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Understand Document Builder and Document Generation in Salesforce
Salesforce offers multiple ways to generate documents from data, each suited for different use cases and product areas. Understanding these capabilities is crucial for selecting the right tool for your specific business needs. The two primary capabilities are Document Builder (Doc Builder) and Document Generation (DocGen).
Required Editions
| Available in: Lightning Experience |
| Available in: Professional, Enterprise, Unlimited, and Developer Editions |
Document Builder
Document Builder is a no-code, visual tool designed for simple and reusable document creation. It works within the Salesforce UI and is ideal for creating consistent, branded documents directly from UI or Apex. Its template creation utilizes a Lightning App Builder framework, offering an easy-to-use, WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) builder. Document Builder uses a point-and-click design experience and supports Salesforce objects like Quotes in Revenue Cloud and Service Reports or Work Orders in Field Service.
Use document builder when you need to:
- Auto-generate quote PDFs or order forms
- Preview and attach documents to records
- Generate documents on mobile or in offline environments, such as those used in Field Service scenarios.
- Provides offline mobile app access and signature capabilities for field agents in Field Service scenarios.
Key Strengths: Excels in supporting document generation in mobile or offline environments, offers a consistent Lightning User Experience (UX), and provides native, scalable PDF generation.
Document Generation (DocGen)
Salesforce Document Generation is offered in both Revenue Cloud and Industry Clouds. Both use Microsoft Word templates and offer more advanced functionality than Document Builder. DocGen is designed for comprehensive and complex document workflows, particularly where redlining quotes, contracts, or other documents is required. DocGen's template design leverages a Word-based editor, allowing for the creation of complex templates with support for data tokens, conditional logic, and tabulation.
Use document generation when you need to:
- Generate documents such as contracts, quotes, order forms, proposals, reports with dynamic layouts
- Insert conditional sections or complex logic into your documents
- Merge data from multiple standard or custom objects
- Use Word formatting or scripting to control layout and tokens
Salesforce Document Generation is designed for teams that require control over formatting and document workflows, such as Legal, Sales Ops, or Revenue teams.
Key Strengths: Offers high layout flexibility with Word formatting, robust conditional logic via metadata or scripting, and supports data merge from any Salesforce objects. It provides deeper functionality and flexibility because text can be modified and stylized in any manner within Word.
- Compare Document Builder, Salesforce Document Generation, and Omnistudio Document Generation
Both Document Builder and Salesforce Document Generation let you create documents by combining Salesforce data with Microsoft Word templates. While both support PDF and DOCX output, they differ in how templates are built, which objects they support, and the complexity of use cases they handle. Use Document Builder when you need a simple, mobile-friendly way to generate documents. Choose Document Generation when your needs involve detailed formatting, complex logic, or advanced workflows.
Compare Document Builder, Salesforce Document Generation, and Omnistudio Document Generation
Both Document Builder and Salesforce Document Generation let you create documents by combining Salesforce data with Microsoft Word templates. While both support PDF and DOCX output, they differ in how templates are built, which objects they support, and the complexity of use cases they handle. Use Document Builder when you need a simple, mobile-friendly way to generate documents. Choose Document Generation when your needs involve detailed formatting, complex logic, or advanced workflows.
Required Editions
| Available in: Lightning Experience |
| Available in: Professional, Enterprise, Unlimited, and Developer Editions |
Use this table to compare the features and capabilities of Salesforce document generation tools.
Comparison Table
| Feature | Document Builder | Salesforce Document Generation | Omnistudio Document Generation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary Use Cases | Quotes, service reports, mobile-friendly forms | Contract lifecycle documents, Quotes, Order forms, and business proposals | Contract lifecycle documents, Quotes, redlining, Order forms, business proposals |
| Availability | Revenue Cloud and Field Services | Industries, Salesforce Contracts, Revenue Cloud Advanced, and Revenue Cloud Billing SKUs, CPQ+, Sales, and Service Cloud SKUs without Omnistudio package | Industries, Salesforce Contracts, Revenue Cloud Advanced, and Revenue Cloud Billing SKUs, , CPQ+, SKUs with Omnistudio package and Omnistudio licenses enabled |
| Template Source | Templates are built using the Lightning App Builder interface. | Microsoft Word templates created and managed within Salesforce. Supports reusable templates and use of tokens for dynamic content rendering. | Microsoft Word templates created and managed within Salesforce. Supports reusable templates and use of tokens for dynamic content rendering. |
| Template Design Tool | Visual drag-and-drop designer in the Salesforce UI | Microsoft Word templates and template designer | Microsoft Word templates and template designer |
| Layout Control | Moderate layout control using UI-based sections, tables, and components | High layout flexibility with Word formatting | High layout flexibility with Word formatting |
| Output Formats | PDF and DOCX | PDF, DOCX, and PPTX | PDF, DOCX, and PPTX |
| Preview | Supports previewing the document before saving or sending. | Supports document preview and merge multiple documents. | Supports document preview and merge multiple documents. |
| Salesforce Object Support | Supports a limited set of standard objects like Quote, Service Appointment, and Work Order | Supports all standard and custom Salesforce objects | Supports all objects and external data through Omnistudio DataRaptors and Integration Procedures |
| Offline and Mobile Support | Supported, with built-in signature capabilities | Not supported | Not supported |
| Electronic Signature Integration | Mobile-only signature support (stylus to image); ideal for quick in-field use | Integration with DocuSign APIs for e-signature | Integration with DocuSign APIs for e-signature |
| Processing Capabilities | Synchronous processing only (no batch support) | Supports both synchronous and asynchronous (batch) processing | Supports both synchronous and asynchronous (batch) processing |
| Licensing and Access | Available as part of Revenue Cloud Growth, Revenue Cloud Advanced, and Field Service SKUs. | Licenses are included with Industries SKUs, Revenue Cloud Advanced, Revenue Cloud Billing SKUs, and Revenue Events Starter Pack for Sales and Service Cloud | Licenses are included with Industries SKUs, Revenue Cloud Advanced, and Revenue Cloud Billing SKUs |
| Digital Experience Users | Not supported for Quotes | Customer Community User, Customer Community Plus User, and Partner Community User | Customer Community User, Customer Community Plus User, and Partner Community User |
