Manage templates

A template is the starting point for every Formable workflow. You upload a document once, place fields on it, and then reuse its templateId to send signature requests or start redline negotiations.

Supported files

PDF (application/pdf)
DOCX (application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document)
DOC (application/msword)
Maximum size: 40MB

Redlining requires a DOCX source file because it edits the underlying document. Upload DOCX if you plan to negotiate revisions.

1. Upload a template

Send the file as multipart/form-data with a file part and a filename field. Formable returns the templateId plus a ready-to-use editor URL.

curl --request POST \
  --url https://formable-production.up.railway.app/api/v0/templates \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  --form 'file=@./agreement.docx' \
  --form 'filename=agreement.docx'

Response

{
  "templateId": "abc123xyz",
  "editTemplateAccess": {
    "editUrl": "https://app.formabledocs.com/template-setup/abc123xyz",
    "expiresAt": "2024-01-16T10:30:00.000Z"
  }
}

Files over 40MB return 413. Unsupported file types return 400 with "Unsupported file type, only pdf, docx, and doc are supported".

2. Place fields in the editor

Open the editUrl in a browser to open the template editor, where you place and configure fields on the document:

Signature — where the signer signs
Text — free-form text input
Date — a date value
Checkbox — a boolean toggle
Amount — a monetary value

Each field has an id. You reference these IDs when you prefill fields on a signature request.

Editor URLs expire (by default one day after creation). Generate a fresh one anytime with the next step.

3. Regenerate an editor URL

If an editor URL has expired, mint a new one for the template.

curl --request POST \
  --url https://formable-production.up.railway.app/api/v0/templates/abc123xyz/edit-url \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Response

{
  "editUrl": "https://app.formabledocs.com/template-setup/abc123xyz",
  "expiresAt": "2024-01-16T10:30:00.000Z"
}

You can only create an edit URL for templates owned by your organization. Other templates return 403, and unknown IDs return 404.

Getting Started

Workflows

Supported files

1. Upload a template

2. Place fields in the editor

3. Regenerate an editor URL

Next steps

Send for signature

Start a redline

​Supported files

​1. Upload a template

​2. Place fields in the editor

​3. Regenerate an editor URL

​Next steps

Send for signature

Start a redline

Supported files

1. Upload a template

2. Place fields in the editor

3. Regenerate an editor URL

Next steps