Forms research & Guidelines

One column layout

User’s eyes wont jump from one column to another, and he won’t be getting distracted

The best practice is to have labels above the field, so it doesn’t require horizontal eye movement

The length of a form—both visually and in terms of the effort completing it requires — the form doesn’t look as long as with labels above the form, which means it will take less time to complete
Left aligned labels will make it easier to scan the labels - it’s important for long forms and questions
If it will be better for a user to first scan all labels, and choose what he wants to complete (mandatory e.g) - then left align will be better

When filling out a form, people usually tab from one field to the next, focusing on one field at a time
Eyetracking studies have shown that right-aligned labels require shorter eye movements than left-aligned labels. Users first focus their attention on a form field, then their eyes travel to the left to read its label. Right-aligned labels require the eyes to travel shorter distances to view both the form field and the label
Labels are in close proximity to a form field, so users’ eyes are not likely to jump to the wrong row