# PDF AcroForm Filler Fill standard PDF forms programmatically (text, checkbox, radio, dropdown/list) using JSON data injection > Canonical page: https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/pdf-acroform-filler - **Category:** PDF Tools - **Keywords:** pdf, acroform, xfa, form filler, field injection, checkbox, dropdown ## Overview Programmatically fill PDF form fields and export a filled PDF. **Engine selection:** - Primary library: **pdf-lib** **Supported injection:** - Text fields - Checkboxes (true/false/yes/no) - Radio groups - Dropdown and option list selections **AcroForm/XFA behavior:** - Fully supports AcroForm filling - For hybrid PDFs that include XFA, can remove XFA packet and fill AcroForm fallback fields - Pure XFA-only forms are not directly writable by pdf-lib and should be converted upstream ## Inputs - **PDF Form File** (file): Upload AcroForm/XFA PDF - **Field Data JSON** (textarea): JSON object where key = field name, value = field value - **Remove XFA Before Fill** (checkbox): For hybrid PDFs, remove XFA packet and fill AcroForm fallback - **Flatten Filled Fields** (checkbox): Flatten fields to make result non-editable - **Strict Mode** (checkbox): Fail immediately when any field cannot be mapped/written ## When to use - When you need to generate hundreds of personalized documents from a single PDF template. - When you want to automate the data entry process for standardized business or legal forms. - When you need to convert interactive PDF forms into static, non-editable documents for distribution. ## How it works - Upload your PDF form file that contains standard AcroForm fields. - Provide a JSON object where keys correspond to the PDF field names and values represent the data to be inserted. - Select whether to flatten the document to make it non-editable or keep it as an interactive form. - Process the file to generate and download your completed PDF document. ## Use cases - Automating the generation of employee onboarding contracts or tax forms. - Batch-processing customer registration forms from a database export. - Creating personalized event registration tickets or certificates from a template. ## Frequently asked questions ### What types of PDF forms are supported? The tool supports standard AcroForm PDFs. For hybrid PDFs containing XFA, the tool can remove the XFA packet to fill the AcroForm fallback fields. ### Can I keep the PDF editable after filling it? Yes, by disabling the 'Flatten Filled Fields' option, the resulting PDF will retain its interactive form fields. ### What happens if a field name in my JSON doesn't match the PDF? If 'Strict Mode' is enabled, the process will fail. Otherwise, the tool will skip the unmatched field and continue processing the rest. ### Does this tool support pure XFA-only forms? No, pure XFA-only forms are not supported. They must be converted to standard AcroForm format before processing. ### Is there a limit to the file size I can upload? The tool supports PDF files up to 100MB. ## Related tools - [OCR PDF to Structured JSON Bridge](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/ocr-pdf-to-structured-json-bridge): Extract the PDF text layer with geometry (lines by y-position, tables by column gaps, headings by font size, colon key-value pairs), then fill a user-supplied JSON Schema field by field — labels matched by normalized keys, values coerced to declared types and validated with ajv. - [PDF Denoise](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/pdf-denoise): Remove visual noise from scanned PDF pages — salt-and-pepper speckle, random grain, and faint background haze — using real image-processing algorithms. Text pages are preserved as searchable vector content. - [PDF Secure Redaction Sanitizer](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/pdf-secure-redaction-sanitizer): Permanently remove PDF text and hidden page objects by rebuilding an image-only PDF. - [PDF Form Fill Batch](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/pdf-form-fill-batch): Fill one PDF form template with an array of records and output one filled PDF per record (ZIP) or a merged PDF - [PDF Form Flatten](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/pdf-form-flatten): Flatten a PDF form: bake field values into static content so the result is non-editable - [PDF Multipage Form Mock](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/pdf-multipage-form-mock): Create printable multi-page form mocks with text fields, checkboxes, and signature areas - [Encrypted PDF Converter](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/encrypted-pdf-converter): Open password-protected PDFs with OpenDataLoader and export them as Markdown, JSON, or text once the correct password is provided - [Fitness Workout PDF Generator](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/fitness-workout-pdf-generator): Generate a printable workout-plan PDF from JSON or CSV data with exercise tables, progress boxes, and optional QR video links ## Samples - [PDF Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/pdf-samples): Generated PDF samples from tools dated 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-10 - [Markdown Slide Deck Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/md-slide-deck-to-pdf): Remark/Marp style Markdown slide decks for testing PDF export layouts - [Distributed Tracing Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/distributed-tracing-samples): Comprehensive distributed tracing examples using Jaeger, OpenTelemetry, and other modern observability tools for microservices architecture - [JWT Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/jwt-samples): Comprehensive JWT examples from basic token structure to advanced security implementations ## Related content - [PDF Forms, Navigation, and Review Workflows](https://elysiatools.com/en/hubs/pdf-forms-navigation-review-workflows): Prepare fillable PDF forms, add internal navigation, mark review issues, style delivery pages, and verify signatures before handoff.