Variables automatically add information to your contracts. Use them to fill in existing client details, such as a name, email address, phone number, or address, or to add information that changes for each contract.

Note: To let clients enter or update information themselves before signing, use fields instead.

On this page:

• How contract variables work
• Adding variables to a contract
• Creating custom variables
• Client experience

How contract variables work

Variables are placeholders that populate with information before you send a contract.

There are two ways to use them:

• Variables: Automatically add existing contact information, such as the client’s name, email address, phone number, or address.
• Custom variables: Prompt you to enter information that is unique to a specific contract.

Adding variables to a contract template allows the correct information to appear each time you apply the template to a client’s contract.

Note: Session-based variables auto-populate when a contract is used as a session type’s intake document. In standalone contracts, they behave as custom variables.

Adding variables to a contract

You can add a variable while editing a contract template or an individual client’s contract:

1. In the contract editor, click where you want the information to appear.
2. Select Variables.
3. Choose the information you want to add.

For a reusable workflow, add variables to a contract template. When you apply the template to a client’s contract, the variables populate with that client’s information.

Creating custom variables

Create a custom variable when you need to enter information that changes for each contract. Custom variables can be created in contract templates.

1. In the contract editor, click where you want the information to appear.
2. Select Variables.
3. Choose Custom Variable.
4. Optionally, add a label that identifies the information you will need to enter.

When you apply the template to a client’s contract, you will be prompted to complete the custom variable before sending the contract.

Tip: If Custom Variable does not appear in the dropdown menu, you may be editing an individual client’s contract. Open a contract template to create a custom variable.

Client experience

Variables are completed before the contract is sent. Clients see variable information simply as underlined text in the contract and cannot modify it themselves.