Document Builder: Generate documents from row data

Viewers can generate documents and download them to their devices. Viewers can't attach generated documents to rows.

Before you begin

Before you generate documents, complete these steps in order:

1. Prepare your sheet.
2. Create a fillable PDF.
3. Map your sheet columns to the fillable PDF. 

Once you've created your mapping, you can reuse it anytime. 

Use filters to find rows that are ready for document generation. See Create a filter to show or hide data.

Generate documents

1. Select the rows you want to include.
2. Right-click a highlighted row and select Generate Documents… The Document Builder window opens in the same browser tab. Saved mappings appear on the right.

3. Drag your Filename column to the Output Document Name field at the top of the screen.

   If you leave this field blank, documents inherit the PDF template's name, making them hard to tell apart.

4. On any saved mapping, open the Generate dropdown.
   • From a sheet: Select Download or Attach to Rows.
   • From a report: Select Download.
5. Review your documents to confirm the data appears as expected. If it doesn't, select the Pencil icon next to the mapping to edit it.

Generate custom filenames

When you generate many documents, custom filenames make them easier to manage, especially if they get detached from the sheet. By default, documents inherit the PDF template's name rather than the mapping name.

1. Create a dedicated column for the filename and add a column formula that combines existing columns. For example:

   =[column1]+[column2]

   See Create cell and column reference formulas for more on column formulas.

2. In the mapping screen, drag that column to the Output Document Name field.

Document Builder with Control Center or Save as New

Control Center

Document Builder mappings can be part of your Control Center blueprints. When Control Center provisions a project, it keeps the mappings from the template and redirects them to the new project's items. This also applies to enhanced global updates.

After provisioning a project that includes Document Builder mappings, manually re-select the mapping in any generated workflow automation.

Save as New

After using Save as New on an asset that includes a generated document, manually re-select the mapping in any generated workflow automation.

Tips for document generation

Here are a few tips to streamline and improve efficiency in the process.

• Capture data with a form: Build a form to standardize data entry and keep your sheet data consistent.
• Create custom filenames: By default, Smartsheet uses the PDF name as the document filename. Use a formula to customize filenames so each document is easier to identify.
• Customize DocuSign emails: Customize the subject and message for DocuSign routing emails so recipients can identify them at a glance.
• Flag rows that are ready: Set a flag on rows that are ready for document generation, then filter on those rows. For a more automated approach, use workflow automation to flag rows and trigger generation automatically. 

Additional information

• You can generate documents for up to 100 rows at a time.
• If you generate a new document for a row using the same mapping as before, Smartsheet uploads it as a new version of the existing attachment. See Keep file attachments current over time.
• If your document has multiple fields that use the same data, link those fields in the PDF and map only the first instance. Smartsheet fills in the remaining fields automatically when you generate the document.
• Avoid restricting data types in your PDF fields where possible. Text fields, for example, accept dates in any format. If you restrict the field type and a user enters data in the wrong format, the data won't sync between the PDF and Smartsheet.