How to convert Word to PDF for free

You have just completed the Word document that your employer asked you to write but, at the very last moment, you received an e-mail message asking you to deliver the file in PDF format. And now? Don’t worry: you don’t have to do all the work all over again! Using the appropriate resources, you can in fact convert your documents from one format to another without spending a cent.

You probably weren’t aware of it, but you have to know that there are a lot of practical tools, through which converting Word to PDF for free becomes a very feasible and very simple thing. They can be used by anyone – even by those who, a bit like you, do not consider themselves a great expert in IT and new technologies – and they can be used on all the most popular operating systems for computers and mobile devices, not to mention the fact that there are also tools that work directly online.

Then? May I know what are you still standing there? Position yourself comfortably, take a few minutes of free time just for you and identify, by continuing to read this tutorial, the solution you think maybe more congenial to your needs. I am sure that, in the end, you will be able to tell yourself very happy and satisfied with what you have learned. Let it bet?

Index

• Convert Word to PDF for free
  • Word
  • Windows 10 virtual printer
  • doPDF (Windows)
  • MacOS virtual printer
  • LibreOffice (Windows / macOS / Linux)
• How to convert Word to PDF for free online
  • PDF Candy
  • DocsPal
• App to convert Word to PDF for free
  • PDF Conversion Suite (Android)
  • easyPDF (iOS)

Convert Word to PDF for free

Are you looking for a tool that can be used directly from your computer that allows you to convert Word to PDF for free? Then read the next steps, in which, in fact, you will find those that, in my humble opinion, represent the best solutions in the category for Windows, macOS and Linux. Think that some of them are already included directly in the operating system you are using!

Word

Before recommending some free resources related to converting DOC / DOCX files to PDF, I would like to tell you that all newer versions of Word include a handy feature for saving documents to PDF. All you have to do to use it is to open the document to convert, click on the File button, at the top left, select the Export item from the left sidebar and press the Create PDF / XPS button.

To learn more, you can consult the tutorial I dedicated entirely to how to create PDF from Word.

Windows 10 virtual printer

Do you know what a virtual printer is? No? There is no problem, I’ll explain it to you right away. A virtual printer is a software tool through which it is possible to convert any printable content, therefore also Word files, into PDF format, acting in a similar way to what is necessary to print a document on paper.

In the specific case of Windows 10, the virtual printer is already included “as standard”: to take advantage of it, open the Word file you wish to act on, call up the print command (usually accessible from the File menu ), select the Microsoft Print item to PDF or  Save as PDF from the list of available printers and click on the button to proceed with printing, so as to save the converted file on your computer.

doPDF (Windows)

In Windows 8 and earlier versions of the Microsoft operating system, unfortunately there is no “stock” virtual printer available. Under the circumstances, you have to resort to a third-party tool, like doPDF, which is completely free and allows you to convert any printable file into a PDF document.

To download doPDF on your PC, go to the program’s website and click on the Download Now (Free) button twice in a row.

Once the download is complete, open the .exe file obtained and click on the Yes button in the window that opens on the desktop. Then, remove the check from the Send anonymous usage statistics box (if you want to avoid sending anonymous statistics relating to the use of the program) and press the Install Now and Close buttons. If you are also offered to install the Microsoft.NET Framework 4.6, you agree to this, as it is an indispensable component to be able to use the software correctly.

Once the setup is complete, open the Word file you want to convert to PDF using the program you usually use for the purpose in question, select the print command  (usually accessible from the File menu ), choose doPDF from the list of available printers and click on the Print button.

Let’s take a practical example: if you have opened the Word file you want to transform into PDF in WordPad, click on the File menu, at the top left, and select the Print item from the latter. In the further window that appears, choose doPDF from the list below the Select printer item and press the Print button.

Next, adjust the quality and property settings from the document, using the on-screen options; indicates the location in which to save the output file, by clicking on the Browse button, and click on the OK button, to proceed with the conversion and saving of the file.

MacOS virtual printer

Also on macOS (all versions) there is a virtual printer, thanks to which it is possible to convert Word files and any other type of printable document to PDF. You ask me how to make use of it? I’ll explain it to you right away, it’s very simple.

First of all, open the Word document in relation to which you are interested in going to act using the program you generally use for this type of file (eg Pages ), call up the Print command from the File menu (top left) and select the item Save as PDF from the drop-down menu located at the bottom of the next window.

In the new window that is shown to you, enter the name you want to assign to the file, in the Save as field, select the location on your Mac in which to store the document, using the Located in menu, customize (if you want) the document properties (title, author and subject) and click on the Save button.

If you are interested in this, I would like to point out that, always before saving the PDF file, you can apply a password protection to the latter, by clicking on the Security Options button and filling in the dedicated fields. Great, right?

LibreOffice (Windows / macOS / Linux)

As an alternative to virtual printers, you can convert Word to PDF for free using LibreOffice: an open-source productivity suite, totally free and running on Windows, macOS and Linux. It is considered by most to be the best free alternative to Microsoft’s Office package and is very easy to use.

To use it for your purpose, visit the program’s website and click on the Download version xxx button.

When the download is complete, if you are using Windows, open the .msi file obtained and, in the window you see on the desktop, click on the Run button. Next, press the Next button, select the Typical option and click the Next, Install, Yes and Finish buttons.

If you are using macOS, open the .dmg package obtained, drag the LibreOffice icon into the Applications folder, right-click on it and select the Open item from the menu that appears. Then press the Open button in response to the warning on the screen, in order to start LibreOffice going to circumvent the limitations imposed by Apple on applications from non-certified developers (operation that must be carried out only at the first start).

Then, again on macOS, go back to the LibreOffice website and press the Translated user interface button, to get the Italian translation of the suite (on Windows it is already included). Once the download is complete, close LibreOffice (by pressing the combination of keys cmd + q ), open the new .dmg package obtained, right-click on the LibreOffice Language Pack executable that is inside it, select the Open item from the displayed menu and click on the Open and Install buttons.

At this point, select the item / Applications / LibreOffice.app from the window that opens and click on the Install button. If you see a warning regarding permissions appear, press the Yes button, identify me, type the password of your user account on the computer and click the OK button twice.

Now, regardless of the operating system used, start LibreOffice via the link added to the Start menu (on Windows) or by clicking on its icon in the Launchpad (on macOS), then click on the Open file button and select the Word document to convert to PDF.

In the new window that appears, then click on the File menu at the top left, choose the Export as option and then the Export to PDF option. In the screen that is now shown to you, configure the parameters for saving the document in PDF (the quality of any images present, the use of a password to open the file, etc.) and, finally, click on the Export and  Save buttons.

How to convert Word to PDF for free online

As I told you at the beginning of the guide, you can convert Word to PDF for free also by relying on special online services, as in the case of those that I will indicate and explain to you below. They can be used by any browser and operating system and it is not necessary to download absolutely anything on the PC (separate final file) in order to use them.

PDF Candy

Even PDF Candy is a valid Web tool to convert Word to PDF for free. It is easy to use, does not require payments to unlock additional functions, does not require registration and does not set limits for what concerns the upload of documents. It should also be noted that it protects the privacy of users by deleting the files uploaded to its servers within a few hours.

To use it, visit the service page and drag the file you want to convert onto it. If you prefer to select it “manually”, click on the Add file button. If, on the other hand, your document is on Google Drive or Dropbox, upload it from there by clicking on the icon relating to the service of your interest.

Once the upload and conversion procedure has been completed, click on the Download file button to proceed with the download of the output document. Alternatively, you can choose to save it to Google Drive or Dropbox, again by clicking on the relevant icons.

DocsPal

Another great web tool you can rely on to convert your Word documents to PDF is DocsPal. It’s very intuitive, fast enough, and even then, no registration is required to use it.

Furthermore, the service preserves the privacy of users by storing the files uploaded on its servers only and exclusively until the end of the conversion procedure: afterwards they are removed.

To use it, go to its home page and drag the Word file to be transformed into PDF in correspondence with the box that says Drag and drop the files here. Alternatively, select the files “manually” by clicking the Browse file button. If the document to be converted is online, however, you can type the URL in the field next to the entry Enter the URL of the file.

Next, select the PDF – Portable Document Format option from the second drop-down menu that you find in the Step 2 section and press the Convert files button located at the bottom. At the end of the process, click on the name of the file appeared under the word Converted files, to proceed with its download.

If, instead of immediately downloading the Word document converted to PDF on your computer, you want to receive it via email, before starting the conversion, check the box next to  Send a download link to my email address (optional) and type in your email address. e-mail in the appropriate field below.

App to convert Word to PDF for free

Well yes! Converting Word to PDF for free is also feasible from smartphones and tablets: to do this, you just need to use applications for Android and iOS, such as the ones I will report to you below.

PDF Conversion Suite (Android)

If you have a smartphone or tablet Android, you should consider using the application PDF Conversion Suite. It has a simple and intuitive user interface and, as can be deduced from the name itself, allows you to create PDF files starting from different formats. Note that it offers in-app purchases (at a cost of € 2.59) to remove advertising and support the developer’s work.

To download it on your device, visit the relevant section of the Play Store, press the Install button and then the Open button, in order to start the application.

Once the main screen of the app is displayed, select the Convert to PDF option, grant the application the necessary permissions to access photos, multimedia contents and files on your device and select the Word document to convert to PDF.

Then wait for the conversion procedure to be started and completed, then you can access the file by going to the Documents folder of your device. If you want, you can also share the file with other apps by selecting the Of course yes! in the screen that is shown to you later.

easyPDF (iOS)

If you are using an iPhone or an iPad, to convert Word to PDF for free, I recommend using the easyPDF app, which allows you to do only one thing but does it great: convert Word files to PDF, and vice versa.

To download the application, visit the relevant section of the App Store, press the Get button, then click the Install button and authorize the download of the application via Face ID, Touch ID or entering the Apple ID password. Then, start easyPDF by tapping the Open button that appeared on the display.

At this point, skip the introductory tutorial, selecting the Skip item at the bottom right, press the [+] button (top left), choose the Browse option from the menu that appears and select the Word file you want to convert.

Then, tap on the Convert item located in the upper right part of the screen, choose the Convert to PDF option from the menu that appears and wait for the procedure to be started and completed. Finally, click on the sharing icon (the one with the rectangle and the arrow ), at the top, and indicate the location or app to export the resulting PDF. Easy, right?