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How to merge PDF files on a Mac

By DeckleUpdated

To merge PDF files on a Mac, open Merge PDFs in Safari or any other browser, drop the PDFs from the Finder onto the page, put them in order and choose Merge PDFs. Deckle creates one new PDF and leaves the original files as they were. If you prefer a built-in app, Preview can combine PDFs too; both methods are below.

Merge PDF
Illustrated document pages containing a chart, photograph and text.
Illustration · a document can contain more than its visible pages.

How to merge PDFs on a Mac with Deckle

  1. Open Merge PDFs in Safari, Chrome or Firefox.
  2. Select the PDFs in the Finder and drag them onto the page, or choose Select files and pick them. You need at least two.
  3. Check the ticks under Files to merge. Only ticked files go into the new PDF.
  4. Put the files in order. Drag a row by its handle, use the arrow buttons, or type a position and choose Move to.
  5. Optional: change Output PDF name. It starts as merged.pdf.
  6. Choose Merge PDFs, then download the result.
  7. Open the new PDF in Preview and check the first page of each file.

The result screen tells you how many pages were combined from how many files, so you can compare it with what you expected.

Why the list order matters

Deckle joins whole files from the top of the list to the bottom. It does not sort by file name, so 01-cover.pdf only goes first if it is at the top of the list. Read the list as if it were the table of contents of the finished document before you merge.

If you forgot a file, choose Add PDFs and drop it in. You can add up to 100 files in one go. Each source keeps its page sizes and rotation, and nothing is re-compressed, so text stays sharp and selectable.

For more on ordering, see how to merge PDF files in the right order.

Merge PDFs with Preview

Preview, the PDF viewer built into macOS, can combine PDFs by dragging pages between windows. Apple describes it in Combine PDFs in Preview on Mac:

  1. Open the PDFs you want to combine in Preview.
  2. In each document, choose View > Thumbnails to show the page thumbnails in the sidebar.
  3. Drag thumbnails from one document's sidebar into the other's, where you want them. Command-click to choose several pages. You can also drag a PDF's icon from the Finder into the sidebar.

Preview saves changes to a document automatically, so the PDF you drag pages into is changed. Apple suggests choosing File > Duplicate first if you want to keep the original.

Merge with a Finder Quick Action

The Finder can make one PDF from several files without opening an app. Apple's page Combine files into a PDF on Mac gives the steps:

  1. Select the files in the Finder, in the order you want them.
  2. Control-click the selection and choose Quick Actions > Create PDF.

The pages follow the order in which you selected the files, and the new PDF is named after the first one. That makes it quick for a few files, but harder to control for a long packet.

Which method to use

You want to Use
Arrange many files in a visible list before merging Deckle
Keep every source file unchanged Deckle, or Preview after File > Duplicate
Move single pages between documents Preview, or Deckle's Organize PDF pages after merging
Combine three files in a few seconds Finder Quick Action

Tips

  • Unlock protected files first. Merge PDFs cannot open a file that asks for a password. Make an unlocked copy with Unlock PDF, using the password you were given.
  • Convert images before merging. Merge PDFs takes PDFs only. Turn photos into PDFs with JPG to PDF or HEIC to PDF. See how to convert JPG to PDF on a Mac.
  • Name the file for the reader. site-survey-pack.pdf says more than merged.pdf.
  • Remove stray pages before merging. It is easier to delete a blank page from one source file than to find it later. See how to delete pages from a PDF on a Mac.

Frequently asked questions

Can I merge PDFs on a Mac without Preview?

Yes. Open Merge PDFs in your browser, drop the files on the page and choose Merge PDFs. Nothing needs to be installed.

Does merging keep bookmarks?

No. Bookmarks from the source files are not carried into a PDF merged with Deckle.

Will merging reduce quality?

No. Pages are copied as they are. Text stays selectable and images are not recompressed.

Where does the merged PDF go?

In Chrome and Edge, a save dialogue opens so you can pick the folder and name. Safari and Firefox save it to the browser's download location, usually the Downloads folder.

Related tools

Sources