How to merge PDF files into one document

When you need one PDF instead of several

Many forms accept a single file. A job application wants your CV, cover letter and certificates as one document; a visa portal asks for one PDF of bank statements; an accountant prefers a single file of a year's invoices to forty attachments. Merging also makes a document easier to read in order, print in one go and keep in one place.

Merging is the reverse of splitting, and the two often go together: take the pages you need out of long files with Split PDF, then merge them into the document you want to send.

Step by step: merge PDFs in the right order

1. Open Merge PDF and select your PDFs, or drop them onto the box. Up to 20 files, 50 MB each and 200 MB in total. On a phone they open from your Files app.
2. Check the list. Each file shows its page count and size, so you can see at once if the wrong version slipped in.
3. Put the files in order: drag them on a computer, or use the up and down arrows on any device. Remove any file you don't need.
4. Press Merge, then download the result. It arrives as one PDF called merged.pdf - rename it to something the reader will recognise.

Does merging change the pages?

No. Merging copies each page into the new document as it is: text stays text, pictures are not re-compressed, and every page keeps its own size and orientation. A merged PDF looks exactly like the originals placed one after another.

A few things live outside the pages, and those may not survive: bookmarks (the outline some readers show in a sidebar), fillable form fields and links from one page to another. Fill in and save forms before merging, and keep the original files if you rely on any of these.

Mixing PDFs with photos and paper documents

Merge PDF combines PDFs. If some of what you need is a photo, a screenshot or a sheet of paper, turn it into a PDF first:

• Photos and screenshots you already have: JPG to PDF makes one PDF from JPG, PNG and WebP images.
• Paper you haven't photographed yet: Scan to PDF uses your phone camera and cleans the pages up.

Then add those PDFs to the merge alongside the others and put everything in order.

After merging: fix order, number pages, reduce size

A merged document is often almost right. A few quick finishing steps make it ready to send:

• A page in the wrong place or on its side? Organize PDF shows every page as a preview; drag pages into place, turn them, or delete blank ones.
• Long document? Add Page Numbers numbers the merged pages so readers can refer to them - and skip the cover page if you like.
• Too big for the upload form? Compress PDF shrinks scans and photos inside the file, or aims for a target size such as 2 MB.

Do these in this order - organize, then number, then compress - so the numbers match the final pages and you only compress once.

If a file is refused

• Protected PDFs. Files that need a password, or that are locked against changes, can't be merged. Open the file in the program that created it, save a copy without protection, and merge that copy.
• Damaged or not really a PDF. A file that only has a .pdf name, or that was cut off during a download, is turned down with a clear message while the other files stay in the list.
• Too many or too large. More than 20 files or more than 200 MB in total is over the limit for one merge. Merge in two batches, then merge the two results.

Merging private documents without uploading them

Application packs and statements are full of personal details. Here, the PDFs are read and joined by your browser on your own device and handed straight back as a download - they are never sent to our servers or anyone else's. That also makes merging fast: there is no upload to wait for, however big the files are.

A sensible order for application documents

If the organisation tells you an order, follow it exactly - reviewers often check documents against a list. If it doesn't, an order that reads well is:

1. A cover letter or completed application form - what you are applying for.
2. Your CV or the main document the application is about.
3. Certificates and transcripts, newest first.
4. Identity documents, if asked for.
5. Supporting papers such as references, bank statements or letters, in date order.

Putting the short, important pages first means a reviewer who only reads the opening still sees what matters. Long statements and supporting evidence go at the end, where they can be checked when needed.

Checking the merged PDF before you send it

• Count the pages. The merged file should have as many pages as the files in the list added together.
• Scroll through once. Look for a page that is upside down, blank or from the wrong document.
• Rename it. A name such as surname-application.pdf is easier for the reader than merged.pdf.
• Check the size against the upload limit, and compress it if needed.