How to Convert Word to PDF Without Microsoft Word

To convert Word to PDF without Microsoft Word, open Word to PDF, drop your .docx file in and press Download PDF. There's nothing to set: the PDF uses your document's own page size and margins, and the preview shows the pages exactly as they'll come out.

Why send a PDF instead of a Word file?

A PDF looks the same on every device. A Word file can shift when the reader has different fonts, a different version of Word, or opens it on a phone. PDFs are also harder to edit by accident, which is why employers, universities and offices ask for them. Common uses:

• CVs and cover letters for job applications
• Assignments and theses for submission portals
• Letters, quotes and contracts for clients
• Documents to print at a shop that only accepts PDF

How do I convert a .docx to PDF step by step?

1. Open Word to PDF.
2. Drop your .docx file onto the box, or click to choose it. The pages appear as they will in the PDF.
3. Press Download PDF.

If the document has something the converter can't show exactly, such as a text box or a chart, the page says so, so you can check the PDF before sending it.

Why do other converters move the logo and change the spacing?

Most free converters read only the text and its basic structure out of the .docx, then lay it out again with their own spacing. Three things go wrong on the way:

• Floating pictures lose their position. A logo set to sit at the top right of the page is saved with its exact position; a converter that ignores it drops the logo into the text instead.
• Spacing is guessed. Word's "single" or "1.15" spacing depends on the font. Calibri's single line is about 1.22 times the font size, so a converter that uses 1.0 or 1.15 times the size squeezes everything together.
• Missing fonts change line breaks. If your device doesn't have Calibri or Cambria, a different font with different letter widths is used, lines break in other places, and the pages shift.

Word to PDF fixes all three. Pictures are placed at their saved position, with text wrapping around them as in Word. Line spacing follows Word's rules. And Calibri, Cambria, Arial, Times New Roman and Courier New are laid out with free fonts of exactly the same width, so the lines break where Word breaks them, even on a phone.

What is kept, and what can differ?

Kept: page size and margins, fonts and letter spacing, line and paragraph spacing, page breaks, headers and footers with page numbers, bold, italic, underline, links, bullet and numbered lists, tables, tab stops, and pictures, including floating ones.

Can differ: text boxes, drawn shapes, charts and SmartArt are left out or shown as plain text. A font that's neither on your device nor one of the five above is swapped for a similar one, which can move a line break.

What's the difference between Download PDF and Print / Save as PDF?

Both give the same pages. Download PDF makes the file directly: each page is an exact picture of the document with the text laid over it, so you can still search and copy. Print / Save as PDF hands the same pages to your browser's printer, which draws the text itself. In the print dialog, set the destination to Save as PDF. On a phone, look for Save to Files or Save as PDF in the share options.

Documents in Urdu, Arabic, Hindi, Chinese and other scripts look right either way. If you need to search those scripts inside the PDF, use Print / Save as PDF.

Tips for a clean PDF

• Use real headings (Heading 1, Heading 2) in Word rather than big bold text. They keep with the paragraph after them at page breaks, just as in Word.
• Put addresses in the header or a table, not a text box. Text boxes are the one thing that doesn't come across.
• Name the file clearly, such as cv-jane-doe.pdf. The PDF uses the Word file's name.

Can I do it on my phone?

Yes. Open the tool in your phone's browser and choose the .docx from Files, Google Drive (downloaded first) or your email attachments. The PDF downloads to your phone, ready to share.

Troubleshooting

• "Old .doc files aren't supported": open the file in Word, Google Docs or LibreOffice and save it as .docx.
• "The PDF couldn't be made": try Print / Save as PDF.
• A line breaks in a different place than in Word: the document probably uses a font your device doesn't have. Installing that font, or changing it in Word to Calibri or Arial, fixes it.

Is my document uploaded?

No. Most online converters upload your file to their server. This one reads the .docx and builds the PDF inside your browser, so CVs, contracts and private letters stay on your device.

Convert your document with Word to PDF. Need to go the other way? Read how to convert PDF to Word. To combine the PDF with others, use Merge PDF, and to just read a .docx, try the Word Viewer.