Make a PDF from InDesign

InDesign allows you to create newsletters, brochures and flyers, but sharing those creations can be a problem. Most business users don't have Adobe's InDesign software installed on their computers and, therefore, won't be able to read the documents. Exporting an InDesign document as a PDF, making the file view on any computer with a PDF reader, is the best solution for this issue. It's easy to make a PDF from InDesign without using a separate PDF creation program.

Steps

  1. Launch Adobe InDesign.
  2. Open the document you want to export to PDF format.
  3. Click the File menu and choose the Export PDF option.
    • Adobe InDesign will open an Export PDF window, allowing you to customize several exporting options.
  4. Choose the appropriate file size in the Export PDF Preset dropdown selection box.
    • The smallest file size will be easiest to email or upload to the web or a network location.
    • The Press Quality setting makes the image quality the highest priority and is for documents that will be going to a professional printer. This setting is not compatible with all versions of Adobe Reader or other PDF reading programs.
    • The High Quality Print setting will create a PDF file that is compatible with all versions of Adobe Reader, but will result in a much larger file size.
  5. Accept the "All" preset under the Pages section or select only those pages to be exported.
    • All pages selected will export into one multi-page PDF file.
    • Repeat the printing process to make a separate export PDF file for each page and select a different single page each time.
  6. Mark 'View PDF after Exporting,' this way you can view the PDF immediately after it's created. You can also mark other options as desired.
    • If making a PDF for uploading online, check the 'Include Hyperlinks' and 'Optimize for Fast Web View.'
  7. Go to the Summary section from the left sidebar of the Export PDF window and review your selected options.
  8. Export by clicking the 'Export PDF' button at the bottom of the window.
  9. Your exported PDF will open automatically on your PDF viewer program. (Make sure you have marked 'View PDF after Exporting' in Step 6.) Review your exported PDF for errors before sharing.

Tips

  • If you find an error in your exported PDF, it is much easier to simply delete it, make the corrections in InDesign and then export a replacement file. Editing a PDF, in most cases, requires the purchase ​of separate software.
  • PDF files that are exported from Adobe InDesign using the highest quality settings will often be very large in size, making opening, emailing and uploading them a cumbersome process. Use small file size settings whenever possible.

Things You'll Need

  • Computer.
  • InDesign software.

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Sources and Citations

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