You get a document signed in the right order by adding your signers in the order they must sign, so each one only receives the document once the person before them has finished. This matters whenever one signature depends on another, such as an employee signing before a manager countersigns. Signing starts on Plus, with up to two signers a request; more than two signers is on Pro and Business.
Steps to set up signing order
- Go to Signatures and press New request. Choose or upload the document, then place the e-signature fields wherever a signature, initial or date is required.
- Add each signer, then drag them into order. The order in the list is the signing order, and the summary line under it confirms who signs when.
- Check the turn order. The document is released to the second signer only after the first has signed, rather than sent to everyone at once; there is no separate setting to switch on.
- Place each field on the signer who must complete it. Each signer can complete only their own fields, so check every field is assigned to the right person before sending.
- Send it. The first signer gets access immediately. Everyone else waits until their turn arrives.
- Track progress on the Signatures page. Each signer shows their place in the order, "their turn", whether they have opened the document, and a tick when they have signed.
Edge cases and what to check
Signing in order only helps if the order genuinely matters. Some tools let independent signers sign at the same time; in 99 Data Rooms each signer signs in turn, so put whoever must sign first at the top of the list.
Watch what happens if someone in the middle of the chain is unavailable. The document waits at their step until they act. Press Remind on the Signatures page to nudge the signer whose turn it is (at most once a day per signer), or Extend to give more time on the same link, the same approach covered in how you chase a signature without starting the whole process again. If the request must change after someone has signed, cancel it and send a new one.
E-signature starts on Plus: five signature requests a month, each with up to two signers, signed in order with reminders. More than two signers, and unlimited requests, are on Pro and Business. On Free you can share documents and ask for an email address; signing starts on Plus. Once signed, the audit certificate records each signer's timestamp, intent-to-sign consent and a privacy-protected network location, plus a SHA-256 fingerprint of the signed document.
Before sending, check that the order on screen matches the order in your head, and that each signer's fields are assigned to them. Once the last signature lands, check the completed document and its audit certificate before you file it, rather than assuming the process closed cleanly.
If your current tool cannot do this
Some e-signature tools only support one flat list of signers with no order at all, which forces you to send a document as a series of separate emails to fake sequencing yourself. Judge a tool against these questions before trusting it with an order-dependent document.
- Does it actually hold the document back from later signers until earlier ones finish, or does everyone receive it at the same time regardless of the order you set?
- Can you see where the document is stuck without asking each signer individually?
- Does the audit trail record the order signatures happened in, or only that they all eventually occurred?
A tool that enforces the order you set, shows you the current holdup, and timestamps each signature clears this bar. 99 Data Rooms signs in order from Plus, and our comparison of sequential vs parallel signing explains when each approach is the right call. Whether an e-signature carries legal weight at all is covered separately in are electronic signatures legally binding.
Sequential vs parallel signing
| Sequential | Parallel | |
|---|---|---|
| When to use it | One signature depends on another | Signers are independent of each other |
| Speed | Slower, one step at a time | Faster, everyone signs at once |
| Where it stalls | At whichever signer is slowest to act | Rarely, since nobody is waiting |
| Best for | Employee then manager, supplier then approver | Two founders signing the same agreement |
The table describes the two approaches in general. In 99 Data Rooms, signers always go one after another in the order you set, so order the list by real dependency, not habit carried over from paper.
Frequently asked questions
What is sequential signing? A signature workflow where each signer only gets the document once the person before them in the order has completed their part. It stops signatures happening out of turn, and each signer's timestamp on the certificate shows who signed when.
Can I change the signing order after I have sent the document? Yes, until anyone has signed: choose Edit fields on the Signatures page to change the signers, their order or the message. Once the first person has signed, the request is fixed, so cancel it and send a new one.
What happens if a signer in the middle does not respond? The document stays with them until they act, and everyone after them waits. Press Remind to nudge them, at most once a day, or Extend to give more time on the same link, rather than starting the whole process again.
Do I need a paid plan to sign in order? Yes. E-signature starts on Plus, with five requests a month and up to two signers each, signed in order. Pro and Business add more than two signers per request, unlimited requests and NDA gating; viewer watermarks are on by default on every plan. On Free you can share documents and ask for an email address.
Does the audit trail show the order signatures happened in? Yes. Each signer's timestamp is recorded on the certificate, alongside their intent-to-sign consent and a privacy-protected network location, so the order is shown after the fact rather than assumed from your setup.
Set the order once, not every time
Add your signers in the order the document actually needs and let each step wait until the one before it is done. E-signature is included from Plus. See pricing, or start free to try rooms and links before you upgrade, and set your first ordered signing chain up correctly the first time.
Getting the order right the first time can save you chasing a mid-chain signer later, wondering why the document has gone quiet. A little care setting up the list of names in the correct sequence, before you send anything, is cheaper than untangling it after the fact.
Sources
- Signing order, plan availability and audit certificate contents reflect 99 Data Rooms product facts. General statements about generic e-signature tools describe common industry behaviour, not any single named vendor.