Combine PDF Files Like a Pro: A Step-by-Step Guide

Table of Contents

First of all, let’s understand what PDF means

PDF (Portable Document Format) is a file format used to present and exchange documents reliably, independent of software, hardware, or operating system. The files are commonly used for documents such as user manuals, eBooks, application forms, and scanned documents, among many others. PDF files are widely used because they can preserve the original formatting of a document, making them easy to read and print on any device. This type of files also support various features such as text search, digital signatures, and annotations.

PDFs, on the other hand, can be opened on any device, using any PDF viewer. This makes them an ideal format for sharing documents, as you don’t have to worry about compatibility issues. However, sometimes you may need to combine multiple PDF files into a single document. This could be for a variety of reasons, such as organizing a collection of documents, or combining multiple pages into a single document for easier sharing or printing. Regardless of your reason for wanting to combine PDF files, there are a number of tools and methods available to help you do so, both on Mac and PC.

The PDF format is upheld by the International Organization for Standardization, allowing for the inclusion of form fields, audio, video, links, and buttons. The files can be read on Windows or Mac using the free Acrobat Reader DC software, and according to Adobe, they can be signed electronically.

How to combine PDF files like a PRO

Knowing how to combine PDF files can be useful for students, professionals, and anyone who needs to manage multiple PDF documents. This article will demonstrate several methods for combining PDF files on both Mac and PC.

Fortunately, combining PDF files is a simple process that you can do on both Mac and PC. In this article, we’ll show you 5 easy steps to combine PDF files like a pro, whether you’re using a Mac or a PC.

How to combine PDF files on Mac

To combine PDF files on a Mac, you can use the Preview app that comes pre-installed on all Mac computers. Here’s how:

Open the Preview app on your Mac.
Click on the “File” menu at the top of the screen and select “Open.”
Select the first PDF file you want to combine and click “Open.”
Repeat this process to open any additional PDF files you want to combine.
Once all of the PDF files are open in Preview, go back to the “File” menu and select “Print.”
In the print window, make sure that “Preview” is selected as the printer.
In the bottom left corner of the print window, click on the “PDF” button and select “Save as PDF.”
Enter a name for the combined PDF file and select a location to save it.
Click “Save” to combine the PDF files and create a new PDF document.

How to combine PDF files on a PC

To combine PDF files on a PC, you can use the built-in PDF viewer in Windows 10. Here’s how:

Open the PDF viewer on your PC.
Click on the “File” menu at the top of the screen and select “Open.”
Select the first PDF file you want to combine and click “Open.”
Repeat this process to open any additional PDF files you want to combine.
Once all of the PDF files are open in the PDF viewer, go back to the “File” menu and select “Print.”
In the print window, make sure that “Microsoft Print to PDF” is selected as the printer.
In the “Name” field, enter a name for the combined PDF file and select a location to save it.
Click “Print” to combine the PDF files and create a new PDF document.

Bonus Methods for PC

Use a PDF editor: You can use a PDF editor like Adobe Acrobat, Nitro Pro, or Foxit PhantomPDF to open each PDF file separately and then use the editor’s “Combine Files” or “Merge PDFs” feature to combine the files into a single PDF document.

Use a free online PDF merger: There are many free online PDF merger tools available that allow you to upload your PDF files and combine them into a single PDF document. To use one of these tools, simply upload your PDF files to the website, arrange them in the order you want them to appear in the final document, and then download the combined PDF file.

Some popular options include PDF Merge, PDF Joiner, and SmallPDF. These online tools allow you to upload your PDF files and merge them into a single document without having to download and install any software. Additionally, many of these online tools are free to use, making them a convenient and cost-effective option for combining PDFs.

Use the command line: If you’re comfortable using the command line, you can combine PDF files using the command-line tool called “Ghostscript“. To do this, you’ll need to download Ghostscript and then use the “gs” command to merge the PDF files. Here’s an example of how to use Ghostscript to combine PDF files:

gs -dBATCH -dNOPAUSE -q -sDEVICE=pdfwrite -sOutputFile=output.pdf input1.pdf input2.pdf input3.pdf

This command will combine the PDF files “input1.pdf”, “input2.pdf”, and “input3.pdf” into a single file called “output.pdf”. You can add more input files by including them in the command, separated by spaces.

That’s all there is to it! With these simple steps, you can easily combine PDF files like a pro.