Convert PDF to PNG

When do you need to convert a PDF to PNG?

When you need a page as a picture: to drop a chart or table into a slide deck, to post a flyer on social media, or because an upload form only accepts images. PNG suits pages with fine text, lines and diagrams, because it keeps edges sharp without the blur that JPG compression sometimes leaves around letters.

What the tool does exactly

Each page is drawn onto a canvas in your browser with pdf.js, then saved as a PNG image on a white background.

• Resolution: the "PNG Resolution & Quality" slider goes from 1x to 3x in steps of 0.5, with 2x as the default. At 1x an A4 page becomes an image about 595 pixels wide, at 2x about 1190 pixels, and at 3x about 1785 pixels.
• One-page file: you get a single PNG named after your file, ending in _page1.png.
• Multi-page file: you get a ZIP ending in _png_images.zip, with the images numbered page_001.png, page_002.png and so on.

How to convert a PDF to PNG

1. 1
   Click "Select PDF File to Convert to PNG" or drag the file onto the box.
2. 2
   Move the "PNG Resolution & Quality" slider to the resolution you need, or leave it at 2x.
3. 3
   Click "Convert to PNG Now" and wait while the pages are converted one by one.
4. 4
   Check the images in the preview, then click "Download Images (ZIP)". For a one-page file, the download is a PNG rather than a ZIP.

Which resolution, and is PNG the right format?

• 1x: quick previews or posting on phones; the files stay fairly light.
• 2x: a balanced choice for most uses; text stays readable when zoomed in.
• 3x: printing, or cropping a small area and enlarging it. Files are bigger and take longer to produce.

PNG is lossless, so its files are larger than JPG. In our test, a text page at 2x came out at roughly 350 KB. If your pages are scans or photos and small files matter more, PDF to JPG is a better fit. To turn PNG images back into a PDF, use PNG to PDF.

Limitations

• One file at a time, and every page is converted; you can't pick specific pages.
• Text in the images is no longer selectable or searchable; it's pixels now.
• The background is always white, so you won't get transparent images.
• A PDF that needs a password to open can't be converted; a message asks you to open it first with Unlock PDF. Files with permission restrictions only usually convert fine.
• Long files at 3x can use a lot of memory and slow a phone down; your device's memory is the practical limit.

Where is the processing done?

Rendering the pages and packing the images into a ZIP both happen on your own device, using pdf.js and JSZip inside the browser. Your PDF stays with you throughout.

PDF to PNG: frequently asked questions