Saving a Word Document as a PDF (It’s Quick and Easy)
Microsoft Word documents are among the most commonly saved types of files as PDFs. PDF files contain text and occasionally images created in Microsoft Word.
While PDFs are great for creating accurate digital copies of paper documents, you can also save a PDF from a regular Word document.
If you have a Word document that you’d like to save as a PDF file, you can use the Microsoft Word desktop app or Word for the Web. Here’s how.
Tip: You can also convert a document to a PDF using Microsoft Word.
In this guide, I’ll show you three ways of saving a Word document as a pdf using a Word desktop app or Word for the web.
Note: Instructions in this article apply to Word 2021, Word 2019, Word 2016, Word 2013, and Word 2010. Word for Microsoft 365, Word for the Web, and Word for Mac. For this guide, we are using Word for Microsoft 365 as an example.
RELATED: How to Convert a Word Document to a PDF (Do It For Free)
Method 1. How to Save a Word document as a PDF
Word saves its files as Word documents (also known as Docx) by default, but you can also save a Word document as a PDF file. Here’s how.
1. Open the document you want to save as a pdf.
2. Select the File tab from the top left in the Ribbon.
3. Select Save As from the left menu pane.
4. From the Save As screen, select Browse to choose where to save the file on your computer.
- If required, you can also rename the file.
5. Click the drop-down arrow next to Save as type.
6. Select PDF (*.pdf) from the list.
7. Select the Options button to customize your PDF.
- For example, select page(s), optimize for image quality or encrypt the pdf with a password.
8. Once done, click OK.
9. Then, select Save.
10. The saved PDF file will launch in your default PDF viewer.
RELATED: How to Save a Word Document on a Mac
Method 2. How to Export a Word document to PDF
Word 2016, Word 2019, Word 2021, and Word for Microsoft 365 have a new feature that lets you export a Word document to a PDF file. In this example, we’re using Word for Microsoft 365.
Note: In Word for the Web, you can only export a document to a PowerPoint presentation.
To export your Word document to PDF, follow the steps below.
1. Open a Word document you want to export to a pdf.
2. Click the File tab in the Ribbon menu at the top-left.
3. Select Export from the left pane menu.
4. In the Export window, choose the Create PDF/XPS Document option.
5. Select the Create PDF/XPS button on the right side.
6. In the Publish as PDF or XPS window, select a folder where you want to save the file on your computer.
- Change the file name if you want to, and make sure the Save as type is PDF (*.pdf).
7. Select Publish.
8. The published PDF file will open in your default PDF viewer.
Method 3. How to Download a Microsoft Word document as a PDF
If you don’t have Microsoft Word installed on your computer, you can use Word for the Web to download a Microsoft Word document as a PDF. Here’s how.
1. Go to Word for the Web.
2. Click the Sign up for free button.
3. Type your email and create a strong password.
- You can use an email or a phone number to create an account.
4. Enter the code to verify your email or phone number.
5. Once signed in, launch Word from the left apps menu.
6. On the right side, click Upload.
7. Locate the Word document and click Open.
8. Once your document opens in Word online, click on File from the top left.
9. Select Save as > Download as PDF.
10. A copy of this saved document downloads to your computer as a PDF file.
