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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://filla.io/docs/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

What this action does

The Generate PDF action creates a PDF document each time a form is submitted. You can save the generated PDF to an Airtable attachment field, email it to the respondent, or send it to an external system via webhook.

Template sources

You choose how the PDF content is created:
SourceHow it works
Auto-generatedZero setup. Filla renders every non-empty field from the submitted record as a clean two-column PDF.
Document TemplateInline rich text editor — design a formatted document with @ mentions for any field on the submitted record. The template lives on the action itself; no separate extension is required.
Fillable PDFUpload an existing PDF (max 50 MB) and visually map your form fields to positions on the PDF. Filla fills in the mapped fields and generates the output.

Configuring a Generate PDF action

1

Open the Automations tab

In the form editor, click the Automations tab.
2

Add an action

Create a new automation (or open an existing one) and click Add action. Select Generate PDF.
3

Choose a template source

Pick Auto-generated, Document Template, or Fillable PDF from the Template source dropdown.
4

Configure the template

For Auto-generated, no setup is needed. For Document Template, design the document inline and @-mention fields from the submitted record. For Fillable PDF, click Upload PDF template and use the visual field mapper.
5

Set the output filename

Use the Output filename field to create dynamic filenames with variable text. For example: @{Name}-application-@{Date} generates filenames like Jane-Smith-application-2026-03-24.
6

Choose delivery options

Toggle on one or more delivery destinations and configure each.

Delivery options

The generated PDF can be delivered to one or more destinations:
DestinationDescription
Save to AirtableAttach the PDF to an attachment field on the submitted record
EmailSend the PDF as an attachment to an email address
WebhookSend the PDF to an external URL

Freeform text boxes

In Fillable PDF mode, you can draw text boxes directly on the PDF canvas. Each box can contain static text or variable text referencing form field values. Use these for adding content to areas of the PDF that do not have pre-defined form fields.

Conditional execution

Like all automation actions, Generate PDF supports an optional “Only run if…” condition. Set a filter to control when the PDF is generated. For example, only generate a PDF when the “Application type” field is “Full application”.

On-submit automations

Learn how automations work and how actions are structured.

Variable text

Use @ references in filenames and text content.