Coaching Intake Form: Sections, Questions and What to Skip
A coaching intake form is a questionnaire a new client fills in before the first session, so you learn their situation, strengths and goals without spending the whole session on background. The best ones are structured, kind in tone and clear about what coaching is and is not. This guide sets out eleven sections to include, the questions that earn their place, what to leave out and how to read the answers.
What an intake form is for
An intake form does three jobs:
- Gives you context. Work, relationships, routines, resources and limits.
- Starts the client's thinking. Answering questions about goals and values is itself a first coaching step.
- Sets the tone. A thoughtful form tells a client they will be heard.
It is not a medical history, a diagnosis tool or a contract. For the contract, see the coaching agreement template guide.
Open with a welcome
Start with a short note thanking the client, explaining that they can answer as much or as little as they like, and stating that what they share is confidential, with a pointer to your confidentiality note. People write more openly when they know how the information will be used.
The 11 sections
1. About you
Name, preferred name, email, phone, time zone, best time to reach them and an emergency contact.
2. Your life right now
Open questions in their own words: What is going well? What feels heavy, unfinished or unclear? What does a typical weekday look like? What is coming up in the next three months?
3. Work, learning and money
Current role, what they enjoy and what drains them, what they would change, what they would like to learn and any practical limits to respect, such as time, budget, family or location.
4. Relationships and support
Who matters, who supports them and how, who might find their changes difficult and who they will tell about working with a coach.
5. Energy, habits and routines
Everyday planning questions. A 1-to-10 scale for statements such as "my sleep routine feels steady" or "I find time for movement or rest," followed by a habit they are proud of, one they want to change and what helps them recharge. Add a line saying you are not asking for medical details and that coaching is not a way to diagnose or treat any condition.
6. Strengths and values
Three things people thank them for, moments they felt most like themselves, five values that matter most and a time they overcame something hard and what helped.
7. What they want from coaching
What brings them now, the one goal to start with, what will be different in three months if coaching goes well, what would make it time well spent and what they are afraid might happen.
8. Wheel of Life snapshot
Eight areas rated from 1 to 10: career or work, money and finances, health and energy, friends and family, partner or romance, personal growth, fun and recreation, home and environment. Then: which area do they most want to improve and why, and which gives them energy now? See the wheel of life worksheet guide for how to read the result.
9. Past experience
Whether they have worked with a coach or mentor before and what worked. How they like to be supported (gentle, direct, structured, flexible), how they like to receive feedback and what they need from you to feel safe being honest.
10. Practical preferences
A small table: session format, preferred days and times, comfort with note-taking, how they prefer to receive homework and anything that might get in the way of attending.
11. Anything else
An open question and a space for them to ask you something.
Close with an acknowledgement: coaching is not therapy, medical care or legal or financial advice; the client is responsible for their decisions and actions; the information is accurate to the best of their knowledge; name, signature and date.
What to leave out
- Detailed medical or mental health history. You do not need it, and collecting it creates risk. If something concerning comes up, refer.
- Questions you will not use. Every question has a cost in the client's time.
- Anything that feels like an interrogation. Keep the tone warm.
- Sensitive data you cannot store safely. Decide where the forms will live before you ask for them.
How to use the answers
Read the form twice, once for facts and once for words and feelings. Highlight the client's own phrases, since they are good material for questions. Note where energy shows ("I really want to…") and where doubt does ("I should probably…"). Bring two or three observations to the first session, not a full summary.
The answers feed straight into your first meeting. See the first coaching session checklist for preparation, and the client onboarding checklist for the order of paperwork.
Send it in a form people can fill in
A document the client can type into or print and handwrite works for most. Send it as an editable file or a shared document and ask for it back 48 hours before the first session.
Ready-to-edit version
The ReadyCoach Kit includes a Client Intake Questionnaire in its Client Onboarding module, built on the eleven sections above, with a welcome note, 1-to-10 scales, a Wheel of Life snapshot, a practical-preferences table and an acknowledgement. It is paired with a short Pre-Session Questionnaire, a Discovery Call Guide with call notes, a Coaching Agreement, a Confidentiality Note and a Welcome Packet. All are editable in Word and Google Docs. Legal-type documents carry a visible notice that they are templates only and not legal advice.