Exporting your budget and/or actuals as a PDF in Saturation allows you to create professional and presentable documents for sharing with clients or team members. This guide will walk you through the process of building a customized report.
Note: The PDF Builder is Saturation's newest export experience with enhanced customization options. The previous export experience is still available as a legacy option but will be deprecated in the near future. We recommend copying your PDF notes from the legacy version into the new builder templates. For details on the legacy PDF export, see Exporting Your Budget as a PDF in Saturation (Legacy).
Please note that only paid subscriptions allow exporting of your budget.
Overview
The PDF Builder gives you full control over the layout and design of your exported reports. Unlike the legacy PDF export, the PDF Builder lets you visually design your report using a grid-based, drag-and-drop interface with customizable content blocks, dynamic data variables, and workspace-wide templates.
Step 1: Accessing the PDF Builder
On your project budget view, click on the Export button and select PDF to open up the builder.
Step 2: Use Predefined Templates or Create Your Own
By default, you’ll start off using a predefined template that you can customize. Saturation also offers several different template options, all accessible via the New Template flow in the header:
Pre-built public templates — Ready-made templates such as the AICP Bid Form and Commercial Cost Summary Report. These templates give you a professional starting point.
Blank template — Start from scratch and custom-build your report layout from the ground up.
Workspace templates — If you or a team member has previously saved a layout as a workspace template, you can select it here. Workspace templates are accessible across all of your projects.
Step 3: Design Your Layout with Blocks
The PDF Builder uses a grid-based layout where you design your report by dragging and dropping blocks from the left-hand panel onto the page. You can rearrange blocks freely on the grid to get the exact layout you need.
Available blocks:
Text — Add custom headings, descriptions, or any free-form text
Image — Insert logos, photos, or other images
Budget Topsheet — Display your budget summary/top sheet
Budget Accounts — Show detailed budget account line items
Actuals — Include your actuals data
Split Actuals — Display itemized breakdown of your actuals
Actual Attachments — Attach receipts, invoices, and other documents from your project directly into the PDF.
Tags — Show project tags totals
Project Notes — Include notes from your project
Signature — Add a signature line
Each block has its own set of customization options, including font size and color, margins, and sort order (where applicable). These customizations allow you to match your company's branding or create visually distinct sections within your report. You can also hide, show, and reorder table columns within budget and actuals blocks.
Step 4: Use Variables for Dynamic Data
The PDF Builder supports variables that automatically populate with the correct data from your project. To insert a variable, type / (forward slash) within a text block to open the variable menu.
For example:
/Company Name will insert your production company name.
/Project Name will insert your project title.
/Current Date will insert today's date.
Variables ensure your reports always display the most up-to-date information without manual entry.
Step 5: Adding Pages
Additional pages can be added to your report by clicking on the + icon above or below the page you’re on. A new page will be inserted accordingly.
Step 6: Page Settings
You can choose the page layout, size, default font and add a watermark to your pages by clicking the Page Settings button on the top right.
Step 7: Option to save as a Workspace Template
Once you've designed a layout you're happy with, click Save as Workspace Template in the top-right corner. Workspace templates are shared across all projects in your workspace, so your team can reuse the same layout without rebuilding it each time.
Step 8: Export Your PDF
When your layout is complete, click the Export button in the top-right corner to generate and download your PDF.