How to Convert JPG to PDF on Mac

Why you would convert a JPG to PDF

Converting images to PDF is one of those tasks that comes up more often than you would expect. You photograph a receipt and need to submit it as a PDF for an expense report. You scan a document with your phone camera and the result is a JPG that needs to be a PDF for filing. You have a collection of product images that need to go into a single document for a catalogue or presentation. Or you need to send someone a photo in a format that prints consistently on any device.

PDFs are the universal document format for a reason. They look the same on every screen and every printer, regardless of operating system. They maintain exact dimensions and resolution. They can contain multiple pages in a single file. And they are the expected format for most business, legal, and academic submissions. When someone asks you to "send it as a PDF," they mean it - a JPG is not a substitute.

The good news is that converting JPG to PDF on a Mac is straightforward, and you have several options. macOS includes built-in tools that handle the conversion without any additional software. For more control or batch processing, there are dedicated apps and online converters. This guide covers three approaches so you can choose the one that fits your situation best.

Method 1: Using macOS Preview (Export as PDF)

Preview, the image and PDF viewer built into every Mac, can convert JPG files to PDF with just a few clicks. It also supports combining multiple images into a single multi-page PDF, which makes it surprisingly versatile for this task.

How to convert a single JPG to PDF with Preview

1. Open the JPG file in Preview. Double-clicking the image usually opens it in Preview by default. If it opens in another app, right-click the file, select Open With, and choose Preview.
2. Go to File and select Export as PDF. This option appears directly in the File menu. It is not buried in a submenu or hidden behind a preference.
3. Choose a filename and save location. Preview will suggest the same filename with a .pdf extension. Pick your destination folder and click Save.
4. Done. The image is now a PDF file. The original JPG remains untouched.

How to combine multiple images into one PDF with Preview

1. Select all the images you want to combine in Finder. Click the first image, then hold Shift and click the last one to select a range, or hold Command and click individual images to select them.
2. Right-click the selection and choose Open With, then Preview. All selected images will open in a single Preview window.
3. Show the thumbnail sidebar. Go to View and select Thumbnails. You will see each image as a separate page in the sidebar.
4. Reorder the pages by dragging thumbnails in the sidebar. Arrange them in the order you want them to appear in the final PDF.
5. Select all pages. Click the first thumbnail, then press Command-A to select all pages.
6. Go to File and select Print. In the Print dialog, click the PDF dropdown button in the lower-left corner and choose Save as PDF.
7. Name the file and save. All your images are now combined into a single multi-page PDF.

What Preview does well

For single image conversion, Preview's Export as PDF is the fastest method available. It takes about three seconds from opening the file to having a PDF saved. The output quality matches the original image resolution - no compression is applied by default, so your PDF looks exactly like your JPG.

The multi-image workflow through the Print dialog is less intuitive, but it works reliably. Once you know the trick - open all images in Preview, then use the Print dialog's Save as PDF option - you can combine any number of images into a single document.

Where Preview falls short

Preview does not offer any control over the PDF output settings during conversion. You cannot adjust the page size, set margins, control image placement on the page, or choose compression levels. The image is placed on the page at its native resolution, and what you get is what you get.

For combining multiple images, the workflow is awkward. Having to go through the Print dialog to create a multi-page PDF is unintuitive, and the page layout is determined by the Print settings rather than explicit document controls. If your images are different sizes or orientations, the results can be inconsistent - some pages may have large margins while others are cropped.

Preview also does not support batch conversion of multiple images into separate PDFs. If you have 20 images and need 20 individual PDF files, you will need to convert each one manually or use a different tool.

Method 2: Using Automator or Shortcuts for batch conversion

macOS includes automation tools - Automator (on older macOS versions) and Shortcuts (on macOS Monterey and later) - that can convert images to PDF in bulk. This is the best built-in option when you need to convert many images regularly.

How to create a Quick Action with Automator

1. Open Automator from your Applications folder. Choose Quick Action as the document type.
2. Set the workflow input. At the top of the workflow, set "Workflow receives current" to "image files" in "Finder."
3. Add the "New PDF from Images" action. In the action library on the left, search for "New PDF from Images" and drag it into the workflow area. This action takes image files and combines them into a PDF.
4. Configure the output. You can set where the resulting PDF is saved and what it is named. For batch conversion of individual images into individual PDFs, use the "Render Each Page as a Separate PDF" option if available, or add a loop action.
5. Save the Quick Action. Give it a descriptive name like "Convert Images to PDF." The action now appears in the right-click menu when you select image files in Finder.

How to use Shortcuts for image-to-PDF conversion

1. Open the Shortcuts app and create a new shortcut.
2. Add a "Make PDF from Images" action (or similar - search for "PDF" in the action library). This action converts input images to a PDF document.
3. Add a "Save File" action after the PDF action. This prompts you to choose a save location when the shortcut runs.
4. Save the shortcut and optionally add it to the menu bar or assign a keyboard shortcut.
5. Run the shortcut by selecting images in Finder and using the Quick Actions menu, or by running it directly from the Shortcuts app and selecting files when prompted.

Why automation is powerful for this task

Once you create an Automator Quick Action or Shortcut, the conversion becomes a right-click operation. Select 50 images in Finder, right-click, choose your Quick Action, and they are all converted to a PDF. No app to open, no menu to navigate, no repetitive clicking. For anyone who regularly converts images to PDF - photographers, administrative staff, real estate agents documenting properties - this automation saves significant time.

Automator and Shortcuts also handle the multi-image-to-single-PDF workflow more cleanly than Preview. The "New PDF from Images" action takes all selected images and creates a properly paginated PDF document in one step, without needing the Print dialog workaround.

The learning curve

The downside of Automator and Shortcuts is the initial setup. If you have never used either tool, creating your first workflow takes some experimentation. The action library can be overwhelming, and the documentation is not always clear about which action to use. But once the workflow is created, you never need to touch it again - it just works from the right-click menu or as a keyboard shortcut.

It is also worth noting that Automator is being phased out in favour of Shortcuts in newer macOS versions. If you are setting up a new workflow, Shortcuts is the better long-term investment. Both work for now, but Shortcuts is where Apple is putting its development effort.

Method 3: Online image-to-PDF converters

Websites like iLovePDF, Smallpdf, and Sejda offer browser-based tools that convert JPG files to PDF. You upload your images, the server converts them, and you download the result.

How online converters typically work

1. Visit the converter website and select their JPG to PDF tool.
2. Upload your images. Drag files into the browser window or click to select them from your Mac. Each image is transferred to the service's servers.
3. Configure settings. Most online tools let you choose page size (A4, Letter, etc.), orientation (portrait or landscape), and margins. Some let you adjust image placement and scaling.
4. Click Convert and wait for the server to process your images.
5. Download the PDF. The converted file is made available for download.

When online converters make sense

Online converters offer one notable advantage over Preview: they give you control over page layout. You can choose the paper size, set margins, and control how the image is positioned on the page. This is useful when you need a specific page format - for example, placing a receipt image centred on an A4 page with standard margins.

Online tools also work on any computer with a browser, which makes them useful when you are on a shared machine or a computer where you cannot install software or access system automation tools.

The privacy and practical trade-offs

Every image you upload travels to a third-party server. For photos of receipts, product images, or other non-sensitive content, this may be acceptable. For personal photographs, identity documents, medical images, or any content you would not want on someone else's server, it is a risk.

Free tiers impose limits. iLovePDF limits the number of tasks per time period. Smallpdf limits the number of free conversions per day. Sejda limits file sizes and daily usage on the free plan. If you convert images frequently, these limits become annoying quickly and push you toward a paid subscription.

The process is also slower than local conversion. Uploading images, waiting for server processing, and downloading the result takes longer than Preview's near-instant Export as PDF. On slow internet connections, the difference is significant. And if you are offline, online tools are not an option at all.

Comparison: All three methods side by side

Here is how the three approaches compare for converting JPG to PDF on Mac:

When to use each method

Use macOS Preview when...

You need to convert a single image to PDF quickly, or combine a handful of images into one PDF document. Preview's Export as PDF is the fastest possible path for single images. The multi-image workflow through the Print dialog is slightly awkward but reliable. Choose Preview for quick, one-off conversions where you do not need page layout control.

Use Automator or Shortcuts when...

You convert images to PDF regularly and want a right-click workflow that handles everything automatically. The initial setup takes 10 to 15 minutes, but after that, every conversion is a two-click operation. This is the best option for photographers, administrative staff, or anyone who does this task repeatedly.

Use online converters when...

You need specific page layout options (paper size, margins, image positioning), you are on a machine where you cannot install software or access system tools, or you need a one-time conversion and do not want to set up an Automator workflow. Be mindful of the privacy implications - your images will be uploaded to a third-party server.

Tips for better JPG-to-PDF conversions

Image resolution matters

The quality of your PDF depends entirely on the quality of your source images. A low-resolution JPG will produce a low-resolution PDF. For documents that need to be printed, aim for images with at least 300 DPI (dots per inch). For screen-only viewing, 150 DPI is usually sufficient. You can check an image's resolution in Preview by going to Tools and selecting Show Inspector.

Watch the file size

High-resolution JPGs can create very large PDFs. A single 20-megapixel photo can produce a PDF file of 10 MB or more. If you are combining many large images into one PDF, the file size can grow quickly. If the PDF needs to be emailed or uploaded to a system with size limits, consider reducing the image resolution before conversion. Paradise PDF includes tools for optimising PDF file sizes after conversion.

Consider the page orientation

When converting images to PDF, the page orientation should match the image orientation. Landscape photos should be on landscape pages, and portrait photos should be on portrait pages. Preview handles this automatically for single images, but the Print dialog workflow for multi-image PDFs sometimes defaults to portrait for all pages. Check the output and adjust if needed.

PNG and other formats work the same way

While this guide focuses on JPG, the same methods work for PNG, TIFF, HEIC, and other image formats that macOS supports. Preview's Export as PDF works with any image format it can open. Automator and Shortcuts accept multiple image types as input. This means you can mix formats when combining multiple images into a single PDF.

Related reading

• convert PDF to JPG
• convert HEIC to PDF
• merge multiple PDFs