How to Convert Word to PDF (Free)

To convert a Word document to PDF, either save it as a PDF from Word itself (File, then Save As or Export, then PDF), or upload it to Word to PDF and download the result a few seconds later. Both keep your text, tables, images and page layout. The online converter also handles DOC, ODT and RTF files, and works on any device without Word installed. It's free for documents up to 25 MB.

Why send a PDF instead of a Word file

A Word file looks different depending on who opens it: a different version of Word, a phone app, Google Docs or a missing font can all shift line breaks, push a table onto the next page or swap your font. A PDF looks the same everywhere. That's why job portals ask for CVs as PDFs, colleges want assignments as PDFs, and invoices and letters are usually sent that way. A PDF is also harder to edit by accident.

Option 1: Save as PDF from your word processor

If you have the document open in an editor, the built-in option is quick and free:

• Microsoft Word (Windows): File, then Save As, choose PDF as the file type, and Save. The Options button lets you choose a page range. Choosing "Minimum size (publishing online)" makes a smaller file.
• Microsoft Word (Mac): File, then Save As (or Export), and choose PDF as the format.
• Google Docs: File, then Download, then PDF Document.
• LibreOffice Writer: File, then Export As, then Export as PDF.
• Pages on Mac: File, then Export To, then PDF.

Option 2: Convert online with Word to PDF

Use this when you don't have Word on the device you're using, such as a phone, a shared computer or a Chromebook, or when you've received a DOC, ODT or RTF file you can't open.

1. Open Word to PDF. It's free, and you don't need an account.
2. Click Choose a file and pick your document. DOCX, DOC, ODT and RTF files up to 50 MB work.
3. Click Start. Most documents take a few seconds.
4. Click Download result to save your PDF. It's available for 1 hour.

There are no settings to fiddle with. Every page of the document is converted, with its margins, headers and footers, tables and images as laid out in the file.

Getting a clean result

A few minutes of tidying in the original document saves a reprint later:

• Accept or reject tracked changes and delete comments you don't want the reader to see, then save the document before converting.
• Check page breaks. Headings stranded at the bottom of a page, or a table split awkwardly, look the same in the PDF. Fix them in the document first.
• Unusual fonts. Most documents convert faithfully, but if your document uses a rare or custom font that isn't available to the converter, a similar font may be used instead, which can shift line breaks. For a document like that, saving as PDF from Word on the computer where the font is installed is the safer route. Word can also embed fonts in the document (in Word's options, under Save), which can help other programs show them.
• Password-protected documents can't be converted. Remove the password in Word, save, and try again.
• Name the file well, for example Ananya-Rao-CV.pdf, not Document1.pdf.

After converting

Open the PDF and scroll through every page before you send it. Then, if needed:

• Combine it with other files. For an application that wants your CV, cover letter and certificates in one PDF, join them with the free PDF merger. See how to merge PDF files.
• Add page numbers to a long document with the free PDF page numbering tool, if the original didn't have them.
• Sign it without printing using the free PDF signer. See how to sign a PDF without printing.

Those three tools are free and run on your device.

Trying Word to PDF free, and what happens to your file

Word to PDF is free for documents up to 25 MB, with no daily limit, which covers most CVs, letters and assignments. Pro takes bigger ones; see pricing.

The conversion runs on our servers, so your document is uploaded. It's deleted as soon as it's converted, and the PDF is available to download for 1 hour, then deleted too. Macros in the document are never run.

Converting spreadsheets? See converting Excel to PDF on one page.

Convert your document now

Open Word to PDF, choose your document and download a PDF that looks the same everywhere.