Saving Form Data for a Database

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated December 7, 2024)

Word allows you to create forms into which users can enter data. Exactly how you create forms has been covered in other issues of WordTips. When users are done filling in the form, they typically save the form as a regular Word document.

If you want to later use the form data in a database, you may find this tip helpful. Follow these steps:

Open the form document saved by a user.
Choose Options from the Tools menu. Word displays the Options dialog box.
Make sure the Save tab is selected. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Save tab of the Options dialog box.

Make sure the Save Data Only for Forms check box is selected.
Click on OK to dismiss the dialog box.

Now, when you go to save the document, Word presents you with the Save As dialog box, and the TXT file format is selected. Once you supply a file name and click on OK, Word extracts the form data the user typed in the document and saves it, in a comma-delimited format, in the TXT file. You can then use that TXT file to import the form values to a database program.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (600) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Removing the Box from a Text Box

Insert a text box, and it is automatically formatted to have a border around it. Getting rid of the border is easy, if ...

Discover More

Automatically Hiding the Personal Workbook

If you leave your Personal.xls workbook visible from one Excel session to another, you may find that you unwittingly make ...

Discover More

Making a Customized Theme Available to Others

Microsoft Office applications (including Word) allow you to work with collections of common formatting specifications, ...

Discover More

Do More in Less Time! An easy-to-understand guide to the more advanced features available in the Microsoft 365 version of Word. Enhance the quality of your documents and boost productivity in any field with this in-depth resource. Complete your Word-related tasks more efficiently as you unlock lesser-known tools and learn to quickly access the features you need. Check out Microsoft 365 Word For Professionals For Dummies today!

More WordTips (menu)

Working with E-mailed Documents

Ding! You've got mail. That mail has a Word document attached to it. Before you rush off and open that document, take a ...

Discover More

Viewing Document Statistics

As you develop a document, Word keeps track of certain statistics about the document itself. Here is how you can review ...

Discover More

Working with Other People's Files

When you get files from other people, you may want a quick way to apply your formatting to their text. Provided that the ...

Discover More

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is 7 - 4?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.