Create a Text Field in a PDF

A text field lets users type text or numbers. You can configure a text field to:

• Control the input.
• Format the data.
• Validate the data.
• Calculate the data.

Add a text field

1. Open the PDF in Nitro PDF Pro
2. On the Forms tab, in the Form Fields group, click Text Field
3. Drag the pointer on the page to create the field
4. Open the field properties:
   1. Double-click the field
   2. Or right-click the field and select Properties
5. Set the field name and appearance. Use one of these options:
   1. The Properties context tab
   2. The Properties dialog
      
6. Open the Options tab:
   1. From the context tab, click Properties > Options
   2. From the dialog, click Options

Configure text field options

• • Alignment: Select left, center, or right alignment

  • Default Value: Enter default text if required

  • Use Field For: Select one option:

    • Standard input
    • Password
    • File selection
  • Multi-line: Select to allow multiple lines 
    
    
  • Scroll long text: Select to enable scrolling 
    
    
  • Check spelling: Select this option to check the spelling of text that users type in the field 
  • Limit of characters: Enter the maximum number of characters 
    
    
  • Comb of Characters: Select to create a comb field 

Clear all other options before using this setting

Configure additional settings

• Format:
  Select a format (for example, date or custom format)
  
• Validate:
  • Select Use custom validation script
  • Enter JavaScript to validate the data
    
• Calculate:
  Select a calculation option if required
  
  
  
• Actions: Assign an action
  

Edit a text field

1. Open the PDF in Nitro PDF Pro
2. On the Forms tab, in the Form Fields group, do one of the following:
   1. Click the field type
   2. Click Select Fields
3. Double-click the field to edit its properties
   
   

Forms preferences

Forms preferences control how you work with PDF forms. To open Forms preferences, click to File>Preferences>Forms.

• Automatically calculate field values:
  Enable or disable automatic calculation.
  Disable this option to improve performance for complex forms.
• Highlight form fields:
  Highlight all form fields when you open a form.
  You can also set a different color for required fields.
• Double-click form field opens:
  Choose how to open field properties:
  • Properties context tab
  • Properties dialog