Is there a charge for a batch?

No. Creating, downloading, and Gmail delivery are free; there is no paid tier.

Who maintains Certly?

Certly is built by Luro. It pairs a certificate workspace with local PDF generation.

Where is my data stored?

Templates, imported rows, and PDFs live in this browser. PDF generation is local. Public Sheets import passes through the API, as do messages and PDF attachments sent with Gmail.

Can I use Certly for commercial events?

Yes. Use your own design and recipient list for a commercial event, a community project, or a class.

What affects generation speed?

Generation speed depends on your device, template size, and recipient list. For a larger project, organize recipients into manageable batches and repeat the workflow.

Where do email addresses go?

Addresses are part of your local batch. When you choose Gmail delivery, each address, message, and attachment passes through the API to Google.

How do I send certificates via email?

Connect Google from the email workspace, review your recipients and message, then start sending. Google grants send-only Gmail access; you do not enter a Google password in Certly.

Is there a charge for a batch?

No. Creating, downloading, and Gmail delivery are free; there is no paid tier.

Who maintains Certly?

Certly is built by Luro. It pairs a certificate workspace with local PDF generation.

Where is my data stored?

Templates, imported rows, and PDFs live in this browser. PDF generation is local. Public Sheets import passes through the API, as do messages and PDF attachments sent with Gmail.

Can I use Certly for commercial events?

Yes. Use your own design and recipient list for a commercial event, a community project, or a class.

What affects generation speed?

Generation speed depends on your device, template size, and recipient list. For a larger project, organize recipients into manageable batches and repeat the workflow.

Where do email addresses go?

Addresses are part of your local batch. When you choose Gmail delivery, each address, message, and attachment passes through the API to Google.

How do I send certificates via email?

Connect Google from the email workspace, review your recipients and message, then start sending. Google grants send-only Gmail access; you do not enter a Google password in Certly.

About Certly

Certly turns a finished design into something personal for every recipient. It makes certificate PDFs in your browser, with Gmail delivery when you need it.

Keep the design decisions with you and let the tool do the repetition. No account is needed to create or download a batch.

01 / The approach

Less repetition. More intention.

A certificate has two kinds of detail: the design that stays the same, and the information that belongs to one person.

Certly keeps those separate. Your image holds the layout. Your spreadsheet supplies the names, dates, and roles.

Place the changing details once, check a few examples, and make the batch.

Organize a larger recipient list into manageable groups and reuse the same design for each batch.

Download when you want files. Connect Gmail when you want an individual email for each recipient.

participants.csv

name,email,event
Alex Morgan,alex@example.com,Design workshop
Jordan Lee,jordan@example.com,Design workshop

One shared layout

Template + Alex Morgan → Alex's PDF
Template + Jordan Lee → Jordan's PDF
Same fields. Different details.

Choose the handoff

Download → A ZIP of finished PDFs
Gmail → A PDF attached for each recipient
No Google password entered in Certly.

A few choices keep Certly focused.

Make PDFs here

Certificate rendering uses your device, not a remote processing service.

Runs locally

Templates, rows, and PDFs are saved in this browser so you can return to the batch.

Keep your own design

Use a PNG or JPG from the editor you already like. Certly adds the changing details.

An account only for sending

Create and download without signing up. Connect Google only for Gmail delivery.

Where the work happens.

Generation stays on your device. Sheets import and Gmail sending use the API. Here are the boundaries.

PDF generation runs in your browser

A Web Worker uses pdf-lib to put your rows onto your image. The template and names do not need to be uploaded for rendering.

Participant rows live in IndexedDB on your device

Browser storage holds the batch between visits. Clearing it removes that local copy; there is no cloud backup to restore.

The API handles import and delivery

The Flask API reads public Sheets on import, handles Google OAuth, and relays each email and PDF to Gmail. It does not keep a hosted roster or certificate library. Send-only Gmail access does not permit reading your inbox.

Analytics deliberately exclude participant data

Google Tag Manager records product events such as which step of the wizard was reached. Participant names, email addresses and template files are never included in an analytics payload.

The full technical detail, including what Google receives during OAuth, is written up in the privacy policy. If you would rather read code than prose, the repository is the authoritative answer.

Who is Certly for?

For the person with a design ready and a list of people to recognize.

A good fit

Hackathon and tech-fest organizers issuing winner and participation batches
College clubs and student societies with no software budget
Workshop, bootcamp and webinar hosts collecting sign-ups via Google Forms
NGOs and non-profits running training or volunteer programmes
Teams who want local PDF generation from a CSV
Anyone who already has a certificate design and just needs the merge step

Not a good fit

Credentials needing a public verification portal or QR-scannable registry — see the Certifier comparison
Enterprise LMS or HR system integration through an API
Editing a PDF template directly, since templates are PNG or JPG images
Teams needing shared cloud sessions, because sessions are device-local
Organisations requiring a vendor contract, SLA or paid support line

Certly is a file-making tool, not a verification service. Choose a hosted credential platform if you need those capabilities.

About the way Certly works.

Cost, storage, and delivery, without the fine print.

Is there a charge for a batch?: No. Creating, downloading, and Gmail delivery are free; there is no paid tier.
Who maintains Certly?: Certly is built by Luro. It pairs a certificate workspace with local PDF generation.
Where is my data stored?: Templates, imported rows, and PDFs live in this browser. PDF generation is local. Public Sheets import passes through the API, as do messages and PDF attachments sent with Gmail.
Can I use Certly for commercial events?: Yes. Use your own design and recipient list for a commercial event, a community project, or a class.
What affects generation speed?: Generation speed depends on your device, template size, and recipient list. For a larger project, organize recipients into manageable batches and repeat the workflow.
Where do email addresses go?: Addresses are part of your local batch. When you choose Gmail delivery, each address, message, and attachment passes through the API to Google.
How do I send certificates via email?: Connect Google from the email workspace, review your recipients and message, then start sending. Google grants send-only Gmail access; you do not enter a Google password in Certly.

One design, carefully placed.
Every recipient, individually recognized.

The idea behind Certly

Related workflows and answers from the rest of the site.