form. Configure it to retrieve the submitted information.
3. Add an approval step: In the workflow, add an approval step based on the form details. For example, you can require one person or a sequence of people to approve or decline the request.
4. Determine next steps after the decision: Choose what happens when a person approves or declines the request. For example, Power Automate can send a confirmation email or notify the form respondent of the rejection. 

This workaround does require some technical knowledge and needs to be maintained on a regular basis to ensure it continues to work correctly.

Collect signatures with Jotform instead — no workarounds needed

Adding an electronic signature to Microsoft Forms isn’t easy because the basic form builder doesn’t come with any native e-signature functionality. Good thing Microsoft Forms isn’t your only option!

Jotform is an excellent form builder that offers the dedicated signature experience you need. Whether you’re working on contracts, applications, online waiver forms, or something else, use Jotform to collect signatures directly on your form.

Here’s what you get when you use Jotform:

• Dedicated signature fields for online forms: With Jotform, you can easily add a signature field to any form you’re working on. Simply select the signature field in the form builder and drag and drop it where you want. 
• Mobile-friendly signing: Form respondents can sign using a signature field on any device using a mouse or touchscreen. There’s no need to build a separate signature upload workaround as with Microsoft Forms.
• Electronic signature workflow tool: Use Jotform Sign to route documents for signature. You can automate the process to collect signatures without slowing down the pace of business.
• 20,000-plus free form templates: Jotform offers templates for waivers, consent forms, and other signed documents and workflows, so you don’t ever have to build a form from scratch. You can also convert any form to a PDF to lock everything in place.
• Multiple e-signature widgets: Add a Jotform signature widget or a signature widget from another business tool like Adobe or Docusign. There are plenty of ways to collect signatures on your forms with Jotform.

When it comes to Jotform vs Microsoft Forms, there’s no contest. Jotform offers multiple ways to collect electronic signatures on forms, route forms to others for signature, and complete dedicated signature workflows. 

Explore Jotform and Jotform Sign today, and see how easy it is to add a signature to your forms and documents.

AS ALWAYS, CONSULT AN ATTORNEY AND/OR OTHER APPLICABLE PROFESSIONALS BEFORE RELYING ON ANY INFORMATION ON THIS PAGE. THE CONTENT ABOVE IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. JOTFORM IS NOT PROVIDING LEGAL, TAX, FINANCIAL OR OTHER ADVICE.