100% Free · No Account · Zero Uploads

Free Fillable PDF Form Builder. Right in Your Browser.

Drop in any PDF and let the built-in AI find the fields for you — or place them yourself. Add signatures, checkboxes and dropdowns, then export a form that opens anywhere. On your laptop or your phone.

100% free. No account. No credit card. Everything — including the AI — runs inside your browser, so your files never leave your device.

Start Building — Free See How It Works
  • Nothing uploaded
  • No account
  • AI runs locally
  • Works offline
app.pdf-forms.tools / registration-form.pdf
The FormForge PDF form editor showing a registration form with 15 automatically detected fields, the field list on the left and the properties panel on the right
No Cloud Uploads
No Account Needed
No Credit Card
Works Offline

What is FormForge?

FormForge is a free, browser-based PDF form editor that turns any PDF into a fillable form — with no uploads, no account, and no software to install.

Price
Free — no account, no card
Where files are processed
Entirely in your browser
Field types
7, including signature
Automatic field detection
Yes — a neural net that runs on your device
Signatures
Draw or type — plus optional certificate signing
Phones & tablets
Full touch editor, not a cut-down view
Install as an app
Yes — installable PWA, works offline
Batch generation
CSV in, a ZIP of filled PDFs out
Built-in form checks
21 AcroForm checks with one-click fixes
Export format
Fillable PDF (AcroForm)
App languages
7
What’s new

The parts people tell us they didn’t expect

A local AI that finds your fields, real signatures, a phone editor that actually works, and repair tools most paid form builders don’t ship.

AI field detection

Point it at a flat PDF. Get fields back.

A scanned form with nothing but printed boxes? FormForge runs a purpose-built object-detection network over the page and places matching text fields, checkboxes and signature areas for you — then hands you the result as a single undo step.

  • The model runs on your device via WebAssembly — the PDF is never sent anywhere
  • Downloads once, caches, then works offline forever after
  • Scan one page or the whole document, and cancel any time

Two model sizes. The small one is the default and is used automatically on phones.

How field detection works
Point it at a flat PDF. Get fields back.
Signatures

Sign with your finger. Or just type it.

Draw a signature straight onto the page — the stroke thins and thickens with speed, and with real pressure if you use an Apple Pencil or stylus. Prefer typing? Enter your name and pick a script. Either way it lands in the PDF as a crisp, transparent image.

  • Pressure- and velocity-sensitive drawing, with per-stroke undo
  • Embedded at print quality, cropped exactly to the ink
  • Leave a field unsigned and it exports as a normal signature box for the recipient

A drawn signature is not a digital certificate — but you can add a real cryptographic one when you export.

Signature
X
Draw Type Pressure-sensitive
Mobile

A real editor on a phone, not a shrunken one.

Phones and tablets get their own interface: a draggable bottom sheet, a magnifier that keeps the page visible under your thumb, and nudge pads that move a field one point per tap. Install it to your home screen and it keeps working with no connection at all.

  • Pinch to zoom, one finger to pan, tap to place a field
  • Installs as an app — opens PDFs straight from your files, exports via the share sheet
  • Works fully offline once installed
The FormForge editor on a phone, showing the draggable bottom sheet with fill progress
Form tools

Catch the problems Acrobat would have caught.

Form doctor runs 21 compliance checks against what strict readers expect from an AcroForm — duplicate names, fields too small to click, required-but-hidden, combs without a max length — and fixes most of them in one click. Harmonise then snaps almost-aligned fields into actually-aligned ones.

  • One-click fixes, plus “fix everything fixable”
  • Bake rotated pages upright so every reader renders the form identically
  • Mail-merge a CSV into a ZIP of filled PDFs, generated on your machine
See batch editing
Catch the problems Acrobat would have caught.
Features

Everything you need to build professional PDF forms

Visual Drag & Drop

Click to drop fields exactly where you want them. Grid snap and zoom keep every field pixel-aligned — no coordinates, no code.

Import Any PDF

Open an existing PDF and start editing in seconds. Fields already in the document are detected and imported automatically.

Every Field Type

Text, checkbox, radio, dropdown, signature, date, and number fields — everything a professional form needs.

See every field type

Live Preview

Fill your form in a real preview before you ship it, so you catch layout issues while they still take one click to fix.

Privacy by Design

Your documents never leave your device. Every PDF is processed in your browser — no uploads, no server, no exceptions.

How privacy works

Export Anywhere

Export a standards-compliant fillable PDF that just works in Adobe Reader, macOS Preview, Chrome, and Firefox.

Digital Signatures

Optionally seal your export with a standards-compliant signature that Adobe Acrobat and Preview verify — and the private key behind it stays on your device, never uploaded.

How It Works

Three steps to a fillable PDF

No installs, no sign-up, no learning curve — go from a flat PDF to a working fillable form in minutes.

  1. Import your PDF

    Drag any PDF onto the canvas or pick a file — it opens instantly in your browser. Existing form fields are detected and imported automatically. Nothing is uploaded to a server.

    01 / 03
    FormForge start screen — import a PDF or open a saved draft, all stored locally in your browser

  2. Place your fields

    Pick a field type — text, checkbox, dropdown, signature, date, number — and click to drop it on the page. Fine-tune the name, size, and validation in the properties panel.

    02 / 03
    Placing fillable form fields on a PDF in the FormForge editor with the field properties panel open

  3. Preview & export

    Toggle live preview to fill the form exactly as your recipients will, then export a fillable PDF that works in Adobe Reader, macOS Preview, and every major viewer.

    03 / 03
    Live preview of a fillable PDF form being filled out in the browser before exporting it

Want the detailed walkthrough with screenshots? Read the full guide to creating a fillable PDF form .

Field Types

Every field type you'll ever need

Seven field types cover every form use case — from simple text inputs to legally-binding signature fields.

Text Field*

Single & multi-line inputs

Checkbox*

Toggle options on or off

Radio Button*

Select one from a group

Dropdown*

Pick from a list of options

Signature*

Capture handwritten signatures

Date Picker*

Date input with validation

Number*
#

Numeric input with constraints

Use Cases

Built for every kind of form

See how teams and independents use FormForge to make paperwork fillable — privately, and for free.

HR & Recruiting

Offer letters, onboarding packs, and policy sign-offs — fillable and reusable.

Explore

Government & Administration

Turn public forms and applications into accessible fillable PDFs — no vendor lock-in.

Explore

Legal Professionals

Intake forms, engagement letters, and contracts with signature and date fields.

Explore

Small Business & Freelancers

Invoices, waivers, and client agreements — built free, kept entirely on your device.

Explore

Software Developers

Prototype AcroForm layouts and export Adobe-compatible fillable PDFs in the browser.

Explore
Privacy First

Your Documents Never Leave Your Device

Unlike cloud-based PDF tools, FormForge runs entirely in your browser. There's no server processing your files, no uploads, and no third-party access to your documents. Ever.

Read our privacy policy
Client-side PDF rendering

PDF.js handles all document rendering directly in your browser tab.

Local IndexedDB storage

Drafts and form data persist in your browser's local database.

Zero network requests

No document data is ever transmitted. Check your network tab to verify.

Signing keys stay local

Digital signing runs in your browser — your private key is never uploaded, and no account is involved.

Transparent architecture

No hidden telemetry. Only privacy-respecting, self-hosted analytics (Rybbit) on both the landing page and the app — no cookies, no personal data, just aggregate usage stats.

Your Device
PDF Processing
Form Editor
Local Storage
No Cloud Connection
Straight answers

The questions people actually ask

Short, checkable answers — including the things FormForge deliberately does not do.

01 How do I make a PDF fillable for free?

Open FormForge at app.pdf-forms.tools, drag your PDF in, and either run automatic field detection or click to place text fields, checkboxes, dropdowns, dates and signature boxes yourself. Then choose Export → Fillable form. There is no account, no watermark and no page limit, and the file is never uploaded — the whole editor runs in your browser.

02 Is FormForge really free, or is there a paid tier?

FormForge is entirely free with no paid tier, no trial and no feature gating. There is nothing to sign up for, because there are no accounts and no servers holding your documents — the app is a static site that runs on your own device.

03 Do my documents get uploaded anywhere?

No. FormForge reads, edits, analyses and exports the PDF entirely inside your browser using PDF.js and pdf-lib, and saves drafts to your device’s own IndexedDB storage. Even the AI field detection runs locally in WebAssembly — the model is downloaded to you, rather than your document being sent to a model.

04 Can I use it on an iPhone or Android phone?

Yes. FormForge ships a dedicated touch interface for phones and tablets with a bottom sheet, pinch-zoom, a drag magnifier and precision nudge pads, and it can be installed to the home screen as an app that works completely offline.

05 Can I add a signature field to a PDF?

Yes. You can place signature fields anywhere on the page, and sign them by drawing with a finger or stylus or by typing your name. The signature is embedded into the exported PDF as a high-resolution transparent image. That is a handwritten-style signature; separately, you can switch on a cryptographic digital signature when you export, which seals the whole file.

06 Will the exported form open in Adobe Acrobat Reader?

Yes. FormForge exports a standards-compliant AcroForm, which opens and stays fillable in Adobe Acrobat Reader, macOS Preview, Chrome, Firefox and other standard PDF viewers. A built-in Form doctor checks the document against AcroForm rules before you export.

07 What can FormForge not do?

FormForge does not reorder, delete, rotate or merge pages, and embeds text using the standard Helvetica font only. It is a form builder, not a general PDF editor — it does not edit the underlying page content.

08 How does FormForge compare to Adobe Acrobat for making forms?

FormForge covers the form-building job — placing fields, detecting them automatically, checking AcroForm compliance and exporting — for free and without uploading anything, while Acrobat is a paid desktop subscription that also edits page content. If you only need to turn a PDF into a fillable form, FormForge does it in a browser tab; if you need to rewrite the document itself, you still need a full PDF editor.

FormForge vs. the usual options

FormForge vs. the usual options
FormForge Adobe Acrobat Pro Online PDF sites
Price Free, no account Paid subscription Freemium, usually capped
Your file is uploaded to a server Never No (desktop app) Yes
Install required No — optional as an app Yes No
Automatic field detection Yes, runs on your device Yes, on your device Rarely
Works on a phone Yes, dedicated touch editor Limited Limited
Works offline Yes Yes No
Cryptographic digital signatures Yes, optional on export Yes Sometimes
Your signing key is uploaded to a server Never No (desktop app) Yes, when they sign
Edit the page content itself No Yes Sometimes
FAQ

Common questions

Is FormForge really free?
Yes — FormForge is 100% free to use, with no account, no credit card, and no paywalled features. It runs entirely in your browser, so there are no servers to pay for and nothing to sell you. Every tool is available at no cost right now.
Are my PDF files uploaded anywhere?
No. Every PDF is opened, edited, and exported locally in your browser, and your files never leave your device or get sent to any server. That makes FormForge safe for confidential contracts, HR paperwork, and other sensitive documents. You can confirm it yourself by watching your browser’s network tab while you work.
Do I need to install anything or create an account?
No. FormForge is a web app that runs directly in your browser — there’s nothing to download or install, and no sign-up, login, or account is required. Just open the site and start building your form.
Can I make an existing PDF fillable?
Yes. Open any regular PDF and drag fillable fields — text boxes, checkboxes, dropdowns, and more — onto the exact spots where people need to enter information. When you export, FormForge saves it as a standard fillable PDF form that anyone can complete.
Can I edit a PDF that already has form fields?
Yes. When you open a PDF, FormForge automatically detects and imports its existing form fields so you can see them on the page. From there you can move, resize, rename, or delete those fields and add new ones alongside them.
Can FormForge add form fields to a PDF that has none?
Yes. Start field detection and FormForge analyses the page in your browser, then places text boxes, checkboxes, and signature fields where it thinks they belong. That is different from opening a PDF that already contains an AcroForm — there the existing fields are simply read and imported. Detection is for flat PDFs and scans with no fields at all, and you can run it on the current page or the whole document.
Is my PDF uploaded when I use field detection?
No. The model files are downloaded to your browser and the PDF is rendered and analysed there — your PDF never leaves your browser. The first run downloads about 50 MB for the faster model, or about 114 MB for the more accurate one. The files come from FormForge’s own servers rather than a third-party CDN, and they are cached, so detection works offline afterwards.
Can I edit many fields at once?
Yes. Select more than one field and the properties panel switches to batch mode, showing how many fields are selected and which types are in the mix. Tooltip, required, read-only, visibility, printing, borders, background, and size can be changed across any mix of field types, and type-specific settings such as font size or alignment when the whole selection is one type. Every change applies to the entire selection as a single undo step.
Which field types are supported?
FormForge supports seven field types: text, checkbox, radio button, dropdown, signature, date, and number. Each field has configurable properties such as name, required/read-only state, default value, font size, and dimensions.
Will the exported PDF work in Adobe Reader, Preview, and mobile viewers?
Yes. FormForge exports standard AcroForm fillable PDFs that open and fill in Adobe Acrobat Reader, macOS Preview, Chrome, Firefox, and mobile PDF apps on iOS and Android. Because it uses the standard PDF form format, the fields behave the same across viewers.
Does it work offline?
Partly. All editing and PDF processing happen locally in your browser, so once the page has loaded you can keep working even if your internet connection drops. FormForge isn’t an installable offline app, though, so opening or reloading the page still needs a connection to fetch it.
Can I add a signature field?
Yes. FormForge includes a dedicated signature field you can place anywhere on the page to mark where someone should sign. It exports as a standard fillable form field, giving recipients a clear signing area in their PDF viewer. That is a form field rather than a certificate-based digital signature — but you can add a real one to the finished file from the export dialog.
Are the digital signatures legally binding?
It depends on your jurisdiction and on the signing identity you used. A signing ID you create in FormForge is self-signed: any standards-compliant reader confirms the file has not been altered since signing, but it shows the signer as not verified until the recipient chooses to trust your certificate. A digital ID issued by your employer or a certificate authority — a .p12 or .pfx file you import — also proves who signed, which is what most formal processes ask for. Whether that counts as an advanced or qualified signature under rules such as eIDAS in the EU depends on the certificate and the document type, so check what your recipient requires.
Is there a file size or page limit?
No. FormForge doesn’t impose a fixed file-size or page-count limit on the PDFs you open. Since everything is processed in your browser, very large or high-page-count documents are ultimately bounded by your device’s available memory rather than a hard cap.
How is this different from Adobe Acrobat or other paid tools?
FormForge is free and runs entirely in your browser — no subscription, no install, and no account. Adobe Acrobat’s form tools sit behind a paid subscription and desktop software. FormForge focuses specifically on creating and editing fillable PDF forms while keeping your files on your device.
Does it work on Mac, Windows, Linux, and tablets?
Yes. FormForge runs in any modern web browser, so it works on macOS, Windows, and Linux, as well as on tablets. There’s no separate app to install — the same site works across every platform with a supported browser.
What happens to my work if I close the tab?
Your work is safe. FormForge continuously auto-saves your form to your browser’s local IndexedDB storage as you edit, and it also saves right before the tab closes. When you return, your draft is waiting on the start screen so you can pick up where you left off.

Make Your First Fillable PDF Now

100% free. No account, no credit card, no uploads. Runs entirely in your browser — your files never leave your device.

Start Building — Free