An Autocrat alternative that imports your jobs
Autocrat is a popular free add-on for merging Google Sheets and Forms into Docs and PDFs. If your jobs have stalled or failed, TrustyMerge does the same job with the same <<tags>> and can import your existing Autocrat jobs.
Why people look for a plan B
Autocrat runs inside one Apps Script project shared by all of its users. In February 2026 that project hit Google's limit ("Too many executions running simultaneously for this Apps Script project") and merges failed for users across the board for several days. In June 2026 a forced runtime migration was followed by re-authorization prompts and Docs API quota errors. Autocrat's makers have worked through these issues; if it works well for you, there is no need to switch.
How TrustyMerge differs
| Autocrat | TrustyMerge | |
|---|---|---|
| Where merges run | A shared Apps Script project | A server-side queue that paces calls per user and retries temporary errors for up to 24 hours |
| Tags | <<Column>> | The same <<Column>> tags, plus <<TODAY>> and <<NOW>> |
| Existing jobs | n/a | Import from the sheet; rows already merged are marked done and not emailed again |
| Drive access | All Drive files (per its listed scopes) | Only files you pick (drive.file) |
| Price | Free | Free for 50 documents/month; Pro $5/month or $39/year; School/Domain $249/year |
| Status | Google Group | Public status page and email support |
Switching in three steps
- Open the sheet with your Autocrat job and start TrustyMerge.
- Choose Import Autocrat job, check the template, folder and tags, and save.
- Turn off the Autocrat job's triggers so each row is merged once.
Questions before switching? Read the FAQ or email [email protected]. We are the makers of TrustyMerge, so weigh this page accordingly.