PDF Document Creator

Design contracts, letters, certificates, reports, and more right inside PlatoForms — from a blank canvas, a preset library, or a single sentence to the AI Assistant. When your document is ready, export it as a PDF or convert it into a fillable PDF or online form without rebuilding anything.

Getting started

1. From your Dashboard, click Start to build.

2. Under DESIGN A PDF, choose PDF Document Creator.

   

3. Pick a starting point:

   • Blank document — start from a clean page.
   • Start with AI chat — describe what you need and the AI Assistant drafts it for you.
   • Start from a template — coming soon.

Explore the editor

The editor has three main areas:

Left sidebar — adding content
The left sidebar contains individual component icons (Text Input, Choice, Dropdown, Signature, and more). Hover any icon to see its name. At the bottom of the sidebar is the Library icon, which opens a panel of pre-styled component variants.

Canvas — the page
The canvas is your document. It shows a dot grid and ruler markings to help you align and position components. Content flows top to bottom across one or more pages.

Right panel — settings and tools
The right panel has four tabs: Chat, Theme, Layouts, and Setting. Each tab controls a different aspect of your document.

Add content

Using the AI Assistant

Open the Chat tab and describe what you need in plain language. For example:

“A one-page consulting agreement with a signature block”

Tips for prompting:

• To generate a full document: “Build an event registration form with a header and warm colors”
• To restyle: “Make it look corporate, use a minimal style”
• To add sections: “Add a contact section with name, email, and phone”
• To modify selected components: “Make these match the rest of the page”

The AI Assistant builds a complete document in seconds, including fields, section headers, and layout.

To target specific components, select them on the canvas. You can select a specific component on the canvas, then prompt the AI to modify just that piece.

Dragging and clicking components

Hover any icon in the left sidebar to see what it adds, then drag it onto the canvas or click to place it. Once placed, you can:

• Move it by dragging the grid handle (blue square icon) in the top-left corner of the selected component.
• Resize it by dragging any corner or edge handle — all elements scale proportionally.
• Duplicate it with Cmd/Ctrl + D.
• Delete it with the Delete key or the trash icon in the property panel.

Using the Library

Click the Library icon at the bottom of the left sidebar to browse pre-styled component variants. Components are grouped by type:

Click or drag any variant to add it to your canvas. The result matches the preview thumbnail.

Page layout

How pages work

PDF Document Creator uses soft page breaks by default: when content reaches the bottom of a page, it flows automatically onto the next page.

Insert a hard page break

To force a page to end at a specific point — for example, before a signature page or a new section:

1. Place your cursor where you want the break.

2. Add a Page break field from the form fields panel.

   

Remove empty rows

If there is unwanted space between components, small × icons appear along the right edge of the canvas. Click any × to remove that empty row.

Headers and footers

Headers and footers are added and managed from the Layouts tab.

To add a header or footer:

1. Open the Layouts tab.

2. Under Add to Page, click + Header or + Footer.

Save and reuse layouts

1. Open the Layouts tab.

2. Click Save as layout.

3. Give the layout a name, then click Save.

   

Saved layouts appear under Saved Layouts. Click any saved layout to apply it to the current page. Use the share icon to share a layout with your team.

Document settings

Open the Setting tab to adjust document-level options: default font family and size, how font sizes are balanced across labels and input fields, page background color or image, and page margins.

Version history

PDF Document Creator saves your work automatically. Press Cmd/Ctrl + S to save a named version. Click History in the top navigation bar to browse and restore previous versions.

Export and publish

When your document is ready, you have two options from the top navigation bar:

Export PDF

Download your document as a PDF file.

Mode	Best for	Notes
Read-only PDF	Printing, archiving, sharing as a fixed document	Layout is preserved exactly as designed
Fillable PDF	Documents that need to be filled in	Layout is preserved in most cases; results may vary for complex designs

Choose Read-only PDF when layout accuracy is critical.

Convert to an online form

Convert your design into an interactive form. There are two paths:

Path	Best for
PDF Fillable Form	Keeping the PDF as the background while fields become interactive
Web PDF Form	A clean web-based form that maps fields back to generate the final PDF

After choosing a path, you can configure each field’s properties — label, placeholder, format, required/read-only/hidden settings, input validation, and conditional logic.

Once converted, your form is managed from Work on online forms. See:

• Manage web PDF form — for Web PDF Form
• Manage online PDF form — for PDF Fillable Form
• Configure online form — settings, notifications, logic
• Publish and share — share your form

Keyboard shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
Right-click	Show context menu
Cmd/Ctrl + C / V	Copy / paste components
Cmd/Ctrl + D	Duplicate
Cmd/Ctrl + Z / Shift + Z	Undo / redo
Cmd/Ctrl + A	Select all on the page
Cmd/Ctrl + G / Shift + G	Group / ungroup
Cmd/Ctrl + S	Save a version
Delete	Remove selected component
Arrow keys	Nudge component (hold Shift for bigger steps)
Shift + Click	Select multiple components
Esc	Deselect / exit editing
Space + Drag	Pan the canvas