How to Combine PDF Files

PDFs are an incredibly useful file format, but they aren’t perfect – you might find yourself with several separate pages of a manual, for example, which can be quite annoying. Thankfully, there are ways to combine them into one.

There are two general ways to combine two or more separate PDF files – either through the use of an Adobe program or through an online tool.

1. Adobe Acrobat DC

This service isn’t free, but it does come with a free trial if you just want to merge documents once. It’s available on any browser and there are mobile apps, so you can easily access it anywhere.

Additionally, it allows you to organise, reorder and rotate individual pages which isn’t always the case – some PDF merge services only stitch them end to end and don’t let you manipulate individual pages at all.

Additionally, this service lets you set bookmarks, headers, and footers, and you can add watermarks. That’s a lot of options – if you don’t need them, you may not want to pay for the service and instead use an online tool instead.

Tip: If you do want to use this tool – make sure you have either an active subscription or a trial version navigate to the page, click on the Tools menu and then select “Combine Files”. Click on “Add Files” and upload the ones you want to merge together, then use the drag and drop editor as well as the other functions until you are satisfied. Then, click “Combine Files”, name your new file and click on the “Save” button.

2. Online Tools (like Combine PDF)

If you want to quickly combine a few PDFs without having to sign up for anything and without the need for all the bells and whistles, there are some good free online tools you can use. Combinepdf.com is a good one – it lets you update your PDFs into a browser with just a few clicks, you can drag and drop your documents to change the order, you can even delete ones you change your mind about.

When you’re done, all you have to do is press the “Combine” button and you can download your finished file. The data you upload is deleted after an hour, so you don’t have to worry about the service keeping your files.

Alternatives to Combine PDF are PDF Merge, iLovePDF and Free PDF Convert.