Three ways to combine PDFs on a Mac
| Method | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Preview (sidebar drag) | Adding some pages, or a whole PDF, into another and reordering pages | Changes save automatically to the file you are editing |
| Finder › Quick Actions › Create PDF | Turning several files, including images, into one new PDF in one step | Files appear in the order you selected them |
| A browser tool | Merging with a visual order list, on any Mac or another computer | Very large files depend on your Mac’s free memory |
The steps below follow Apple’s own guides for combining PDFs in Preview and combining files in the Finder, checked on 6 October 2026.
Combine PDFs in Preview
- Make copies first: open each PDF in Preview and choose File › Duplicate. Preview saves changes automatically, so this keeps your originals.
- Open the PDFs you want to combine.
- In each one, choose View › Thumbnails to show the page thumbnails in the sidebar.
- Drag the thumbnails you want from one PDF’s sidebar into the other’s. Command-click to select pages that are not next to each other. Drop them at the end or between existing pages.
- Drag thumbnails up or down to fix the order.
To add a whole PDF, drag its icon from the Finder into the sidebar of the open document.
Combine files with the Finder
- Open a Finder window and select the files: click the first one, then Command-click the others in the order you want them.
- Control-click the selection and choose Quick Actions › Create PDF.
- The new PDF appears next to the files, named after the first file you selected.
This works for images as well as PDFs, which makes it a quick way to turn several scans or screenshots into one document. With the Preview pane open (View › Show Preview), there is also a Create PDF button at the bottom of the pane.
Combine PDFs in your browser
Open Merge PDF in Safari, Chrome or Firefox, add the files, drag them into order and download the result. Nothing is installed and the files are combined in the browser tab, not uploaded. It is handy on a work Mac where you cannot change the originals, or when you want to see the whole order before you commit.
Compress a PDF on a Mac
From Apple’s guide to reducing the size of a PDF:
- Open the PDF in Preview and choose File › Export.
- In the Quartz Filter menu, choose Reduce File Size, then click Save. Save under a new name to keep the original.
Recent versions of Preview also show options in the Export dialog, such as optimizing images for screen and saving images as JPEG, for a gentler result. Apple warns that a compressed PDF may be of lower quality than the original. Reduce File Size in particular can make scans and photos blurry, so zoom in on small print before you send it.
If you need a specific size for an upload form, a target-size compressor is more predictable: choose 1 MB, 500 KB or another limit, and it tries the gentlest method that fits.
Sign a PDF on a Mac
From Apple’s guide to filling out and signing PDF forms:
- Open the PDF in Preview, click the Show Markup Toolbar button, then click the Sign button.
- Create a signature: sign on the trackpad with your finger, hold a signature written on white paper up to the camera, or choose your iPhone or iPad and sign on its screen.
- Click the signature to add it, drag it into place and use the handles to resize it.
This adds a picture of your signature, not a certificate-based digital signature. For what that means, read how to sign a PDF. To sign without Preview, Sign PDF lets you type, draw or upload a signature in the browser.
Check the result before you send it
- Scroll through the combined PDF and check the first and last page of each original file.
- Check the file size if it is going to email or an upload form.
- Keep the originals until the recipient has what they need.
Related: how to merge PDF files online, how to compress a PDF and how to sign a PDF on iPhone.
People also ask
Common questions
How do I combine PDF files on a Mac for free?
Use Preview or the Finder, which come with every Mac. In Preview, drag page thumbnails from one PDF into another. In the Finder, select the files, Control-click and choose Quick Actions › Create PDF.
Why did combining in Preview change my original file?
Preview saves changes automatically. Apple recommends choosing File › Duplicate for each PDF before you combine them, so the originals stay untouched.
How do I put the files in the right order with Quick Actions?
The Finder adds files to the new PDF in the order you select them. Click the first file, then Command-click the others in order before choosing Create PDF.
How do I make a PDF smaller on a Mac?
In Preview, choose File › Export and pick Reduce File Size in the Quartz Filter menu. It can lower image quality noticeably, so check the result. For more control, use a compressor with quality levels or a target size.
How do I sign a PDF on a Mac?
Open it in Preview, click the Show Markup Toolbar button, then the Sign button. Create a signature with the trackpad, the camera or your iPhone, then click it and drag it into place.
Do browser PDF tools work in Safari on a Mac?
Yes. FreePDFKit’s merge, compress and sign tools pass our automated tests in Safari’s engine, and they process the files in the browser without uploading them.