The Easiest Way To Create an Editable Printable For Your Readers

Last updated on July 24th, 2022

This article will show you how to take any worksheet or printable that you’ve designed and convert it into a fillable PDF! Editable PDFs are perfect for those who want to reduce their paper consumption and keep everything organized electronically.

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Have you ever downloaded a workbook or even worksheet/printable and couldn’t edit it on your computer?

There were text boxes that couldn’t be typed in and checkboxes that couldn’t be checked.

The only way to make it work was to print it out!

Not everyone has a printer.

Not everyone has the money to keep buying ink cartridges that need replacing after just a few prints.

And, not everyone wants a print-out that can only be used once… not to mention those that are all about reducing their waste.

The thing is, ANY workbook, worksheet, printable, you name it can be converted into an editable format.

Most bloggers think they need fancy tools or Adobe Acrobat which is just not true! (We actually believed this for a time, too.)

Now, we have a solution to create an editable PDF for FREE. The best part?

It’s incredibly fast and easy and can be done on both a Mac and PC!

WHAT IS AN EDITABLE PDF?

We have a lot of readers that consider creating a printable in Canva and letting their readers edit it.

Unfortunately, there’s a major problem with this.

Depending on your audience, they may not know how to use Canva or have a Canva account. In fact, unless they’re a blogger or online business owner, chances are they have NO idea what Canva is!

We know how frustrating it can be to buy or even opt-in to something to find out we need to download an app or program to use said item.

So not user-friendly, right?

Creating a chore chart that has someone signing up for Canva just to add their kids’ names is NOT going to be super helpful.

We want your reader to click on the document, type in what they need to customize, and hit save or print. Quick wins are the name of the game!

So, how can we do that? We do this by converting our printable into a fillable PDF.

PDFs can be created AND opened on any computer regardless if it’s a PC or Mac, making an editable PDF the perfect solution for both sides of the print and digital spectrum.

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Before we get started, please note that this post is written the intent that your printable is already created.

If you’re looking for a step-by-step guide on creating a killer printable for your blog, we’ve got you covered!

STEP 1: UPLOAD YOUR PDF

Once you have your printable created, you can download it as a PDF as usual. Leave any spots that your reader would edit or customize blank.

Reference the second image below for an example of blank space.

Next, you’re going to head over to PDFEscape.com.

This is a free online program. You don’t need to pay anything, you don’t even need to create an account.

Once you’re on that website, go ahead and upload your PDF as shown below.

Once it’s uploaded, your screen will look like the image below.

Notice the top left menu? That’s where you’ll find all of your tools to create an editable PDF!

STEP 2: ADD FORM FIELDS

The tool we’ll use is called “Form Field”. You’ll be able to select various types of forms including:

• Text
• Text paragraph
• Checkbox
• Radio
• Dropdown
• Listbox
• Reset button
• Submit button

For most editable printables, you’ll use the ‘Text’, ‘Text Paragraph’, and ‘Checkbox’ fields.

Choose the one you want and use your mouse to click and drag to create the editable area on the printable.

You’ll need to repeat that process for every area that you want someone to be able to type in.

You don’t have to reselect the ‘Form Field’ button unless you change the form field type.

For this example, the top two areas are ‘Text Paragraph’ and then I changed the ‘Form Field’ to ‘Text’ and did each of the bullet points.

The areas don’t have to be perfectly sized; the green (as shown below) will not show up when you download your editable PDF.

STEP 3: ADD CHECKBOXES

Next, we changed the ‘Form Field’ to ‘Checkbox’ and filled in all of our checkboxes.

STEP 4: DOWNLOAD YOUR EDITABLE PDF

Now that we have all of our edits in place, we’ll click ‘Save & Download’ because we’re done!

Your printable is now an editable PDF that can be used right away. Text boxes can be typed in, and checkboxes can be checked with just a click of a button.

Pretty cool, right?

Whether you have worksheets, planners, chore charts, or budget sheets; the possibilities are endless with a fillable PDF!

You can get super creative with this, and your readers will be able to edit it with ease!

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WANT TO SAVE THIS FOR LATER? PIN IT TO YOUR FAVORITE PINTEREST BOARD!⬇