Sequential vs parallel signing order
Choose In sequence to route a document one signer at a time, or All at once to email everyone together. Drag rows to set the order.
Signing order sits at the top of the recipients step with two choices. In sequence hands the document down your list one signer at a time; All at once emails every signer the moment you send.
Pick a signing order
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On the Who needs to sign? step, look under Signing order.
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Click In sequence or All at once. A new document starts on In sequence, so switch it if you want everyone emailed together. Your choice saves as you click, and the small diagram inside each tile redraws to match your recipient list.
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With In sequence on, each row carries a number and a grip handle. Hold the handle and drag a row up or down, or drop it on the Drop here to move to the end strip below the list.
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Click Continue to prepare when the order reads correctly top to bottom.
Switching to All at once replaces the numbers with dots and removes the grip handles, because position no longer means anything.
What each signer sees, and when
With All at once, everyone is emailed together and can sign in any order. A signer opening the link sees the document immediately, and the copies each of them fills in are merged as they arrive.
With In sequence, only the first signer is emailed. Everybody else waits with the status Waiting, no link in their inbox and nothing to open. The moment signer one finishes, signer two is emailed, then signer three, on down the list. Anything an earlier signer typed or ticked is already on the page when the next person opens it, which is the real reason to route this way.
CC recipients are numbered in the list but skipped by the routing. They hear from the document once, at the end, when the completed PDF goes out.
Sequential or parallel: which to pick
Use All at once by default. It finishes sooner, and most agreements do not care who signs first.
Switch to In sequence when the order carries meaning: an internal approver who signs before the customer sees it, a form where the second signer needs the first one's figures, or a countersignature that has to come last.
If something goes wrong
- No grip handles on the rows. You are on All at once, where order is irrelevant. Switch to In sequence and they appear.
- A drag will not stick. Press and hold the grip handle itself rather than the row, then move. Dropping a row on top of another inserts it above.
- A signer says they never got the link. Check their position. In a sequence, their invitation is not sent until everyone above them has finished.
- "Could not change order." The save did not reach the server, usually a dropped connection. Click the tile again.
- The order is wrong on a sent document. Routing is locked after sending. Cancel it and send a corrected copy.
Frequently asked questions
Which order should I use?
All at once, unless the order genuinely matters. Parallel routing finishes faster because nobody waits on anybody. Reach for In sequence when a later signer needs to see an earlier one's answer, or when an approver has to sign before the document goes outside the company.
What is the default?
In sequence, on a fresh document and on a template that has not had its order changed. Numbered badges down the left of the recipient list tell you at a glance that sequential routing is on. All at once replaces those numbers with plain dots.
Does a CC recipient hold up the sequence?
No. CC rows are numbered alongside the signers, but routing only steps through the people who actually sign, so a CC sitting at position two is passed over without anyone waiting. Every CC gets the completed PDF at the end regardless of where their row sits, which means an observer can go anywhere in the list.
Can I change the order after sending?
No. Routing is fixed once a document goes out, along with its pages and fields. Cancel the document and send a corrected copy if the order is wrong. Reassigning a signer is still possible, and the replacement inherits the position of the person they took over from.
What happens if someone in the middle declines?
The document stops there. Its status becomes Declined, nobody further down the list is contacted, and everyone already involved gets a notice with the reason if one was given. Start a fresh document once the problem behind the decline is resolved.
Keep going
Add recipients to a document: signers and CC
Enter a name and email for each person, set the role to Signer or CC, and let the contact lookup fill in anyone you have sent to before.
ReadPlace fields on your document
Drag signature, date and text fields onto the pages, assign each one to a recipient, then resize, duplicate or delete it. Every signer needs at least one Signature.
ReadUpload a document to send for signature
Drag a PDF, Word file or image onto the first step of the send wizard, or browse your device. Up to 25 MB a file and 10 files per document.
ReadSend your first document for signature
Upload a PDF or Word file, add who signs, drag signature and date fields onto the pages, write the email, and click Send for signature. Four steps, a few minutes.
Read