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Create, convert, share, and organize your documents.
Search this topicOpen the document on a computer, choose File, Download, and select PDF Document. The downloaded file is a separate snapshot of the document, so later edits to the Google Doc will not change that copy. If a very large document cannot download normally, Google suggests using File, Print and selecting Save as PDF as the destination. Open the PDF afterward to check that its pages and formatting look correct.
Open Share, enter the person’s email address, and set their role to Viewer before sharing. Keep General access set to Restricted if only named people should have access. Review the existing access list too: someone who already has broader permission through a shared parent folder may retain it. Work or school accounts can also restrict external sharing, so the available choices may differ from a personal account.
Open the mode menu near the top of the document and choose Suggesting instead of Editing. Type additions or delete text as you normally would; Google Docs marks those actions as proposed changes for review. The owner or an editor can accept or reject them. You need appropriate commenting or editing access to suggest changes. Use Tools, Review suggested edits when you want to review the document’s suggestions together.
Open the document’s version history using its last-edit indicator or version-history controls, then select an earlier version to inspect it. If it contains the text you need, choose Restore this version and confirm. Restoring makes that earlier content the current version. To preserve the present document while retrieving old content, use the earlier version’s menu to make a copy instead. You need editing permission to review version history.
On a computer, open Edit, Find and replace. Enter the text to find and its replacement, then use Next or Previous to inspect matches. Choose Replace for one occurrence or Replace all when every match should change. Use Match case if capitalization matters. Reviewing a few matches first helps avoid changing text inside names or phrases you intended to keep, especially when replacing a short or common word.
Use a document in Pages format, then open Insert, Page elements, and Page number. Choose the placement you want, or open the additional options to adjust how numbering applies to sections. Page numbering is unavailable in Pageless format, so switch the document’s page setup if the control is missing. Check the first few pages afterward, especially if the document includes a title page or section breaks.
On a computer, choose File, Page setup and make sure Pages is selected. Change Orientation to Landscape, then confirm with OK. This changes the page shape, so review wide tables, images, and page breaks afterward. If only part of the document needs a different orientation, select the relevant text and use the option to change that selection to landscape. Orientation settings do not apply to Pageless documents.
While connected to the internet, open the Google Docs app and find the file. Tap its More menu and turn on Make available offline. Before traveling or losing connectivity, check the app’s Offline section to confirm the document is available. You can open and edit saved offline files without a connection; reconnect later so changes can sync. Repeat the setting for each specific document you need.
Open the Review tab, find the Tracking controls, and turn on Track Changes. Depending on your Word version, you may be able to track everyone’s changes or just your own. Make a small edit and check that it appears as a revision before continuing. Turning tracking off stops recording future edits, but it does not remove changes already recorded; those still need to be accepted or rejected.
In Word’s Review tab, review each revision and choose Accept or Reject as appropriate. Continue until no tracked changes remain, then check comments separately and delete any you do not want included. Choosing No Markup only hides revisions on screen; it does not remove them from the file. Save a separate review copy first if you want to retain the original change history while preparing a clean version for sharing.
Look at the word count on Word’s status bar at the bottom of the window. Click it for more detail. To count just part of the document, select that text and review the selected-word count alongside the document total. In Word for the web, use the Word Count control under Review if it is not already visible. Confirm which text is selected before using the number for a length requirement.
Apply Word’s heading styles to the document’s section titles, such as Heading 1 for major sections and Heading 2 for subsections. Place the cursor where the contents list should go, then choose References, Table of Contents and an automatic style. Update the table after editing headings or changing page lengths. If a section is missing, check its actual heading style; simply making a title bold is not enough.
Open the PDFs in Preview and duplicate them first if you want to preserve the originals. Turn on View, Thumbnails in each window, then drag page thumbnails into the destination document's sidebar. Drop them at the correct position and review the order. Preview can save changes automatically.
Make a duplicate of the destination PDF, open it in Preview, and display its thumbnails sidebar. Drag the other PDF's file icon from Finder into that sidebar. Place it between the intended pages or at the end, then check the resulting page sequence before sharing the combined copy.
Open the PDF in Preview, choose File, Export, and select Reduce File Size from the Quartz Filter menu. Save with a different filename to keep the original. Open the smaller copy and inspect small text and images, since compression can reduce quality and the size reduction varies by document.
In Preview's Export dialog, look for options to optimize images for screens or save images as JPEG. These can reduce image data, with a possible quality tradeoff. A linearized PDF is optimized for browser loading. Compare the exported copy with the original before choosing the version to distribute.
Open the PDF in Preview and click a form field to type. If the document has no usable fields, add a text box through the markup tools and position it over the intended space. Review alignment and every entered value before saving or returning the completed form.
Open the PDF in Preview and show the Markup toolbar. Use the signature tool to capture a signature with the trackpad, camera, or a compatible nearby iPhone or iPad. Insert the saved signature, drag it into place, and resize using its handles. Review the document before sending it.
For a supported PDF form, open it in Preview and choose AutoFill Form or click a suitable field. Select your name to insert matching information from Contacts. Check your contact card and review each filled field afterward; not every PDF supports this feature or maps its fields correctly.
Choose File, Export in Preview, then open Permissions. Enable the requirement for a password to open the document and enter it twice. Set the owner password as requested, apply, and save a new copy. Close and reopen that copy to verify the password requirement actually took effect.
If you own the PDF and know its owner password, open File, Edit Permissions in Preview. Checked actions are allowed without the owner password; unchecked actions require it. Adjust the printing or editing permissions, apply them, and reopen the document. The permission changes take effect on the next opening.
Preview's markup tools let you add text boxes, notes, and shapes, but they do not edit the PDF's existing text. For a wording correction, edit the original source document and export a new PDF, or use a PDF text editor. Covering text with a shape is not secure redaction.
After checking your markups, choose File, Print and use Save as PDF to create a flattened copy. Keep the editable original if you may revise the notes later. Normal Save or Export preserves editable annotations, so merely saving the file does not produce the same result.
Work on a duplicate, then use Preview's Redaction Selection tool on the text to remove. Review carefully before closing because redactions become permanent after the document closes. Check other occurrences and table-of-contents entries too: links to redacted text do not automatically remove the associated contents entries.
Source checks for these answers: September 21, 2026. Product instructions and local requirements can vary.