fyllyoFill a PDF form without uploading your documents
Passports, tax returns and client files are the documents people least want to send to a website. You can still fill a PDF form from them with AI, as long as the filling runs on your own computer.
Can you fill a PDF form without uploading your documents?
Yes, on a Mac. Fyllyo reads your documents and fills the PDF form on the Mac itself: the AI model runs on the device, and so does the text recognition. Your documents and the filled PDF never leave the Mac.
Most AI form fillers work differently. They run on a server, so your documents have to be sent there first. That is what “uploading” means here.
What does “uploading” mean with online fillers and chat AI?
With an online AI form filler or a chat AI tool, the AI runs on the provider’s servers. To read your pay stub or passport, the tool needs a copy of it on those servers. So you upload the file, or paste its text, before anything is filled.
What happens to that copy next depends on the service. It may be stored for a while, passed to another AI provider, or kept with your account. Some services explain this clearly; check each one’s privacy page (there is a checklist below).
None of this makes online tools bad. It means the privacy question is about where the AI runs, not about how the website looks or whether it says “secure”.
What runs on your Mac when Fyllyo fills a form?
AI form filling in Fyllyo is 100% local. Every step that touches your documents happens on the Mac.
| Step | Where it happens |
|---|---|
| Reading your files | On the Mac. PDFs, scans, JPG and PNG photos, Word files and typed notes are read with Apple’s own text recognition. |
| Password-protected PDFs | On the Mac. Fyllyo asks for the password and unlocks a copy locally. |
| Finding the facts and filling the fields | On the Mac. The AI model runs on the Mac itself, not on a server. |
| Calculations, formats and the form’s rules | On the Mac. Formulas written and tested for the form do this part. |
| Review, edits and the filled PDF | On the Mac. Documents, filled PDFs and review files are saved locally and never sent anywhere. |
No network request Fyllyo makes includes your documents’ content. The app does still go online for other things, such as updates and signing in. Those requests don’t include your documents. The privacy page lists each one.
Local processing doesn’t replace device security. Protect your Mac, and think about where your backup or sync tools send the folders that hold client files. Saved client profiles are plain files on the Mac.
Is anything ever sent? The one exception
Yes, once per form, when you set up a form of your own. Fyllyo has ready-made forms that need no setup. For any other fillable PDF, setup sends the blank form, its instructions and your optional note to Fyllyo Cloud, or to your own OpenAI or Anthropic key if you prefer.
Setup never sees client data. A test in Fyllyo’s code checks that no client value can appear in what setup sends. Keep personal details out of the blank form and your note too.
After setup, the form is filled on your Mac like any other, with each new set of documents. See how setting up your own form works.
Can you fill a PDF from your documents offline?
Yes. Fyllyo fills forms with no internet connection once the AI model and the form are set up. The model is about 5 GB, plus about 1 GB for reading scans and photos. It downloads when your free trial or licence starts.
Once the model and the form are on your Mac, filling needs no connection. Setting up a form of your own is the one step that has to be online. After that, it fills offline too.
What to check in any form filler’s privacy page
Whichever tool you consider, these questions show where your documents go. A clear answer to each is a good sign.
- Where does the AI run? On your device, or on the company’s servers?
- Who else gets the files? Is another AI provider involved, and under which terms?
- How long are files kept? Can you delete them, and does deleting remove every copy?
- Are documents used to train models? Is that on by default?
- What does “local” or “offline” cover? The AI step, or only the editor around it?
- What is sent when you add a new form? The blank form only, or sample documents too?
- Does it work with Wi-Fi off? Try it, with test documents.
Try local form filling on your Mac
Fyllyo runs on Apple silicon Macs (M1 or later) with macOS 13 or later; 16 GB of memory is recommended for AI filling. AI form filling is $99 once, with a free 5-day trial, and every other PDF tool is free.
See how Fyllyo fills a form from several documents, or read what the AI form filler does.