Generate a Branded PDF from a Form Submission in Zapier
When someone submits a form, render them a branded PDF — a receipt, certificate, or confirmation — with Zapier's native Rendex Generate PDF action, then email it straight back. Design the document once as HTML, map the form fields in, and the Zap does the rest. No code, no PDF library, no headless browser.
Last updated 2026-07-15
The Problem
A form submission usually deserves a document in return — an order gets a receipt, a course completion gets a certificate, a booking gets a confirmation. But no-code stacks have no clean way to produce one: merge-field tools are rigid and ugly, dedicated PDF apps are a separate subscription to wire in, and rolling your own means a script with a PDF library and a headless browser — exactly what a Zapier user is trying to avoid. So most teams either skip the document or paste data into a template by hand.
The Solution
Zapier has a native Rendex Generate PDF action — no custom webhook. Design the document once as an HTML template with {{placeholders}}, then map the trigger's form fields into Rendex's Mustache data inputs. On each submission the action renders a branded, print-ready PDF and returns it as a file you attach to a Gmail/Outlook step or upload to Drive. It's fully no-code, uses your real HTML and CSS for the layout, and runs on the free tier — a form submission becomes a polished, personalized document in one action.
How the Workflow Runs
Form submitted
A new Typeform/Google Forms response fires the Zap with the submitter's fields.
Rendex — Generate PDF
The native action fills your HTML template with the form data (Mustache) and returns a branded PDF.
Deliver
A Gmail/Outlook step emails the PDF back to the submitter, or a Drive step files it.
Input → Rendered Output
Rendered by Rendex
What You Need
- A Rendex API key — the free tier includes 100 renders/month with no card required.
- A Zapier account with the Rendex app connected (search "Rendex" in the app directory, add your key once).
- A form trigger: Typeform, Google Forms, Jotform, or any form app Zapier supports.
- Your document as an HTML template with {{placeholders}}, and a delivery step (Gmail/Outlook to email, or Drive to file).
What This Recipe Uses
Native Generate PDF action
No custom webhook to wire — the Rendex Generate PDF action appears in the Zap editor once you connect your key, alongside Capture Screenshot and Render HTML.
Map form fields into the template
Design the document once with {{name}}, {{course}}, {{date}} and map each to a form field. Rendex fills the placeholders server-side with Mustache — one template, a personalized PDF per submission.
Your HTML, your branding
The layout is real HTML and CSS — logo, web fonts, a certificate border, brand color — so the output looks designed, not like a rigid merge-field form.
Attach and send in the same Zap
The action returns the PDF as a file, so the next step — Gmail, Outlook, or Google Drive — emails or files it with no encoding step in between.
Build It
# Zapier — action config (no code)
Trigger: Typeform — New Entry
Action: Rendex — Generate PDF
Source: HTML
HTML: <your certificate template with {{name}}, {{course}}, {{date}}>
Data: name = {{ Typeform: Full Name }}
course = {{ Typeform: Course }}
date = {{ Typeform: Submitted At }}
Format: PDF
PDF size: A4
Next: Gmail — Send Email
Attachment = {{ Rendex: PDF File }}# The Generate PDF action posts this under the hood.
curl -X POST https://api.rendex.dev/v1/screenshot \
-H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
--output certificate.pdf \
-d '{
"html": "<div class=\"cert\"><h1>Certificate of Completion</h1><p>Awarded to <b>{{name}}</b></p><p>{{course}} — {{date}}</p></div>",
"data": { "name": "Dana Okafor", "course": "Edge Rendering 101", "date": "May 26, 2026" },
"format": "pdf",
"pdfFormat": "A4"
}'100 free API calls/month — no credit card required. Get your API key and start building.
Reach for this whenever a submission should come back as a document, not just a row in a sheet — a paid registration that owes a receipt, a finished course that earns a certificate, a booking that needs a confirmation to print. The value is that the whole thing stays no-code: Zapier already has the form trigger and the email/Drive step, and the native Rendex Generate PDF action drops in between with nothing to host. Because you design the document as ordinary HTML and CSS and map the form fields into Mustache placeholders, the layout is yours — logo, fonts, brand color, a real certificate border — not a rigid merge-field template. One template serves every submitter; the data changes, the design doesn't. The action returns the PDF as a file the next step can attach or store, so the person gets a polished document in their inbox seconds after they hit submit. It runs on the free 100 renders a month, which is plenty to launch with.