PDF guides
Answers to the questions that come up when you use our tools, tested on real files.
- How to merge PDFs without uploading themCombine PDF files in your browser so they never leave your device: the steps, how to check nothing is uploaded, and what a merge keeps and drops.
- Why a compressed PDF is still too largeCompression only shrinks images, and only some of them. Tested results on scans, photos, screenshots and text show why a PDF stays big, and what to do when it's still over the limit.
- What happens to signatures when you merge PDFsImage signatures survive a merge; certificate-based digital signatures don't. Why merging breaks them, and how to combine signed documents safely.
- PDF pages to images, or extracting the images inside?Turning PDF pages into JPG or PNG is not the same as pulling out the photos inside. What each gives you, with pixel sizes, and which one you need.
- How to remove a password from a PDFTake the password off a PDF you can already open, in your browser and for free. Covers open passwords, permission passwords, and what to do if you've forgotten it.
- How to password-protect a PDFAdd a password to a PDF with AES-256 encryption, free and in your browser. Plus how long the password should be, how to send it safely, and the Word and Mac options.
- How to reduce PDF file sizeMake a PDF smaller for email or an upload form: compress the images, cut pages you don't need, or split it. Tested figures, the attachment limits of Gmail and Outlook, and what not to bother with.
- How to compress a PDF on a Mac or iPhoneShrink a PDF on a Mac with Preview's Reduce File Size filter, or on an iPhone with Shortcuts or a browser. The steps, why Preview often blurs scans, and what to use when it does.
- Is iLovePDF safe? And Smallpdf? What happens to your filesWhat iLovePDF and Smallpdf say they do with the files you upload, how long they keep them, what their certifications cover, and how to check for yourself whether any PDF tool uploads your file.
- How to sign a PDFSign a PDF free in your browser, either by drawing your signature on the page or by adding a certificate-based digital signature. Which one you need, the steps for each, and what breaks a signature.
- How to flatten a PDF, and when you shouldFlattening locks form answers, comments and stamps into the page so nobody can change them. What it does, when to do it, the steps, and what it can't undo.
- How to combine phone photos into one PDFPut several phone photos into one PDF, in the order you want, free and without uploading them. Which page settings to pick, why the PDF comes out large and how to shrink it.
- How to combine a CV and supporting documents into one PDFPut a CV, cover letter and photographed certificates into one PDF for a job or visa application: when to combine them at all, the right order, and how to keep the file under the upload limit.
- How to get a PDF under an upload limit and keep the text readableUpload forms reject anything over their limit. How to hit a target size with one setting, check the text is still readable, and what to do when no setting gets there.
- How to convert HEIC photos on iPhone and WindowsiPhones save photos as HEIC, which many upload forms and Windows PCs can't open. How to stop new photos being HEIC, get JPGs when you copy them to a computer, and convert the ones you already have.
- JPG, PNG or WebP: choosing a format for product imagesWhich image format to use for product photos, logos and cut-outs on your own store and on Amazon, Etsy, eBay and Google Shopping, with the size difference and each marketplace's accepted formats.