Skip to main content

How to Combine PDF Files on a Mac

You can combine PDFs on a Mac with the built-in Preview app, or with the merge tool on this page. In Preview, open the first PDF, show the thumbnails sidebar, drag the other PDFs into it and export the result. With PDFYork, drop the files here, put them in order and click Merge PDFs; the files are combined in your browser without being uploaded.

Bevor Sie beginnen

Wo Ihre Datei verarbeitet wird
In Ihrem Browser. Die Datei wird auf Ihrem Gerät gelesen und verarbeitet und nicht zu PDFYork hochgeladen.
Konto
Nicht erforderlich. Ohne Konto können Sie 3 Aufgaben pro Tag über alle Tools hinweg ausführen. Ein kostenloses Konto erhöht das Limit.
Kosten
Standard-Tool. Kostenlose Konten können 14 Standardaufgaben pro Tag ausführen.

So funktionieren Limits und Credits · So gehen wir mit Dateien um

Anwendung

  1. Add the PDFs from Finder

    Drag the PDF files from a Finder window onto the upload area above, or click to browse.

  2. Arrange the order

    Drag the file cards into the order you want the documents to appear.

  3. Merge

    Click Merge PDFs. Tick the bookmark option first if you want one bookmark per file.

  4. Save

    Download the combined PDF. Safari saves it to your Downloads folder by default.

Method 1: Combine PDFs with Preview

Preview is included with macOS and can merge PDFs without any download:

  1. Open the first PDF in Preview.
  2. Choose View > Thumbnails to show page thumbnails in the sidebar.
  3. Drag the other PDF files from Finder into the sidebar, dropping them where they should appear.
  4. Drag thumbnails to fine-tune the page order.
  5. Choose File > Export as PDF to save the combined document as a new file, so the original stays unchanged.

Preview is convenient for a few files. With many documents, dropping each one in the right place in the sidebar takes more care, and it is easy to drop a file onto a page by mistake.

Method 2: Combine PDFs in your browser

The tool on this page works in Safari, Chrome, Firefox and Edge on macOS. Each file appears as a card you can drag into order, and the result can include a bookmark for each source file. The merge runs in your browser, so the files are not uploaded.

Which method to use

SituationBetter choice
Two or three files, quick jobPreview
Many files that need sortingBrowser tool
You want a bookmark per fileBrowser tool
You need to delete or reorder individual pages tooPreview, or merge here and then use Organize PDF

Combined file too big to email? Compress PDF applies lossless compression, and the result shows how much was saved.

Anwendungsfälle

Scans from Notes or Files

Combine documents scanned with the Notes app or an iPhone into one PDF for an application.

Course readings

Merge downloaded lecture PDFs into one file to read in Books or Preview.

Client packs

Join a proposal, quote and terms into one document before emailing from Mail.

Fehlerbehebung

Preview replaced a page instead of adding the file

You dropped the file onto a thumbnail. Undo with Command-Z and drop it between thumbnails instead.

A file is locked

Remove the password with Decrypt PDF or open it in Preview with the password and export an unlocked copy.

Häufig gestellte Fragen

Does a Mac have a built-in way to combine PDFs?

Yes. Preview can combine PDFs by dragging files into its thumbnails sidebar and exporting the result.

Are my files uploaded when I use this page?

No. The merge on this page runs in your browser.

Does merging reduce quality?

No. Pages are copied as they are, without recompression.