How to merge PDF files

Have you downloaded a multi-part PDF and would like to merge it? Would you like to create a single PDF file starting from some documents you created in recent days? Don’t worry, you’ve landed on the right guide, at a time that couldn’t have been better.

With this tutorial of mine today, in fact, I want to explain to you how to merge PDF files using simple programs for Windows and macOS, special online services and apps used for this purpose for smartphones and tablets. They are very easy to use and keep the structure of the original documents intact. You will see, in the end you will certainly be able to find the solution that best suits your needs.

Come on, let’s ban the chatter and see immediately how to proceed! I assure you that, in no time at all, you will get your unified PDF without any formatting problems or quality losses. Even if you’re new to the world of computing, you’ll be able to do it all in no time, promise! I wish you a good reading and a lot of fun!

Index

• How to merge PDF files on PC and Mac
  • How to merge PDF files with PDFill FREE PDF Tools
  • How to merge PDF files with PDFTK Builder
  • How to merge PDF files with PDFCreator
  • How to merge PDF files with Adobe Acrobat Pro DC
  • How to merge PDF files with Preview
• How to merge PDF files online
  • Online2PDF
  • iLovePDF
  • Other services to merge PDF files online
• App to merge PDF files

How to merge PDF files on PC and Mac

Do you want to find out how to merge PDF files on your computer? Then take a look at the solutions listed below: I am sure you will be able to find some that will satisfy you.

How to merge PDF files with PDFill FREE PDF Tools

The first tool that I recommend you to consider, if you want to find out how to merge PDF files for free on your PC, is PDFill FREE PDF Tools. It is a free suite for Windows operating systems, which includes many tools for editing, creating and converting PDF documents.

To download the program on your computer, connected to its website, click on the Download link located on the left and, in the new page that is shown to you, click on the Download now button under the word GET FREE Basic Version, then click on the additional Download Now button displayed.

When the download is complete, open the .exe file obtained and, in the window you see appear on the screen, click on the Yes and Next buttons. Then, check the I accept the terms in the License Agreement box, click on the Next button (three times in a row), on the Install button and, to conclude, click on the Finish button. If during the setup procedure you are asked to install GhostScript and .NET Framework, accept: these are two free components without which PDFill FREE PDF Tools would not work. Also during setup, be sure to deselect the other additional software that may be offered to you.

When the installation is complete, start PDFill FREE PDF Tools using the appropriate link that has been added to the desktop, then click on the Merge PDF files button and drag the documents to be merged into the additional window that opens. As an alternative to what I have just indicated, you can select the PDF files to be merged “manually” by clicking on the Add a PDF file button.

Finally, use the Move up and Move Down buttons to move the documents up and down, in order to arrange them in the desired order, and click on the Save as a button, in order to export the unified PDF. Therefore, indicate the name you want to assign to the final file and the location in which you want to save it and that’s it.

How to merge PDF files with PDFTK Builder

Another great solution for merging PDF files on Windows is PDFTK Builder. It is a free and open-source software, which allows you to merge, split and rotate PDFs, all in an extremely easy and fast way.

To download it to your PC, connect to its website and click on the link pdftkb_setup.exe that you find by scrolling down the page.

When the download is complete, open the .exe file obtained and, in the window that appears on the screen, click the Yes button and the Next button. Then select the item I accept the agreement and conclude the setup by pressing the Next buttons in sequence (three consecutive times), Install and Finish.

Now that you see the program window on your desktop, select the Join files tab and drag all the PDF files you want to merge into it. Alternatively, you can “manually” select the PDFs to merge by clicking the Add button at the bottom.

Then use the Move up and Move down buttons to sort the documents as you prefer and click on the Save as button to save the output file, indicating the output location and the name you want to assign to the final document.

Optionally, by clicking on the Sort button and using the Pages text field, you can also change the order of the pages within individual documents.

How to merge PDF files with PDFCreator

Another + tool you can consider to unify your PDF files is PDFCreator. It is a software for Windows operating systems only that acts as a virtual printer for PDFs and which, among the various functions offered, also integrates one that allows you to unify the documents that are fed to it. In its basic version it is free, but possibly it is available in a paid variant (at a cost of 13.90 euros/year) that allows you to receive priority support and to unlock other extra functions.

To download it on your computer, go to the program website and click on the Download button located at the top, then press the Download button that you find in correspondence with the entry PDFCreator Free.

When the download is complete, open the .exe file obtained and, in the window that appears on the screen, click the Yes and Install buttons, then press the Start PDFCreator button. If during the setup you are invited to install extra programs that are not useful, please decline the invitation by pressing the Decline button.

Now that the main window of the software is displayed on the screen, click on the Choose a file to convert button that you find on the Home tab and select the PDF documents of your interest. Alternatively, drag them directly to the program screen.

In the additional window that at this point is shown to you, click on the Merge button located at the bottom, then put a checkmark on the boxes next to the names of the files in the list and order the documents as you see fit, by clicking on their title and dragging them. Alternatively, you can change the order in which the PDFs are arranged by selecting your preferred option from the Sorting drop-down menu.

Finally, click on the Merge Selected button and then on the Continue button, then type the name you want to assign to the unified PDF file and the location in which to save it in the appropriate fields and press the Save and OK buttons.

How to merge PDF files with Adobe Acrobat Pro DC

Have you ever heard of Acrobat Pro DC? It is a software from Adobe thanks to which it is possible to open, view and edit files in PDF format in various ways, even merging them. It is compatible with both Windows and macOS and is paid (has a base cost of 18.29 euros/month), however, it can be tried for free and without limitations for 7 days.

To download the program on your PC, go to its website and click on the Try button. Proceed, therefore, with the activation of the trial by typing the email address of your Adobe ID in the appropriate field on the left (if you do not yet have an Adobe account, you can create one at the moment, following the instructions on the screen), by clicking on the Continue button, entering the relative password and providing the requested payment data. Then wait for the software download to start and finish.

When the download is complete, if you are using Windows, open the .exe file obtained, click on the Login button that you find in the window that appears on the desktop and log in to your Adobe account, typing the required data, then press the Start installing button. After completing the setup, click on the Login button, to log in with the Adobe ID, and on the Start trial version button, in order to start the trial of the program.

If you are using macOS, open the .dmg package obtained and double-click on the Acrobat Pro DC installer icon that you find in the window displayed on the desktop. Next, enter the password of your user account on the Mac and click the OK button. Then log into your Adobe account, pressing the Login button and providing the required data, then click the Start installing button and wait for the setup to start and finish.

Now that, regardless of the operating system used, you see the Adobe Acrobat Pro DC window on the screen, click on the Tools menu located at the top and press the Open button that you find in correspondence with the word Combine files.

At this point, press the Add button located in the center of the screen and select the PDFs on your computer that you want to merge together. Later, if you want to change the order in which the various PDFs were arranged, click on the various thumbnails and, continuing to hold, drag them to the position you prefer.

Finally, click on the Combine button located at the top right, then on the File menu, at the top left, and select the Save as item from the latter. Choose, therefore, the location where you want to save the final file, type the name you want to assign it, click on the Save button and that’s it.

How to merge PDF files with Preview

If you have a Mac, to merge PDF files you can also consider relying on Preview, the application included “standard” in macOS that allows you to view (and edit) photos and PDF documents.

The procedure to follow is very simple. All you have to do is open the first PDF to be merged, by double-clicking on its icon, activate the display of the page thumbnails, selecting the View menu located at the top left and then the Thumbnails item from the latter, and drag the other documents you want to add to the original PDF into the side pop-up bar.

When the operation is complete, reorder the page thumbnails as you prefer, by left-clicking on them and, continuing to hold down, dragging them to the desired position, then select the Print item from the File menu located at the top left.

In the window that opens, select the item Save as PDF from the drop-down menu located at the bottom left, choose the location in which to save the output file and the name you want to assign it and it’s done.

How to merge PDF files online

If you are interested in understanding how to merge PDF files without installing software on your computer, you can consider contacting the online services listed below. They are all very easy to use and work from any browser and operating system.

Online2PDF

The first online service useful for merging PDF files that I invite you to consider is called Online2PDF. It is totally free and requires no registration in order to function. It allows you to merge up to 20 documents, but it must be considered that the maximum size allowed for individual files is 100 MB and that the total size must not exceed 150 MB. As for the privacy issue, it protects that of users by deleting the files that are uploaded to its servers within a few hours.

To use it, linked to its home page, click the Select files button and select the PDFs you want to merge. Alternatively, drag the documents of your interest directly into the browser window.

Next, select the Merge file item from the Method drop-down menu at the bottom and choose the merge mode you prefer from the As drop-down menu next to it. If necessary, you can also reorder documents by moving their icons with the mouse, while to change the order of the pages within each file you can use the button with the scissors icon.

In conclusion, click on the Convert button, in order to first start the upload and then the unification of your PDFs. When the process is complete, the output document will be automatically downloaded to your PC.

iLovePDF

Another great service you can use to unify your PDFs is iLovePDF, which is free, requires no registration and allows you to work on documents in the format in question in various ways, including merging them.

Note that it does not allow you to upload files with a weight greater than 100 MB. Eventually, it is possible to circumvent this limitation by switching to one of the paid plans (with costs starting from 6 euros/month), which also allow you to unlock other extra features. As for the protection of privacy, the service removes files that are uploaded to its servers within a few hours.

To use iLovePDF, visit its home page, click the Select PDF file button and download PDFs from your computer. You can also choose to upload the document from your Google Drive or Dropbox account by clicking on the appropriate buttons. Alternatively, you can drag and drop the PDFs to be merged directly into the browser window.

Then, if necessary, change the order in which the PDFs are arranged by clicking on their thumbnails and, continuing to hold, drag them to the desired position. If you want, you can also quickly sort the files by name, by clicking on the button with the arrow and the letters on the right.

Finally, click on the Merge PDF button located at the bottom right and, once the process is complete, the output document will be downloaded automatically to your computer. If this does not happen, you can force the download by pressing the Download merged PDF button. You can also decide to save the final file on Google Drive or Dropbox or to share it via URL, simply by clicking on the appropriate buttons.

Other services to merge PDF files online

None of the online PDF merging services I have reported convinced you and, therefore, would you like me to suggest alternatives? In this case, I suggest you take a look at the other solutions of this type that you find reported below.

• PDF Candy– online service at no cost and without registration that allows you to intervene on PDF documents by joining them, as well as in various other ways: by converting them, dividing them, lightening them, unlocking them etc. It does not place limitations on the maximum weight of files for upload and the privacy of users is protected, as the documents uploaded to its servers are automatically removed within a few hours.
• PDF24– free and easy-to-use web service that allows you to work on PDF documents in various ways, including joining them together. It does not require registration and does not set limits for the upload. Additionally, files uploaded to the service’s servers are removed within hours.
• PDF2Go– another online solution that allows you to merge multiple documents in PDF format together. It sets an upload limit of 50MB per file and allows you to merge up to 5 documents at a time. It does not require registration and basic is free, but by creating an account and possibly switching to the paid version (at a cost of € 5.50 / month) you can unlock the limitations posed by the basic variant and you can use other extra features. Also note that all uploaded files are automatically deleted from the service servers within a few hours.

App to merge PDF files

Are you looking for apps to merge PDF files directly from your smartphone or tablet? Then immediately test the solutions for Android and iOS / iPadOS that I have reported to you in the list below.

• iLovePDF( Android / iOS / iPadOS ) – as easily deducible from the same name, is the app of the online service to merge PDF files that I told you about in the passage in the previous lines. It allows you to perform the same operations that can be performed from the browser window, but with controls optimized for the touch-screen. It’s free, but offers in-app purchases (at a basic cost of € 5.99 / month) to subscribe to paid plans to unlock additional features.
• PDF Merge( Android / iOS / iPadOS ) – app that allows you to merge PDF files together by taking them from various locations, including cloud storage services. The only thing to keep in mind is that to get the unified PDF file you have to wait at least 60 minutes. To get around this limitation, you need to make in-app purchases (at a cost of 4.99 euros on Android and 10.99 euros on iOS / iPadOS).
• Merge PDFs( iOS / iPadOS ) – more than an app, it is a schortcut for the Commands application available “as standard” on iOS / iPadOS (if removed it can be downloaded again and for free from the relevant section of the App Store ) , which allows you to perform various operations without necessarily having to install specific apps to do so. In the specific case of the command in question, it makes it possible to merge multiple PDF files together quickly and easily. However, keep in mind that in order to enable this command you must activate the installation of third-party schortcuts, by going to the Settings> iOS / iPadOS Quick Commands menu, turning the switch to ONUntrusted commands and tapping the Allow button.