How to save & share fillable forms without fillable fields vanishing

[Cee Bee Dee]

I've been trying for several days to save a PDF form that I've created in acrobat with fillable fields.  No matter what I do or how I save as the fillable fields vanish when I reopen the file.  I just need to be able to email the form to people for them to fill in the fields.  Please help.  I read all this similar posts and there were no helpful suggestions.  I'm working with the latest version of Adobe Acrobat from the Creative Cloud suite.

[try67]

- How are you saving the file when you're done with it?

- Where are you (re-)opening it after closing it? In what application?

- Do the form fields disappear entirely (not visible even in Prepare Form mode), or do you just not see them when opening the file again?

- Can you share a sample file with us?

[Cee Bee Dee]

I have tried saving it with the original file name simply as a .PDF, and have tried saving the file using "save as other>reader extended PDF>enable more tools.  The form has fields for a signature, printed name, and address at the bottom.  I created it by saving an original Word file as a .PDF, then opening it in Acrobat, and then click Tools>Prepare Form.  The fields become fillable, then I save the file - either just by clicking save, or by clicking "save as other">reader extended PDF>enable more tools.  Then if I open it from where it has been saved, or if I send it to or share it with someone else, there are no fillable fields.  Attached is a screenshot of what the fillable fields look like before I save.  It would be helpful to have step by step instructions which don't omit any steps for this process.

[Cee Bee Dee]

My goal is to be able to make fields fillable on PDFs, to save the PDF so the fillable fields are saved, so that however or whoever opens the document after it has been saved, opens a file which has fillable fields which anyone opening the file can fill in.  Thanks in advance.

[daniels24042250]

It appears you already have fillable fields created from your screen shot. I do a lot of fillable forms for my company as well and if you want to make them "noticeable" as fillable fields to anyone that opens the PDF I'd suggest creating boxes using "text field properties", "appearance", "border color"....there you can set your box color and thickness of line that will outline where you want someone to notice that's where they are supposed to fill in, or you can shade the area where you want them to fill using "fill color" under the same place (like a very light grey that sort of says "hey, fill me in here"

[Cee Bee Dee · Accepted solution]

Thank you. Two questions:

1. The fillable fields exist in the pdf that I shared a screenshot of before I save it.  After I save it there are no fillable fields even when I reopen it myself.  They are not just invisible, the do not exist.  If I click on the area where they were before I saved and closed the document (where they both existed and were visible), they do not appear, and I can sign in the area where the signature field was, or type in the area where the text field was.  Neither can anyone AI send the saved file to.

2. The idea of saving the file to the fillable fields remain visible is a great idea.  What would save time would be to save the file exactly as it appears in the screenshot - where I've created a form, and the fillable fields are automatically dark grey, with an outline, and with a description inside the field of what information should be entered (i.e. signature or text). 

Is there a way to save the form/file in Acrobat as a .pdf, so when you (or anyone else) opens it, the fillable fields on the form are still there, still visible, still labeled (signature or text)?  If no, what are the steps to initially create a fillable form in Adobe from a Word or PDF document in the fewest steps possible, so once the fillable fields are inserted (visible and labeled), and the document is saved, the fillable fields are saved (visible and labeled) so that who ever is sent a copy of that fillable form field-containing PDF file can bot see the fillable fields (& their labels, just as I could when I saved the file), the person can fill the fields, and I can track their responses?

[Cee Bee Dee]

When I am at this point with the PDF where I have clicked 'prrpare a form" and the fillable fields have populated, are visible and labeled, how do I save this PDF from here so when anyone else reopens it these fillable, labeled fields are visible, labeled, fillable, and trackable?  I've tried "save" (same file name ), "save as" (different file name), and "save as other>reader extended PDF>enable more tools.  None of that worked.  Please help.

[Cee Bee Dee]

here is the screenshot I omitted.

[daniels24042250]

There's no secret way to save it, once you create a fillable form you just save it like any other pdf. If you're looking for those "blackout labels" inside your fillable fields to be there, you're out of luck, they won't appear unless whoever opens the pdf goes into "prepare" mode...it just doesn't work any other way.

Here's a screenshot of a sample form I did. It looks like the top when I create it, but once I saved it to my computer or our shared server so anyone can access it, it looks like the bottom pic. All the fields are fillable just by tabbing through them, but the boxed "blackout" labels do not appear.

Again, if you want the fillable boxes to stand out, I'd shade them like I did in pic#2. 

Just make sure you have your text field settings under <general> <common properties> set the way you want it to be seen or printed (ie: visible when filling it out, but not printed so it doesn't darken out whatever is typed there if you do print the filled out form)

[Handsumguy]

Cee Bee Dee:  I am completely self taught and consider myself not an expert but I do have vast experience using the full version of Acrobat, creating fields etc. and using the functions inside Acrobat.  Your problem must be something either so simple or so complex that substantial reading online is unlikely to help.  My suggestion is that you start by opening acrobat and creating a blank pdf file and save it as _____.  Close the file.  Close Acrobat.  Go to the file itself and double click and open it.   Then not using the prepare form function just create a couple of text fields naming them as you choose.  Type something in the fields.  Save it as _____.  Then close the file.  From still within Acrobat, from the file menu, click file open and open the file you just saved and see if your fields are present.  If you can sucessfully do this, then click file open and open the pdf file you created from word and now do prepare fields.  Go slow and read every step.  If you do not save a document, Acrobat does not just close it.  Instead, it asks if you want to save it.  If you still have a problem, find someone who also has Acrobat and can get on the phone with you and do it together or even better, record the screen as you are working in Acrobat and save it as a video for someone to review.

[Ayla_6644]

1. Open your PDF in Adobe Acrobat Pro (not Reader).

2. Go to:

   css

   Tools → Prepare Form

   • This activates form editing mode.

   • Add or edit your fillable fields (text boxes, checkboxes, etc.).

3. Once done, click:
   Close on the toolbar to exit form editing mode.

4. Now Save the PDF properly:

   • Go to:
     File → Save As → Choose your location

   • Save it as a regular PDF (not "optimized", "flattened", or "reduced size").

   ✅ Make sure you're not printing to PDF — this flattens the form and removes fillable fields!

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🔄 Common Mistakes That Make Fields Disappear:

❌ Mistake 💥 Effect

Saving via “Print to PDF”	Converts to a static PDF, removes fields
Exporting to another format (e.g., Word)	Breaks interactivity
Using "Flatten PDF" option	Makes fields uneditable
Using Preview app (on Mac) to save	Often corrupts or removes form field data