How to Create, Set Up and Use Docusign Templates for Contracts and Forms

From loan applications to non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) and rental agreements to purchase orders, anyone dealing with day-to-day form and contract sharing can benefit from a templated process. In this guide, we'll cover what Docusign templates are, the benefits of using them, where to find pre-built options, and how to create and use your own—so you can spend less time recreating documents and more time getting them signed.

What are Docusign templates?

Docusign templates are reusable agreement and form layouts that help organizations standardize document workflows. Instead of creating the same document from scratch each time, you can save commonly used content, recipient routing, signature fields, and messaging in a template, and then reuse it whenever a similar agreement needs to go out.

Templates can be used for a wide range of business processes, including contracts, employee onboarding forms, purchase orders opens in a new tab, non-disclosure agreements opens in a new tab, and approval requests.

Benefits of using form and contract templates

Using templates helps organizations create and send agreements more efficiently while maintaining consistency across documents and workflows. Rather than rebuilding the same document every time, teams can rely on a standardized starting point that's already been reviewed and approved.

Key benefits include:

• Faster document preparation: Reuse pre-approved content and workflows instead of recreating documents from scratch

• Improved consistency: Ensure contracts and forms use standardized language, branding, and approval processes

• Fewer errors: Minimize the risk of missing fields, incorrect routing, or outdated document versions

• Greater operational efficiency: Generate and send routine agreements in minutes instead of starting from a blank document

• Stronger compliance: Support the use of approved language and predefined signing workflows across the organization

For businesses that regularly send similar agreements, templates can help streamline document management and improve the experience for the people signing them.

Where can you find contract templates and form templates?

Docusign offers pre-built contract and form templates for the most common use cases, so you don't have to start from a blank page. You can also create your own form templates for the forms your organization sends out most often, giving you a built-in way to process and share documents faster.

Docusign eSignature customers and anyone with a Docusign trial account can access the full template gallery.

Docusign pre-built contract templates

Docusign has created templates for many commonly used contract forms to help speed up the sending process and reduce your risk of errors. Here are some template examples for different segments of your business.

Our templates are organized into collections by department and use case, making it easy to find the one you need.

General contract templates and form templates

From day-to-day operations to nonprofit administration, this collection covers the agreements and approval forms most organizations rely on regularly.

• Statement of Work (SOW)

• Account Change Request

• Mutual Non-Disclosure Agreement

• New Badge Request

• Purchase Order

• Sales Contract

• 1099 form

Nonprofit contract templates 

Support fundraising, governance, and volunteer coordination with templates built for nonprofit operations.

• Board Meeting Notes Approval

• Donation Request

• Event Budget Approval Request

• Volunteer Application

Human Resources contract templates and form templates

Manage the employee lifecycle from hiring to offboarding with standardized forms for leave requests, status changes, and tax documentation.

• Employee Tuition Reimbursement

• COVID-19 FMLA Leave Request

• Employee Status Change Request

• Employee Offboarding Request

• Employment Offer Letter

• W4 and I-9

• W-9

• 1099

Real Estate contract templates and form templates

Simplify listings, applications, and disclosures with templates built for residential and commercial property transactions.

• Realtor Listing

• Residential Rental Application

• Inspection Contingency Addendum

• Seller's Property Disclosure Statement

Financial Services and Insurance templates

Handle insurance claims, credit applications, and account changes with templates designed to keep financial documentation accurate and consistent.

• Proof of Auto Insurance Verification

• Selection / Rejection of Underinsured Motorist Coverage

• Automobile Claims Inspection Report

• Joint Credit Application

• Account Change Request

Accounting templates

Keep tax filings and transcript requests organized with standardized accounting forms.

• State Tax Form: VA

• Form 4506-C: Request of Transcript of Tax Return

Healthcare and Life Sciences templates

Support patient intake, consent, and clinical documentation with templates tailored to healthcare and life sciences workflows

• Medical Records Release

• COVID-19 Declaration of Symptoms

• Statement of Investigator, FDA 1572

• Telemedicine Patient Consent

Public Sector templates

Streamline government filings and benefits administration with standardized public sector forms.

• Certificate of Election of Coverage - SS-16

• State Tax Form: VA

• CA Standard Forms Library

• Recurring EFT Authorization

How to create a template in Docusign

Creating a template lets you save a document along with its recipient roles, signature fields, routing order, and messaging, so you don't have to rebuild any of it the next time you send a similar agreement.

To create a template in Docusign:

• Navigate to the Templates section of your Docusign account.

• Select Create Template.

• Enter a template name and description so it's easy to find later.

• Upload the document or form you want to reuse.

• Add recipient roles and define the signing order.

• Place signature, date, and other required fields on the document.

• Save the template for future use.

Once created, the template can be reused whenever a similar agreement needs to go out, helping reduce prep time and keep your workflow consistent.

How do you use templates?

Templates are reusable and repeatable. You can seamlessly add files or recipients, adjust message or signing fields, and customize, use, and edit as many templates as you like. Here’s how:

Choosing a template

Head to the Templates page and select the collection you want to browse (collections help organize templates by department or use case). From there, search, filter, or scan to find the one that fits your document.

Editing a template

Once selected, you can customize a template before sending. Update recipient names and email addresses, adjust the message or subject line, or modify the signature and date fields to match the specific agreement.

Sharing templates

Templates can be shared with other users or teams, depending on your permissions. This allows departments to standardize on the same set of approved documents rather than each person creating their own version.

Managing template collections

As your library grows, organizing templates into collections—by department, document type, or use case—makes them easier to find and keeps your workflow efficient. Regularly reviewing and retiring outdated templates helps maintain accuracy across your organization.

Here are the basic steps to send a document from a template:

• Log in to your Docusign account and head to the Templates page.

• Select the template collection you want to choose from.

• Search, filter, or scan the collection to find the template you want to use.

• Use the template to start a new document.

• Input the email addresses and name values for any recipients—populating from a premade list if necessary.

• Enter or modify your message to all recipients, and create a custom subject line to differentiate your envelopes.

• Review the recipient fields.

• Send your envelope.

For a more detailed walkthrough with support visuals, head to Docusign's template support page. For step-by-step instructions on tailoring your own form templates, visit the create a template page.

Best practices for managing templates

As organizations create more templates, maintaining a structured approach can help ensure accuracy, efficiency, and adoption across teams.

Consider the following best practices:

• Use clear and consistent naming conventions to make templates easy to find.

• Review templates regularly to ensure content reflects current business and legal requirements.

• Organize templates into collections based on department, use case, or document type.

• Limit editing permissions to authorized users to maintain version control.

• Retire outdated templates to prevent the use of obsolete language or workflows.

• Standardize commonly used fields, messages, and recipient roles where possible.

Using form and contract templates to streamline agreement workflows

Whether you're sending employment documents, purchase orders, non-disclosure agreements, or customer contracts, templates provide a scalable way to manage recurring workflows. Combined with Docusign's template gallery and customization capabilities, these tools can help organizations create more efficient, reliable, and r

epeatable agreement processes without sacrificing accuracy or compliance along the way.

Frequently asked questions

• Can I edit a Docusign template after creating it?

Yes. Templates can be updated at any time to modify documents, recipient roles, signing fields, routing order, or email messaging.

• Can multiple teams use the same template?

Yes. Depending on permissions and sharing settings, templates can be shared across departments or teams to support standardized workflows.

• What types of documents can be turned into templates?

Frequently used agreements and forms can be saved as templates, including contracts, NDAs, onboarding documents, purchase orders, approval forms, and rental applications.

• Does Docusign provide pre-built templates?

Yes. Docusign offers a template gallery with pre-built templates for common business, HR, real estate, financial services, healthcare, and public sector use cases.