Mail merge to separate PDF files, without the macro.
Word merges your spreadsheet into one long document and leaves the splitting to you. Docplet takes that same .docx and that same spreadsheet and gives back one named PDF per row, emailed to the person it belongs to and filed where it goes, while you get on with your day.
Bulk generation from a CSV is in build now. Docplet is not open yet.
CERTIFICATE
Page 7 of 240
This is to certify that Ana Ruiz
240 copies in one file, and no way to save them separately.
letters-merged.docx
240 files
- certificate-ana-ruiz.pdfemailed
- certificate-ben-oyelaran.pdfemailed
- certificate-chiara-rossi.pdfemailed
- certificate-dan-whitfield.pdfsending
and 236 more, filed in Drive as they finish
Mail merge was built for envelopes, not for files
This is not a bug in Word. Mail merge was built to feed a printer.
It comes from the era of printing 500 letters and stuffing 500 envelopes, and for that a single long document is exactly what you want. Word has no idea you need 500 separate files, named after 500 people, going to 500 different inboxes.
So the merge finishes and you are still holding the whole job.
- Every copy is stacked into one file as pages. There is no "save each one separately".
- Nothing is named. Certificate 214 is on page 214, and that is all Word can tell you.
- Nothing is sent. Merging to email puts your text in the body; it will not attach a personalized PDF.
- Nothing is recorded. Six weeks later, nothing can tell you whether one particular person got theirs.
The workarounds, and where each one runs out
Every one of these still ends with you attaching files by hand.
The macro
Paste in VBA from a forum thread
It does split the file, when it runs. You are trusting code you cannot read, on a version of Word it was not written for, and plenty of workplaces block macros outright. It still will not name the files usefully or send one of them.
By hand
Save, delete pages, save again
Export the PDF, delete everyone else's pages, save it under their name, repeat. It works. For 200 people it is a day you do not get back.
An add-in
Pay something to split the file
The good ones split the merge and name each file from a column. Then you are still the person attaching 200 emails one at a time, and still the person who cannot say which of them bounced.
Your template, your spreadsheet, one PDF per row
Setup is once per template. After that it is a spreadsheet and a button.
1
Mark the parts that change
Open the document you already merge and replace the details with placeholders: {{FULL_NAME}}, {{COURSE}}, {{DATE}}. Your wording, layout, fonts and logo stay exactly as you built them.
certificate.docx → 3 placeholders
2
Upload it with your CSV
The same spreadsheet you already merge from. Docplet matches your column headings to your placeholders, and every row becomes its own document.
240 rows → 240 documents
3
They deliver themselves
Each PDF is named from its own row, emailed to the address in that row from your own address, filed in the Drive folder you picked, and logged. A send that fails retries on its own.
Named ✓ · Emailed ✓ · Filed ✓
Word mail merge next to Docplet
Same template, same spreadsheet. The difference starts the moment the merge finishes.
The last three rows are the ones where mail merge wins. They are in the table for a reason.
| The job | Word mail merge | Docplet |
|---|---|---|
| What you get | One file, every copy stacked as pages | One PDF per row |
| Filenames | Page numbers | Named from the row, like certificate-ana-ruiz.pdf |
| Sending | Body text only, with no personalized attachment | Emailed from your own address, PDF attached |
| Filing | You drag them into folders afterwards | Filed in the Drive folder you choose |
| Proof it arrived | None | A record per document, with the reason when one fails |
| When a send fails | You hear about it from the recipient | It retries, then tells you why |
| Macros or add-ins | Usually, just to split the file | None. It runs in a browser. |
| Printing and envelopes | What it was built forMail merge wins | Not its job. Docplet makes files. |
| Works offline | YesMail merge wins | No |
| Price | Free, and already in WordMail merge wins | Business plan, $79 a month. Not open yet. |
A PDF nobody receives is just a file
Docplet sends it, files it, and keeps the receipt, so "did that go out?" has an answer.
- From your own address
- Your client gets an email from you, with the PDF attached under a proper name. Not from a no-reply address they've never seen.
- Filed where it belongs
- Each PDF lands in the Google Drive or Dropbox folder you pick, one folder per client if you like.
- Your other software stays up to date
- The moment a document is ready, Docplet can tell the rest of your tools, through Zapier or a webhook to any system you control. Your CRM or accounting app gets the record without anyone retyping it.
- A receipt for every send
- What went out, to whom, and when. If a send fails, it retries on its own. If it still can't get through, you see why and re-send in one click.
Sent this week4
quote-acme-corp.pdfAcme Corp
Delivered, filed
invoice-0193.pdfHarbor & Co
Delivered, filed
contract-lumen-dental.pdfLumen Dental
Retried once, delivered
offer-letter-j-okafor.pdfJ. Okafor
Mailbox fullRe-send
Docplet asks Google for permission to send mail and save files. It never asks to read your inbox. You can revoke access from your Google account whenever you like.
When you should just use mail merge
We would rather you used the right tool, even when it is not ours.
You are printing
If the output goes to a printer and an envelope, mail merge is the right tool and it costs nothing. Docplet makes files, not paper.
You need to stay offline, or inside Word
Docplet runs in the browser, and your template sits with us until you delete it. If that does not suit your work, mail merge has no such problem.
It is a once-a-year job
Losing one afternoon a year to splitting a merge is cheaper than any subscription. Come back when it turns into every term.
If the merging is the quick part, and the splitting, naming and sending is what costs you the day, that is the part Docplet does.
Questions, answered
Something else on your mind? [email protected]
Does it work with the Word file I already merge from?
Yes, that is the whole point. It is your .docx. Docplet replaces the placeholders you marked and changes nothing else, so tables, headers and footers, page numbering, embedded logos and multi-page layouts come through as you built them. The one change is that you type {{FULL_NAME}} where you used to insert a Word merge field.
What does the CSV need to look like?
One row per document, and a column heading for each placeholder. If your template uses {{FULL_NAME}} and {{COURSE}}, the sheet needs a FULL_NAME column and a COURSE column. The export you already merge from is usually close to this already.
How many can I send at once?
Your plan sets how many documents you can generate, and Business includes 2,000 a month. Emailing is limited by Google, because the mail leaves from your own account: a personal Gmail allows a few hundred recipients a day and a Workspace account allows more. A batch larger than your daily allowance still generates and files. The sending spreads out instead of putting your account at risk.
Do I need macros, add-ins or code?
No. You need to be able to type {{FULL_NAME}} into a Word document and save a spreadsheet as CSV. Everything after that happens on a web page.
Can I still do one at a time?
Yes. Upload the template once and Docplet turns your placeholders into a short form. The CSV is for when you have two hundred of them. The form is for when you have one.
Does Docplet write or redesign my document?
No. You wrote it. Docplet swaps in the values from your spreadsheet, makes the PDF, and delivers it. Nothing is generated, rephrased or restyled, and nobody here reads your documents or trains a model on them.
Is it available now?
Not yet. Bulk generation from a CSV is in build, and there is no launch date yet.
Want to hear the day it opens?
There's no sign-up form yet. Send a one-line email and you'll hear from us when Docplet opens. Mention what you send while you're at it, because that decides what gets built next.
Email [email protected]