How to share PDFs with a client

A finished report, a proposal, a style guide or an audit usually reaches the client as a PDF. The first copy goes out as an attachment, the client replies with a few questions, a corrected version follows, and a week later someone on their side forwards the original to a colleague who reads the wrong numbers.

This page covers the usual ways of sending PDFs to clients, where each one tends to cause friction, and how to send a PDF from Fabric as a link you control: one the client can read, download if you allow it, comment on when you want their input, and that keeps pointing at the current version.

How people usually send PDFs to clients

Email attachments are the default. They need no setup and the client already knows how to open them. The trouble comes with revisions: every change means a new attachment, filenames like proposal_v4_final_revised.pdf start circulating, and there’s no way to pull back a version that was sent with a mistake in it. Larger PDFs with high-resolution images can also run into attachment size limits.

A link from Google Drive or Dropbox solves the size problem and lets you replace the file. People who use it for client work often describe a different strain: the client sees a folder view next to working files, sharing settings get adjusted file by file, and a link set to anyone with access stays open long after the project ends.

Feedback is the other gap. Clients tend to reply with notes like “page 7, second paragraph, the date is wrong”, which then has to be matched up by hand with the right page in the right version.

Step 1: Put the client’s PDFs in their own space

Create a space for the client and add their PDFs to it. Drag the files in, paste them, or click Upload a file; uploading handles large numbers of files at once, so a whole project folder can come across in one go. If you work from Finder or File Explorer, the Fabric desktop app mounts Fabric as a drive, and PDFs can be moved into the client’s space like any other folder.

Keeping each client in a separate space matters later. When you share the space, the client sees only that space and nothing else in your workspace. How to give a client access to only their files walks through that setup on its own.

Step 2: Decide whether the client should view or comment

Fabric has two ways of sending something out, and they suit different moments in a project. Publishing creates a link for delivery: the client can view the PDF and download it if you allow it, and there are no comments. Sharing is for collaboration: you choose whether the client is a viewer, commenter or editor, and external people can open a shared link without signing up.

For a draft you want feedback on, share it with commenter permission. The client can highlight a sentence in the PDF and attach a comment to it, so a note about the wrong date sits on the date itself. Each comment can be marked completed once you’ve dealt with it, which turns a round of feedback into a list you can work through. The roles and permissions page explains what each role can do.

Step 3: Publish the final PDF as a link

When the PDF is ready to deliver, click Share to open the share modal, open the Publish tab, and click Create link. Give the link a name, then choose whether to collect engagement analytics, whether to allow indexing by search engines, whether to allow visitors to copy it to their Fabric, and whether to allow downloads. Downloads are available on every plan. Copy the link and send it.

For client work, most people turn search engine indexing off and downloads on, so the client can keep a copy for their records. How to stop search engines indexing a shared file explains that setting in more detail. If the delivery is several PDFs, publish the folder instead; a folder publishes as a web page with every file on it.

Contracts, financials and anything else sensitive can sit behind a password. Right-click the PDF or its folder (or open it and use the three-dot menu), choose Add password protection, and enter a password. There’s no password reset, so keep it in a password manager. Anyone opening the item has to enter it, and access lasts six hours before they’re asked again. Password protection is on the Pro and Team plans.

Step 4: Update the PDF and check whether it was opened

If you find a mistake after sending, fix the source in Fabric. Editing the source updates the published version, so the link you already sent shows the corrected file and the client doesn’t have to hunt for a newer attachment.

With engagement analytics turned on, each published link gets its own chart of traffic over time, along with visit dates and the location and device of each visitor. Analytics don’t name the visitor, so if several people at the client need the PDF, create a separate link for each person (“Priya, finance”, “Tom, legal”) and compare them. Link analytics are on the Pro and Team plans, and sending a different tracking link to each recipient has more on that approach.

Frequently asked questions

Does my client need a Fabric account to open the PDF?

No. External people can open shared links without signing up, and a published link opens in the browser like any web page.

Can the client download the PDF?

Yes, if you turn on allow downloads when you create the published link. That option is available on every plan, including free.

Can a client comment on a PDF I send them?

Yes, through a shared link with commenter permission. They can highlight text and add a comment, and you can mark each comment completed. Published links are view and download only, so they don’t take comments.

How do I password protect a PDF before sending it?

Right-click the PDF, choose Add password protection, and enter a password. This needs a Pro or Team plan, and there’s no reset, so save the password somewhere safe.

Can I tell if my client opened the PDF?

With analytics turned on, you see visits, dates, location and device for each published link. To know which person opened it, give each person their own named link.

What happens if I need to change the PDF after sending the link?

Edit the source in Fabric and the published version updates, so the same link shows the new file.

Can I send several PDFs in one link?

Yes. Put them in a folder and publish the folder. It appears as a web page with each PDF on it.

Can I share PDFs with clients on the free plan?

Publishing, including the download option, is on the free plan. Password protection and link analytics need Pro or Team; the pricing page lists what each plan includes.