How to Create Fillable Form using PDF.co and Zapier

Step 1: Make a Zap

For the first step, click the Make Zap button at the upper-left corner of your dashboard.

Step 2: Add the PDF.co Form Field Action

Add a new action to your Zap and select PDF.co. For the Action Event, choose Add Form Field to PDF.

Connect your PDF.co account through Zapier’s authorization window if it is not already connected.

This dedicated action provides fields for configuring a fillable form field, so a Custom API Call and JSON payload are not required.

Step 3: Configure the First Form Field

Configure the Add Form Field to PDF action using the following fields:

• Source PDF URL: Enter or map the URL of the original non-fillable PDF. The file must be accessible to PDF.co.
• ID: Enter a unique name for the form field, such as Employee.
• X Coordinate: Enter the field’s horizontal position, such as 393.
• Y Coordinate: Enter the field’s vertical position, such as 175.
• Type: Select TextField.
• Initial Value: Optionally enter a value that should appear in the field by default. Leave it blank if the user should complete the field.
• Size: Enter the desired field size, such as 20.
• Pages: Enter the page on which the field should appear. The first page is numbered 0. Use 0- if the field should be added from the first page onward.

You can use the PDF.co PDF/Edit/Add Helper to determine the appropriate coordinates.

Test the action. Once processing is complete, PDF.co will return a temporary URL for the PDF containing the new form field.

Step 4: Add the Remaining Form Fields

The Add Form Field to PDF action adds one form field at a time. Add another PDF.co action for each additional field.

For every new action:

1. Select Add Form Field to PDF.
2. Map the output URL from the preceding PDF.co action into Source PDF URL.
3. Enter the new field’s ID, coordinates, type, size, and page selection.
4. Test the action before adding the next field.

For the sample form, configure the remaining fields as follows:

• Date: X 277, Y 194, Type TextField, Size 22
• Employer: X 85, Y 209, Type TextField, Size 20
• Company: X 402, Y 210, Type TextField, Size 14
• Address: X 174, Y 226, Type TextField, Size 20

Use the output from each action as the input for the next action. This preserves all previously added fields in the final PDF.

Step 5: Test and Review the Fillable PDF

After testing the final PDF.co action, open the returned URL and verify that:

• Every form field appears in the correct location.
• Each field can be selected and edited.
• The field names are unique.
• The fields appear on the intended pages.

The returned URL is temporary. Add another Zapier action if you want to save the completed form to Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, or another permanent storage service.