InDesign

Merge records

After you format the target document and insert fields from the data source file, you’re ready to officially merge the information from the data source with the target document. When you merge, InDesign creates a new document based on the target document, and replaces the fields in the target document with the appropriate information from the data source file.

When you merge a document that includes data field placeholders on master pages, those master page items will be copied into the master pages in the newly generated document. If placeholders appear on a master page, any blank master page is ignored during the merge.

Merge single or multiple records

  1. With the target document open, choose Create Merged Document from the Data Merge panel menu, or click the Create Merged Document button .
  2. On the Records tab, for Records To Merge, select All Records to merge all the records in the data source file, select Single Record to merge a specific record, or specify a Range of records to merge.
  3. For Records Per Document Page, do one of the following:

    • Choose Single Record so that each record starts at the top of the next page.

    • Choose Multiple Records to create more than one record per page. (For example, to print mailing labels.)

      You cannot merge multiple records if the data fields appear on a document page in a document with multiple pages, or if data fields appear on multiple master pages.

  4. Select Generate Overset Text Report With Document Creation to automatically open a report that tracks overset conditions created during the merge of the data into the InDesign document. (See Overset text reports.)
  5. Select Alert When Images Are Missing to display a missing link alert when one or more images are not available.
  6. If you selected Multiple Records on the Records tab, click the Multiple Record Layout tab, and specify the following:

    • For Margins, type values to specify the distance between margin guides and each edge of the page.

    • For Layout Of Records, select either Rows First or Columns First, and then specify the spacing between the columns and rows.

  7. If you selected Multiple Records, select Preview Multiple Record Layout to review changes made in the Create Merge Records dialog box. You can select the Next/Previous and First/Last page buttons to navigate the records.
  8. Click the Options tab and specify the placement options. (See Content placement options.)
  9. When you’re finished, click OK.

If the data source file points to any unsupported file formats or images that are not available, you may need to correct the data source file to point to a supported file, correct the path to any missing file, or simply move the file to the correct folder so that InDesign can find it and place it.

Limitations for merging multiple records

You can choose Multiple Records to create more than one record per page. For example, if you are printing mailing labels, you'll want to print more than one label per page. The way the records will appear in the merged publication depends mainly on the layout options. Here is a list of limitations you might encounter when using the Multiple Records option:

  • You cannot merge multiple records if the data fields appear on a document page in a document with multiple pages, or if data fields appear on multiple master pages.

  • The Data Merge allows for only one size of place holder.

  • Deleting a record in the merged publication will not reflow the remaining records into the empty placeholder.