Tutorials
How to create shipping documents automatically in Notion
A complete step-by-step beginner's guide showcasing how to automate shipping document PDF generation in Notion using PDFOutput
By Sanat Biswal · 2026-06-13 · 12 min read
If you are using Notion to manage your shipping business and operations, but are looking for an automation workflow which can help produce shipping documents, packing slips, Bill of Lading, invoices etc then this guide is for you.
In this step-by-step beginner's guide we will understand how we can automate the process of generating shipping documents right from our Notion database with the help of PDFOutput.
This will eliminate any form of manual work involved such as manual copy and paste of the elements one by one onto the document or any form of labour which is time consuming and draining.
What we will learn by the end of this guide:
- Setup an automation workflow that generates PDFs reading data from notion databases.
- Produce PDFs that supports single or multiple line item orders.
- Create PDFs directly within the Notion Database in one-click, no hassle of juggling multiple tools.
- Template Source - We need to first add a template source file which would serve as the design and format of the Shipping Orders. A template can be in the following forms: - Word File or - Google Document or - PDF File or - Blank Document or - Select from list of available templates (ideal for quick start)
- Notion Databases - We will connect the Shipping Orders Notion Databases with PDFOutput that sets up the entire workflow for managing the Shipping Orders.
- Preview Output - Map the placeholders onto the document once both Notion Databases and Template sources are connected and we can generate a preview of the document to see output.
- Setup Automation - Once everything works clean, we can setup automation which can help generate PDFs directly within the Notion Database in one-click on demand.
- Saves our time - Creating an automation helps us to save time by eliminating manual process involving copy and paste work.
- Eliminates Errors - The automation helps to mitigate and eliminate any form of manual errors which might result from many typo errors.
- Generate PDFs on demand - The automation helps to produce PDFs on demand directly within the Notion Database in one-click.
- Consistent formatting and branded PDFs - The PDFs produced follow consistent formatting and are produced with the same structural layout.
- Streamline Business Operations - Setting up automation helps businesses scale operations efficiently by eliminating repetitive manual documentation and reducing the need for human intervention.
- Shipping Orders Databases - First of all, we need to build the interconnected set of Notion Databases which will store the shipping details in a structured manner as follows: a. Shipping Details - This will store the shipping records details in a database which will include the order ID, shipping details, shipping address etc. b. Line Items Details - For storing the details of the orders which have multiple items being shipped, we will prepare a Line Items orders database which will store the information. This will include information such as product name, SKU's, quantity, weight etc.
- Template Source - We will need a template source which will serve as the design and the format of how the shipping document output will look like.
- PDFOutput Account - We will need a registered account with PDFOutput which will help us enable the automation to generate the PDFs. Signin here to get started using PDFOutput.
- Shipping Details Database (Primary Database)
- Shipping Items Database
- Google Document (Ideal with no learning curve)
- Word File
- PDF File
- Google Slide (Ideal for presentations)
- Header section - This will specify all the key information such as Order ID, Shipping Address, Order Date etc.
- Line Items Data - This will contain all the line items of the products being shipped fetched from the Shipping Items Database linked to the Shipping Details database.
- Google Drive Folder - We can even save the PDFs onto the Google Drive and can store the PDFs in the drive along with storing the same into the Notion Database.
- PDF File Name - We can select this dropdown and select a column name which will be used to define the PDF File Name.
Quick Summary
In order to produce PDFs from Notion Database, we need to connect the Shipping Orders Notion databases with a template file. Once its connected, we can map the fields one by one onto the template and then setup the automation to produce PDFs forever.
Here's the entire workflow in 4 simple steps:
Types of Shipping Documents that can be created on automation from Notion?
There's different types of shipping documents can be created from Notion.
Here's few prominent ones as per different scenarios:
| Type of Document | Purpose of Document | Used For |
|---|---|---|
| Packing Slips | Listing the items that are used in the shipment | Kept inside the package for verification of recipient |
| Bill of Lading | Serves as a legal contract for transport of freight | Required during the shipment of the truckload |
| Shipping Commercial Invoice | Declaration of Shipment content and their value | Clearance for International Customs |
| Proof of Delivery (Delivery Receipts) | Proof for delivery of document | Recipient signs it as delivery proof |
| Shipping Labels | Provides address and tracking information | Attached outside of the package as a label |
Why should we automate Shipping Document using Notion
Creating a shipping document manually designing every element is a time intensive and error prone process.
Setting up an automation helps us serve the following benefits:
PDFOutput automation will help build dedicated workflows for generating complex PDFs on automation directly from Notion Database that produces Shipping Documents as per different layout and structure as required.
Prerequisites for generating Shipping Document using PDFOutput
In order to use PDFOutput, we will need the following things setup correctly:
A template can come across different forms such as:
- Google Document - Word File - PDF File - Blank Document - Selecting from a list of available templates (we will consider this option for this guide)
How to setup Notion Databases for Shipping Documents workflow
In order to setup the notion databases for creating the Shipping Documents workflow we will create the following connected databases:
This database will contain all the shipping details information. Following is how the table will be structured:
| Field Name | Type of Field | Purpose Used For | | --- | --- | --- | | Order ID | Title Type | Order Identifier Number | | Shipped To Name | Text Type | Name of Recipient | | Shipped To Address | Address Type | Address of Recipient | | Shipped To City | Text Type | City of Recipient | | Shipped To Postal Code | Number Type | Postal Code of Recipient | | Shipped To Country | Single Select Type | Country of Recipient | | Shipping Method Used | Single Select Type | Carrier Used | | Order Date | Date Type | Order Placement Date | | Shipping Date | Date Type | Order Shipment Date | | Tracking ID | Text Type | Tracking Identifier Number | | Products Items | Relation (Linked to Shipping Items Database) | Connected to Shipping Items Database | | Total Weight | Rollup (Rolled up from Product Items) | Total Weight of all Items Shipped |
When we have setup the Shipping Details Database, its time to setup the Line Items Database. This will showcase the multiple line items of the orders shipped for every shipment order that is created in the Orders Database.
| Field Name | Type of Field | Purpose Used For | | --- | --- | --- | | Product Name | Title Type | Description of Item | | Product SKU | Text Type | Stock Keeping Unit | | Product Quantity | Number Type | Shipped Units | | Product Weight | Number Type | Weight per unit | | Product Price | Number Type | Price per unit | | Product Amount | Formula Type | Total amount of shipped units | | Order Details | Relation Type (Linked to Shipping Details Database) | Linked to the Shipping Details Database |
Note : If you are looking to find any totals or average or other calculations, use rollup to derive rollups of the related properties linked in the Shipping Details Database.
Okay its now time to move onto the setup phase for setting up the automation to generate the Shipping Document PDFs.
How to setup Shipping Documents Automation in Notion?
In order to setup the Shipping Documents Automation in Notion, we need to follow 4 steps:
Step : 1 Connecting the Shipping Documents Notion Databases
We need to signin to PDFOutput and then click on +New Automation, and then we need to connect the Notion Database.
!PDFOutput Dashboard with New Automation
Click on Connect Notion to connect the Notion Databases for the setup.
Select your desired Notion Workspace from the top right side and then click on Select Pages
Enter the databases names, eg : Shipping Details and Shipping Items in the Search Pages section to connect both of the databases and click on Allow Access to proceed further.
!Allow Access to Notion Databases
Step : 2 Select a template
In this step, we need to connect a template source to be able to produce the PDFs on automation.
We need a template file that will define layout of the document that will be turned as PDFs.
There's 4 ways to add a document as template source :
In here we will search for the "Shipping Document" template in the search field to use an existing template available for the automation.
!Shipping Document Template Loaded
The template will contain 2 sections:
Click Continue to proceed to next step.
Step : 3 Select a database
In this step, the template selected earlier will be loaded up on the left side panel and we can select the Notion Database from the dropdown on the right side under Select Database.
!Select Shipping Details Database from Dropdown
Click on that and select Shipping Details Database. It will automatically load all the properties of the Shipping Details Database and Shipping Items Database on its own.
!Shipping Items Properties Loaded
!All Properties of Shipping Details and Shipping Items Database
All properties of the Shipping Details Database and Shipping Items Database on the above image.
Mapping Notion Database Properties onto Template
Click on Copy on the placeholders (notion properties) displayed on the right side and place cursor onto the document where you want to map the properties.
Use use (Ctrl + V / Cmd + V) to paste the properties onto the document.
Everytime you copy and paste a placeholder into the document, it adds the placeholder in the form of \{\{placeholdertext\}\}.
This means anything added inside of \{\{…\}\} is a placeholder text which would be fetched from the database by the same name and replaced accordingly.
!Mapped Placeholders on Shipping Document Template
This will create a mapping inside the document which will be replaced with the values from the database when the document will be created.
Eg : If you copy and paste Order ID, it will copy and paste Order ID in the form of \{\{Order ID\}\}.
Once pasted, it will look for the field name with value as Order ID and once a match is found it will replace the value from the database automatically.
How to map the placeholders for Line Items Data
For mapping the line items products data, just map the field inside the table as required and it will automatically populate like items of the products shipped.
Eg: In the table add the fields such as \{\{Product Name\}\}, \{\{Product SKU\}\}, \{\{Product Quantity\}\}, \{\{Product Rate\}\}, \{\{Product Amount\}\} under the respective fields in the table and it will automatically create line items of products shipped fetching the same from Shipping Items Database.
Additional Settings:
Step : 4 Create a Document Preview and setup automation
Once everything is setup properly, click on Preview Output and it will create a preview of the document.
This is the preview Output Image.
!Preview of Generated Shipping Document PDF
Once you are happy with the preview generated, its time to setup the Notion Automation.
If you want to make more changes, click Back and make the changes as necessary and re-enter Preview mode.
Click on Setup Automation to enable the automation and save the automation to run forever.
Once the automation is saved and activated, you can start generating PDFs right inside the Notion Database in one-click.
How to automate producing Shipping Documents PDFs inside Notion
For this we need to select the "GeneratePDF" property in Shipping Details Database and mark the same as "Ready to Generate" for any specific record.
!Mark Record as Ready to Generate in Notion
This will automatically start processing the PDFs and once completed will produce the pdf file under PDFFiles.
!Completed PDF Generation in Notion Database
This allows you to produce PDFs on automation directly from inside the Shipping Details Notion Database without juggling between different tools.
You also have a Preview option using which a preview file of the document can be created inside the Notion Database as well.
How to batch process Shipping Documents (bulk PDFs) at once using Notion
In order to produce documents in batches at once (upto 100 PDFs at once), click on the 3-dots and click on Batch PDF.
!Batch PDFs Option in PDFOutput Dashboard
This will start processing batches of records for PDF generation at once.
Also there's an option to Preview the generated document at once as well.
Click on Preview and it will generate a preview of the output using the shipping details database and template source.
Practical Applications of automation for Shipping
Some of the most prominent use case for automation of shipping documents includes:
| Use Case | Description |
|---|---|
| Shipping Labels Generation | Automate generation of shipping labels from Shipping Details database without using manual copy paste |
| Invoicing and Billing Automation | Automate the production of the invoices to clients |
| Purchase Orders Documents | Automate generation of Purchase Orders from the inventory in the shipping warehouse |
| Picking and Packing Lists | Auto generate picking and packing lists for the warehouse staff involved directly from the incoming orders received |
| Customs and Compliance Documents | Auto fill customs declaration forms for international shipments deliveries saving manual working hours |
Key Considerations for Generating Shipment Documents using PDFOutput
Here's the best practices for setting up pdf automation for shipment document generation in PDFOutput:
When you preview a document generated from the automation, make sure to check across all formatting involved to ensure the output is generated as expected.
While generating the pdf, make sure to use a consistent style of naming the pdf files. If you want to use a custom name not directly related to any field name, use a formula type property and create your custom formula defining the field name before generating pdf.
Also make sure to use pdf file name that has consistent formatting such as Order_ID is easy to map instead of odr_id.
Eg: Let's say you are want to use order ID and the database name as pdf file name.
You can create another formula type property which would be like [Order ID + "Shipment Details"], this will create the file name custom manner unique for each pdf generated.
This will fetch the order ID values for each row and then add the same to "Shipment Details" while generating the pdf.
PDFOutput also supports media file types in the form of png or jpg. While adding the image type placeholders add the same onto the document with the dimension in the format "\{\{imagefield\}\}_\{\{20*20\}\}".
Here the dimensions marked inside the \{\{…\}\} correspond to the size of the media files in inches and can be tested through preview to see how it fits.
While designing the sample template source file to create the PDFs, make sure to use simple table formatting, simple font and use minimum styling effects while designing the template.
This will help prevent any errors or issues while generating the PDFs. Use of complex formatting can sometimes cause the template to break the structure of the template and not produce consistent output as expected.
The PDFs are generated by default using the format of "MMMM DD, YYYY".
Eg : For the date value 11th May, 2026 it will generate the placeholder value as May 11, 2026.
If you want to generate the date in a different format, let's say in the form of 11.05.2026 then simply add another formula property in the database, let's say "Derived_Date" with the formula "[formatDate(prop("datefield"), "DD.MM.YYYY")]"
This will create the new date value in the above format of DD.MM.YYYY as required.
Map this new field "Derived_Date" onto the document instead of the date field and the output will show the date value in the above desired format of DD.MM.YYYY as required.
Common Problems with generating PDFs and how to fix the issues
Here's some common problems associated with generation of PDFs:
The placeholders in the template source file aren't replaced with the values from the data source.
Make sure you the field mapped is exactly the same field added to the template source.
Eg: If the field name in the database is "Order_id" and the placeholdertext mapped to the template source is "Order_ID" then it will not be able to replace the placeholdertext correctly.
Make sure both the texts are exactly the same including the capitalisation or underscores used.
Always ensure to click on Copy and paste the values onto the template to ensure the placeholders text are correctly added onto the template source.
When you are adding the placeholders make sure to check the Line Items Database is properly connected and added as a Notion Database or not.
A quick way to check the same is to head over to the Line Items Database and click on the 3-dots on the top right.
Click on Connections and the check if PDFOutput is available as a connection or not in the list.
If PDFOutput is showing in the list refresh the databases and it will show in the list.
If PDFOutput is not showing in the list reconnect the database in the setup screen after signing in and it will appear in the selection list.
The pdf file created doesn't preserve the correct formatting of the document as expected.
This can happen if your template file has a complex layout and includes elements not supported by the Google Document on its own.
When you add elements that are not natively supported by Google Document it can lead to formatting and issues with the design and layout of the document generated.
Start Automating Shipping Documents from Notion
If you are consistently running through the issue of doing things manually which is taking a lot of valueable time and is prone to errors it's high time to setup automation workflow to produce PDFs on demand.
Stop doing things manually including copying and pasting every element one by one, but setup automation workflow in PDFOutput to generate professional branded shipping documents PDFs that complies with industry standards and give you the best automated solution.
It takes less than 10 minutes to setup everything for once and you can enjoy the automation to run forever.
If you have any more questions, reach out to me at notionformyuse@gmail.com.
FAQ's on PDFOutput
Here's some commonly asked questions about PDFOutput:
Yes, you can produce batch PDFs at once for the Shipping Documents. Click on the 3-dots icon next to the active automation and you will find an option Batch PDFs, click that it will produce PDFs in batches of 100 PDFs in one time for your use case.
PDFOutput can dynamically handle the properties from linked database, it doesn't matter the record count used be it as low as 10 records or as high as 50 records it can be dynamically generated from the linked Shipping Items table automatically depending upon the linked database used.
But, do make sure to use the right syntax formatting for this which would be useful for generating the linked items properly.
Simply add the field from the corresponding linked database onto the template source, it will automatically pull the respective field and replace the placeholder in the document.
Make sure to connect all the databases used, i.e. Primary Database (Shipping Details Table) and other connected databases such as (Shipping Items Database).
Yes, when you mark a record as "Ready to Generate" inside the Shipping Documents table, it automatically generates the PDF for you.
It will change the status to Processing → Completed to generate the PDF right into the Notion Database.
Yes, you can add a media field in the Shipping Details Table and map the same placeholder onto the Template Source.
It will convert the placeholder into an image and generate the PDF.
Make sure that the image file added is a PNG or JPG file which is not a huge file when it comes to the size of the file.
You can adjust the dimensions of the file using the following placeholder format, eg: \{\{Field_Name\}\}_\{\{200*200\}\}