Radio Buttons

Last updated on Mar 18, 2025

Use Radio buttons to ensure clear selections in online forms when only one option is allowed from a larger list.

Radio buttons are ideal for situations where users must select only one option from a predefined set. They ensure clear, mutually exclusive choices, preventing confusion and reducing errors in form submissions.

They work well for selecting preferences such as gender, payment methods, or subscription plans. Unlike checkboxes, which allow multiple selections, radio buttons enforce a single selection, making them useful for questions with definitive answers.

By guiding users to make a clear choice, radio buttons improve form usability and data accuracy. Their simple, intuitive design makes them easy to understand and interact with, streamlining the form-filling process.

Availability:

Acrobat Standard and Acrobat Pro: Supported
Acrobat Sign Solutions: Supported
Acrobat Sign for Government: Supported

Left-click field menu

Left-clicking (or CMD-clicking) a radio button field opens a submenu that provides quick access to common customization options. This submenu offers a streamlined alternative to the entire field customization menu, making it especially attractive to experienced form builders.

There are two options of note in the field's left-click menu:

The ability to navigate between the several instances of the radio button array. The individual buttons can be oddly spaced, and this ability to navigate between them is useful.
The option to convert the field into a Checkbox.

View of the field with the left click field menu exposed.

Customizing the field properties:

Double-clicking the field opens the full customization menu in the context panel.

The field's left-click menu also has an option to open the Customize field panel:

The Radio Button field with the left-click menu exposed and Customise field highlighted.

Radio button fields have four sections that can be configured:

When added to an agreement, each field must be assigned to a specific participant (Prefill, participant1, participant2) or condition (Any recipient, All recipients). Field assignment determines who can interact with the field, ensuring that only the designated recipient(s) can complete it.

Field Assignment Options

Explicitly Assigned to a Recipient – Only the designated recipient can fill in the field. If required, they must complete it before proceeding. If optional and left blank, it remains locked for others.
Prefill – Prefill fields are available only to the sender before the agreement is sent. Recipients cannot edit or interact with prefilled fields.
Any recipient – The field is available to each recipient in turn until one of them enters content. Once completed, it becomes locked (read-only) for all subsequent recipients.

Proper field assignment ensures clarity in document workflows, prevents unauthorized edits, and maintains structured, organized agreements.

The Field Assigned To section of the field properties with three recipients and three example fields

Tip

Note that the colored dot next to a recipient’s name or email in the recipient list corresponds to the colored border of the fields assigned to that recipient. This visual cue helps quickly identify which fields belong to each signer, making it easier to manage and verify field assignments within the agreement.

The Radio button field includes several configurable elements:

Required field – When selected, the field becomes mandatory. The assigned recipient must interact with it.
Value type – Allows the form author to change the field value between Entered and Calculated.
- An Entered value expects the recipient to interact with the radio button array and select one of the options.
- A Calculated value expects the field value to be automatically selected based on the values of other fields. Selecting the Calculated option will:
  - Require the form author to enter a formula to alter the radio button selection value.
  - Lock the field value so that the recipient can't edit it. The field is calculated, so manually editing it is not permitted.
  - Remove the option to set the field as Required. The field value is set outside the recipient's action.
  - Remove the option to set the Default radio button selected value.
  - Remove the option to set the Radio button values.
Radio button style - This defines the icon that is used when the radio button is selected. Options include Circle, Check, Cross, Diamond, Square, and Star.
Field name - The name of the field. Naming your field intuitively will significantly improve the experience when running reports and data exports. The default values will reflect the field type and an incrementing value. Consider changing the name to reflect the use of the field. e.g., Service Level, Frame type, Trim color.
Default radio button selected - This drop-down field contains all of the individual buttons in the array. Selecting any one of them will cause that radio button to be selected when the form first loads for the recipient.
Radio button values - Each radio button can contain a value that can be used in calculations of other fields. The button value is also reflected in reporting data dumps for the radio button array.

View of the field customization menu with the Customizable Field Type section highlighted.

Custom Field Content controls how the field appears in the form:

Tooltip – A tooltip is a message that appears in a text bubble when the recipient hovers over a field in the e-signing experience. Use this value to display the field name or provide simple instructions.
Lock field value - When enabled, the field is read-only. The recipient will not be allowed to alter the value.

The "Customize field" panel highlighting the "Customize Field Content" section

The advanced field actions are the same as those available when you right-click a field to open the quick menu.

Copy field – Copies the field and its current values to your clipboard. The only difference between the original and copied field is the field name.
- To paste, right-click where you want the field and select Paste from the menu.
- You can also use the keyboard shortcuts Ctrl/Cmd + C to copy and Ctrl/Cmd + V to paste.
Delete field – Removes the selected individual radio button.
- If needed, you can recover a deleted field using the Undo shortcut: Ctrl/Cmd + Z.
Delete all instances – Deletes every radio button in the array of buttons under the same field name.

The Advanced Field Actions section of the field properties.

Text tag examples

An array of three radio buttons

(Red)Color_es_:signer1
(Blue)Color_es_:signer1
(Green)Color_es_:signer1

Breakdown of the Tag:

Red, Blue, and Green → Unique values for each button in the array.
Color → The name of the radio button group (array).
_es_ → The text tag signifier. Do not edit or omit.
signer1 → Assigns the radio button array to the first signer.

An array of three radio buttons with radio buttons explicitly identified

Color_es_:signer1:radio(Red)
Color_es_:signer1:radio(Blue)
Color_es_:signer1:radio(Green)

Breakdown of the Tag:

Color → The name of the radio button group (array).
_es_ → The text tag signifier. Do not edit or omit.
signer1 → Assigns the radio button array to the first signer.
radio → Explicit assertion that this is a radio button.
Red, Blue, and Green → Unique values for each button in the array.

An array of three radio buttons with labels and style included

(Red)Color_es_:signer1:label(“Red”):style(check)
(Blue)Color_es_:signer1:label(“Blue”):style(square)
(Green)Color_es_:signer1:label(“Green”):style(circle)

Breakdown of the Tag:

Red, Blue, and Green → Unique values for each button in the array.
Color → The name of the radio button group (array).
_es_ → The text tag signifier. Do not edit or omit.
signer1 → Assigns the radio button array to the first signer.
label → The label displayed by the radio button.
style → The shape of the graphic that is added when the radio button is selected.

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