Fill an Existing PDF Form

What You Will Build

This guide does not attempt to cover every possible template or workflow combination. Instead, it introduces a simple pattern that you can reuse and extend.

We will build a workflow with three components:

1. Data source — Google Sheets
2. Eledo — PDF generation
3. Data sink — Google Drive (stores generated PDFs)

Once you understand this pattern, you can adapt it to other data sources and storage systems supported by n8n.

---

Step 1 — Upload a fillable PDF into Eledo

For this guide, we have prepared a sample fillable PDF. While you may use any PDF, we recommend using ours so it is easier to follow along.

Instructions

1. Download a sample PDF from this link
2. Log into your Eledo account.
3. Open My Templates.
4. Click Upload PDF, select your file and give it a proper name.

---

Step 2 — Map PDF form fields to Eledo data fields

Although the PDF already contains fillable fields, these are internal to the document. You must tell Eledo which fields to populate and with what data. Essentially, you are mapping internal PDF form fields to the Eledo data model.

Note: It is entirely up to you which form fields you want to populate. You might map only certain fields. Equally you can add new fields into the document. Adding new fields is outside of scope of this guide.

Mapping the fields is straight-forward. Every form field has a correct type. You simply need to bind each field to a corresponding data name in Eledo. This is the field you will further use from inside n8n. See below for an example of how we mapped the fullName text field. Continue with the mapping for remaining fields.

After you're done mapping the fields, hit Save button to store the changes. Now you have a proper Eledo template.

Optional step — Check the full data structure in JSON

In the left-side drawer menu click on API. You will see the full data model. It helps you double-check your field mapping. See the payload inside HTTP Request Body.

---

Step 3 — Create the n8n Workflow

Create a new workflow in n8n and add three nodes:

• Google Sheets (data source)
• Eledo
• Google Drive (storage)

Note: Configuration of Google Sheets and Google Drive nodes is outside the scope of this guide. Follow the official n8n documentation for authentication and basic setup.

---

Google Sheets Configuration

Create a Google Sheet with the following structure:

fullName	nameId	gender	isMarried	city	notes
John Smith	1	Male	TRUE	Paris	Loves reading.
Peter File	2	Male	FALSE	London	Makes own music.
Valentina Rossi	3	Female	FALSE	Rome	Rides motorcycles.

Each row represents one unique person.

Set up a trigger so that the workflow runs when a row is added or updated.

Note: The first row must contain headers. n8n automatically uses these headers (fullName, nameId, ...) as property names.

In the Google Sheets node:

• Authenticate
• Select the correct document
• Select the appropriate sheet

In this example, we selected a document named Eledo demo.

---

Eledo Node

Add the Eledo node and connect it between Google Sheets and Google Drive.

We will configure it in the next steps.

---

Google Drive Configuration

Create a folder in Google Drive where generated PDFs will be stored.

In the Google Drive node:

• Authenticate
• Select Upload file action
• Choose the target folder

---

Step 4 — Configure Authentication

Open the Eledo node configuration.

Before it can be used, credentials must be created.

Follow the Authentication documentation to configure your API key.

---

Step 5 — Select a Template

In the Eledo node:

• Set Template Scope to Private
• Select your copied template (for example: Fillable PDF (v1))

About Template Scope

• Private scope contains your templates and copies of public templates.
• Public scope allows direct use of public templates.

By default, Eledo uses the latest version of the selected template. You may optionally lock a specific version.

Template names and version numbers may differ slightly. This is expected.

---

Step 6 — Bind Data Using Guided Fields

Guided Fields are the recommended input method for most templates. They support flat data structures (text, number, and date fields).

More complex templates require JSON mode.

Why Your Sheet Might Have Less Columns

While the PDF form expects 6 parameters, it doesn't mean you have to store all of them in the table. For example, you might use the same Notes value for every generated PDF. Or if your form has a Date field, you might get current date directly from n8n, there is no need to store it in a table.

---

Configure Guided Fields

1. Under Text / Number Fields, add fields for fullName, nameId, gender, city and notes.
2. Under Boolean Fields, add field for isMarried.
3. For some values, you might temporarily use static values just to see the effect.
4. However, our document uses exclusively dynamic fields. Switch all your fields (fullName, nameId, ...) into Expression mode.
5. Bind values coming from the Google Sheets node.

Refer to the screenshot below for a concrete example.

---

Step 7 — Test the Workflow

Click Execute step in the Eledo node.

If everything is configured correctly, you should see a generated PDF for each row in your sheet.

Download and verify the results.

---

Step 8 — Upload PDFs to Google Drive

Now configure the Google Drive node to store the generated files.

Prerequisites:

• Authentication configured
• Target folder selected

Inside the Google Drive node:

• Set Operation to Upload

• Switch the required fields to Expression mode

• Map:

  • Input Data Field Name → {{ $('Generate PDF document').item.binary.document }}
  • File Name → {{ $('Generate PDF document').item.binary.document.fileName }} (optional)

This tells Google Drive to upload the PDF file generated by the Eledo node.

See the screenshot below for exact expression examples.

What’s Next?

You now have a working automation:

Google Sheets → Eledo → Google Drive

From here, you can:

• Add more rows to your sheet and observe the automatic generation
• Experiment with dynamic expressions
• Use JSON mode for complex templates
• Replace Google Sheets or Google Drive with other integrations

The pattern remains the same.