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Microsoft Forms does not use a question type called “Attachment.” To collect documents, images, or other files, add an Upload file question. The feature saves submitted files to the form owner’s OneDrive for Business, but it is available only when the form is restricted to people in your organization.
Before adding an upload question
Check the form’s response permissions first. Microsoft Forms displays Upload file only for forms using one of these response settings:
- Only people in my organization can respond
- Specific people in my organization can respond
It is not available for anonymous responses or forms that accept general external responses. This restriction prevents a public form from writing arbitrary uploads into the form owner’s Microsoft 365 storage.
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If the option is missing, open the form’s response settings and change the audience to an organization-only option. If the form is a personal form with Microsoft Information Barrier enabled, Microsoft says you may need to create a group form instead.
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How to add attachments in Microsoft Forms
- Open Microsoft Forms and open the form you want to edit.
- Select Add new question.
- Select More question types.
- Select Upload file.
- Enter a question such as Upload your completed application or Provide a screenshot of the error.
- Set File number limit to control how many files a respondent can submit.
- Set Single file size limit to 10MB, 100MB, or 1GB.
- Turn on the Required toggle if the respondent must upload at least one file.
- Select More settings for question to add a Subtitle or restrict the accepted File type.
The maximum is 10 files per Upload file question. If respondents need to submit different kinds of files, separate upload questions can make the instructions clearer—for example, one question for a résumé and another for supporting documents.
Choose the accepted file types
Under More settings for question, the File type setting lets you filter uploads by category:
| Category | Documented extensions include |
|---|---|
| Word | .doc, .docx, .docm, .dot, .dotx, .dotm, .docb |
| Excel | .xls, .xlsx, .xlsm, .xlt, .xltx, .xltm |
| PPT | .ppt, .pptx, .pptm, .pps, .ppsx, .ppsm, .potx, .potm |
| Image | .jpg, .jpeg, .png, .gif, .bmp, .tiff, .svg and other documented image formats |
| Video | .avi, .mp4, .mov, .wmv, .mpg, .3gp and other documented video formats |
| Audio | .mp3, .m4a, .mid, .wav, .wma and other documented audio formats |
Use the narrowest category that fits the request. For example, choose PDF when a signed form must be submitted as a PDF rather than allowing every file type. File-type filtering is not a substitute for malware scanning or an organization’s SharePoint security policies.
Make the upload instructions clear
A respondent sees the upload question alongside the rest of the form, so put practical requirements in the question text or its Subtitle. Include:
- What the file should contain
- Which format is preferred or required
- How many files are expected
- The maximum size per file
- A useful naming pattern, such as
lastname-project.pdf
For example:
Upload one PDF named
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Although Microsoft Forms enforces the selected size and file-count limits, naming guidance helps the form owner identify submissions later.
Test the question as a respondent
The Upload file button is inactive for the form author while editing. That is expected; it does not mean the question is broken.
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- View the form as a responder.
- Select the active Upload file button.
- Choose a permitted file and submit a test response.
- Confirm that the file appears in the submitted answer and that it reaches the expected OneDrive folder.
Testing with a small file first catches audience, permissions, file-type, and storage problems before you distribute the form.
Where Microsoft Forms stores uploaded files
Responder uploads are stored in the form owner’s OneDrive for Business. The current folder path is:
OneDrive for Business → Files → Apps → Microsoft Forms → [form name] → [upload question]
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Each upload question has its own folder beneath the folder named after the form. This matters when a form has several upload questions: files are not necessarily collected into one general attachment folder.
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Limits and permissions to know
| Setting | Microsoft Forms limit or behavior |
|---|---|
| Files per upload question | Up to 10 |
| Maximum size per file | 10MB, 100MB, or 1GB, depending on the selected setting |
| OneDrive general file limit | Up to 250GB for an individual file in the general OneDrive/SharePoint service, but this does not raise the Forms limit |
| Anonymous or general external responses | Not supported for Upload file questions |
Do not confuse the general OneDrive 250GB individual-file limit with Microsoft Forms. A Forms upload question cannot accept a 250GB file; its maximum setting is 1GB.
Fix common Microsoft Forms upload problems
Upload file is not listed
Review the form’s response audience. Change it to Only people in my organization can respond or Specific people in my organization can respond. Anonymous and general external modes do not expose the question type.
The upload button is greyed out in the editor
This is normal for the author view. Select Preview or open the form in a responder session. The button becomes active for responders.
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Microsoft Forms shows “Permissions needed”
The signed-in account may have read-only access, or the browser may be using the wrong Microsoft 365 account. Sign in with the account that owns the form and verify that it has edit permission in the relevant OneDrive for Business or SharePoint library.
A file is rejected even though its extension looks correct
Check the selected File type category and the file size. Your organization may also block particular extensions in SharePoint. Administrators can maintain a blocked-file list, so a file that works in one tenant may be rejected in another.
The filename causes an error
Rename the file before uploading. OneDrive and SharePoint do not allow characters such as ", *, :, <, >, ?, /, , or |. Leading and trailing spaces are also invalid. Avoid reserved names including CON, PRN, AUX, NUL, desktop.ini, names beginning with ~$, and reserved device-name patterns such as COM1 or LPT1.
An existing upload question stopped working after a SharePoint domain change
Microsoft says existing file-upload questions stop working when the SharePoint site is moved to another domain. Recreate the upload questions in the new domain rather than trying to repair the old question.
Need uploads from people outside your organization?
Microsoft Forms’ Upload file question is not the right tool for a public or general external submission form. Use OneDrive or SharePoint’s separate Request files feature instead, if your administrator has enabled it.
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- Open OneDrive and select the destination folder.
- Select Request files.
- Enter the request description under What files are you requesting.
- Select Next.
- Select Copy link or enter recipients.
- Select Done.
Recipients can upload files through the request link without needing OneDrive, but they cannot view, edit, delete, or download other files in the destination folder. If Request files is not visible, an administrator may need to enable it. Microsoft lists OneDrive for home, Office 365 operated by 21Vianet, and Office 365 Germany as environments where the feature is unavailable.
Practical setup checklist
- Restrict responses to your organization or specific people in it.
- Add Add new question → More question types → Upload file.
- Set the file count and one of the three per-file limits: 10MB, 100MB, or 1GB.
- Choose an appropriate file-type category.
- Use Required when an upload must accompany the response.
- Test through Preview, not the inactive author-side button.
- Check OneDrive for Business → Files → Apps → Microsoft Forms after the test.
FAQ
Can anyone upload an attachment to Microsoft Forms?
No. Microsoft Forms upload questions work only when responses are limited to people in the organization or to specific people in the organization. They are unavailable for anonymous and general external responses.
What is the Microsoft Forms attachment limit?
The feature allows up to 10 files per Upload file question. The per-file size setting can be 10MB, 100MB, or 1GB.
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Where do Microsoft Forms attachments go?
They are saved in the form owner’s OneDrive for Business under Files → Apps → Microsoft Forms → the form’s folder → the upload question’s folder.
Why can’t I click Upload file while editing?
The author-side button is intentionally inactive in the editor. Select Preview or use a responder session to test an upload.
Can external users upload files to Microsoft Forms?
Not through an Upload file question in a form that accepts general external responses. For external file collection, use OneDrive or SharePoint Request files if it is enabled in your organization.
The Bottom Line
To add attachments, use Microsoft Forms’ Upload file question—not a standard text or choice question. Restrict the form to organization members, set the file count and 10MB/100MB/1GB size limit, choose allowed file types, and test from Preview. Submitted files are stored in the owner’s OneDrive for Business under the Microsoft Forms app folder.
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