How to Save a Screenshot as a PDF on Any Device Easily

To save a screenshot as a PDF, you can use the Print to PDF option on Windows, Preview software on Mac, iPhone Photos app on iOS, and Google Photos on Android.

Saving screenshots as PDFs enhances documentation streamlining, as you can organize your files better. It also eases sharing, as PDF files are highly compatible. Efficient document organization and sharing facilitate the use of PDFs, which is important in businesses and school projects, among other things.

Read on to discover how to save screenshots as PDFs, how to combine them into one PDF, why this is important, and how to fix common issues you may encounter during this process.

How to Save Screenshot as PDF: 6 Methods Explained

To save screenshots as PDFs, you should use a Photo app for Android and iOS, a Print to PDF feature on PC, and Preview software on Mac.

Let’s learn more about these methods:

#1. Windows

To use the Print to PDF option on Windows and save images as PDF, follow the next steps:

1. Double-click a screenshot to open it
2. Use the CTRL + P command to open the print menu
   
3. The Microsoft Print to PDF option will be selected by default; click the Print button in the bottom-left corner
   
4. The program will automatically save your screenshot as PDF in your Document folder

#2. Mac

To make a PDF from a screenshot on Mac, you need to use Preview. Here are the steps to follow:

1. Right-click the screenshots, choose Open with, and select Preview
   
2. Click the File drop-down menu and select Export as PDF
   
3. Type in the name of your document and click Save to finalize this process
   

#3. On Android

You can save screenshots as PDFs on Android using the Print option and Google Photos. Let’s see how you can do this:

1. Open your screenshot with Google Photos
2. Tap the Print button in the bottom-right corner
   
3. Tap the three dots in the top-right corner and select Save as PDF
   
4. Choose the folder to save your file and tap Save to finish this procedure
   

#4. On iPhone

To save screenshots as PDFs on iPhone, this is what you should do:

1. Open the Photos app
2. Select the screenshot you want to save as PDF and tap the Share button
   
3. Scroll down and tap the Print button
   
4. Tap Print once again
   
5. The Print option will convert screenshots to a PDF, after which you must tap Save to Files to save your document and complete this procedure
   

#5. Use Online Tools

You can also capture the screen and save it as a PDF using online tools such as our PDF editor. Let’s learn how to do this:

1. Visit PDF.net, hover your cursor over the More Tools drop-down menu, and click Add Image
   
2. Drag your screenshot into the box labeled Drop file here to add image or click Choose file to select it manually from the drive
   
3. Click the Download button in the upper right corner
   
4. As the PDF format will be selected by default, name your file and click Download PDF to finalize the process
   

How to Combine Multiple Screenshots Into a Single PDF

To combine multiple screenshots into a single PDF, you can use Word, Mac Preview, and PDF.net.

Let’s examine each of these methods in greater detail:

#1. Microsoft Word or Google Docs

A simple method to combine screenshots into PDFs is to use software for DOC files, i.e., Word. Let’s see how to do this:

1. Open the program and select the File drop-down menu in the upper-left corner
   
2. Click the Open button and choose the file from your drive
   
3. After you add images to Word, you can click File again and select Save As
   
4. Select the destination folder, name your document, and choose PDF under Save as type
   
5. Click the Save button to finish
   

#2. Mac Preview

Using Preview software to merge screenshots into one PDF is easy, and you can do it in a few minutes. This is how:

1. Select all the screenshots from your drive and open them with Preview
   
2. Use the Command + P to open the Print menu
3. Click the PDF drop-down menu and select Save as PDF
   
4. Name your document and click Save to complete the procedure
   

#3. PDF.net

Similarly to saving a single screenshot to PDF, you can use a merge tool to combine multiple images into one PDF by following the next steps:

1. Enter the PDF.net website and select Add Image from the drop-down More tools menu
   
2. Upload several images at once by clicking Choose file and selecting them from your storage
   
3. Click Merge in the toolbar on top, which will display all your images and their order, then select Merge files in the lower-right corner
   
4. Click the Download button at the top-right corner
   
5. Name your file and click Download PDF to export screenshots into PDF and save your multi-page PDF file.
   

Why Save Screenshots as PDFs?

You should save screenshots as PDFs for easier access, transfer, compatibility, and annotation.

Let’s take a closer look at the benefits of saving screenshots as PDFs:

• Preserving quality. You can secure image quality by inserting them into PDFs, which will preserve their clarity, resolution, brightness, and size.
• Easy sharing. Adding images to other PDF content will make it uniform and, therefore, easy to share. Once you pack everything into a PDF file, you can also resize it to facilitate its sharing further.
• High compatibility. The PDF format is universal across online clouds and internet platforms. Similarly, if you have a PDF reader, you can always open, use, and share PDFs regardless of your device or operating system.
• Simple annotating. PDFs allow you to add comments and annotate screenshots within them quickly and hassle-free. This is important because adding comments and annotating image-format screenshots can be lengthy and more complicated.

3 Common Issues With Saving Screenshots as PDFs and Troubleshooting Tips

Saving screenshots as PDFs can impact the image or document quality and size.

Let’s examine these issues and the tips to resolve them:

#1. PDF Is Blurry

Blurry PDFs can occur because of initial low screenshot quality or after using cheap PDF tools for conversion. To obtain clear and readable files, pay attention to the following factors:

• Screenshot to PDF converter type. Using a reliable online PDF converter such as PDF.net helps you convert and export screenshots into high-quality PDFs.
• Image resolution and format. Choose high-resolution screenshots and save them in lossless formats like PNG instead of selecting a JPG to PDF conversion.
• Compression variant. Using lossy compression for PDF documents with screenshots can lower their quality and blur them. This is why we recommend using a medium (balanced) or lossless compression.

#2. Screenshots Deranged or Not Fitting Formatting

After saving screenshots as PDFs, you may notice that some images are too large, small, turned upside down, or deranged. Also, screenshots may be in portrait mode instead of landscape mode.

To prevent and fix these issues, you should use advanced screenshot tools (e.g., Lightshot and Snipping tool) and capture more spatial areas for large-resolution images. You can also use resolution-enhancing software to improve the quality of screenshots before integrating them into PDFs and resizing them to make them fit your PDF formatting.

The rearranging tool can help you reorder deranged screenshots, flip and rotate them, and make your files perfect.

#3. PDF Is Too Large

Adding images (including screenshots), in general, makes PDF documents larger. This may not be a problem unless you must email or share them on platforms with size limits.

To solve this, you can compress screenshots before converting them to PDF. The lower the original screenshot size is, the lower the final PDF file will be. Additionally, you can use lossless PDF.net compression to resize your PDF with screenshots, which is one of the most effective ways to compress PDFs without losing quality.

Using PDF.net to Save and Combine Screenshots Into PDFs

It is important to use high-quality tools to save and combine screenshots as PDFs and avoid oversized, blurry, or distorted PDFs. PDF.net offers software that keeps the screenshot quality, size, and formatting intact during PDF conversion.

You can also batch-process various screenshots, rearrange them according to your preferences, and export them as a single PDF document. Shrinking large PDFs with numerous images is simple with our tool, which allows for lossless compression.

As PDF screenshots are easy to annotate, you can use the PDF.net annotation tool to add comments and sticky notes quickly and easily.

How to Save Screenshot as PDF FAQ

#1. How do I compress a screenshot PDF to reduce file size?

To compress a screenshot PDF and reduce file size, use the PDF.net compression tool. Its balanced and lossless compression lowers the file size while preserving the document's quality.

#2. How do I merge screenshots into a single-page PDF?

To merge screenshots into a single-page PDF, upload them to PDF.net, select and arrange them, merge them, and then export them as PDF.

#3. Can I edit a PDF after converting the screenshot?

Yes, you can edit a PDF after converting the screenshot. To edit text, make it editable with our OCR tool. You can also use numerous editing features and draw on your document, add comments, or sign your screenshot PDF document.

#4. How do I convert a PDF back to an image?

To convert a PDF back to an image, use our converter tool. It allows you to convert PDFs into various image formats, such as JPG or PNG.