Why is my PDF file size so big?

Hi JotForm,

I've noted that the file size of the PDF of the submission has been too large to attach to the email. I have already compressed all the images on the PDF but it's still about 7mb in file size and I'm unsure why. The submission PDF from the form that I had cloned this form from was small enough to be attached in the email and it's the same content. Why is this PDF file size so big?

Hi Rachel,

Thanks for reaching out to us for help. I'm an AI assistant. I'll do my best to help you until someone from the support team is available.

The large PDF file size you're experiencing, even after compressing images, can be due to several factors including embedded elements or the way the PDF is generated. Jotform has a file attachment limit of 5MB for emails, which might be why your 7MB PDF cannot be attached.

As a workaround, instead of attaching the PDF directly to the email, you can include a download link to the PDF submission in your email notifications. This way, recipients can download the PDF without size restrictions.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Go to the Settings tab in your Form Builder.
2. Select the Emails tab from the left menu.
3. Edit your notification or autoresponder email by clicking the pencil icon.
4. Click in the email content where you want to add the PDF link.
5. Click the Form Fields button in the formatting toolbar and select PDF Link to add the {pdf-link} tag.
6. Save the changes.

This will replace the tag with an actual download link in the email you send.

Give it a try and let us know how it goes.

Hi Rachel,

We're unable to access the link you shared, since it requires access to your account. Keep in mind that, the file size of the PDF depends on how large the content it is. Considering you're also including images, that could explain why it reaches around 7MB. But since you mentioned you have a PDF on another form of the same content, and it gets attached properly on email, you may try creating a new PDF document and attach that new PDF to the notification email instead.

1. In PDF Editor page, click on the +New PDF.

2. In the Modal box, click on Use Default Layout. That's it, you can proceed modifying the content to how you see it fit.

After creating a new PDF document, you simply need to make sure that PDF is selected in the notification email of your form.

Also, aside from the workaround our Support AI Agent suggested, where you can include the PDF as link, if you want to accept larger files than 5MB, you may consider setting up a Custom SMTP sender, so the attachment limit is based on your email service provider. Let me walk you through it:

1. Go to the Settings page while logged in to your Jotform account and click on Add Sender Email in the Sender Emails section.

2. In the window that opens, select Custom and click on the Continue button.

3. Enter your email provider's details, click on Send Test Email to check if it’s set up correctly, and then click on Save.

Now you should select your custom SMTP in your email properties under email settings in Form Builder, and if you’re using Workflow Builder, do the same there. Check below to see how it looks in Form Builder:

And here’s how it looks in Workflow Builder:

Give it a try and let us know if you need any help.