Every method below keeps the Doc’s own layout. They differ in where the PDF goes and how much control you get over tabs, margins and page range.
- File > Download (fastest)
- Exporting a Doc that has tabs
- File > Print > Save as PDF (margins, scale, page range)
- File > Email (send without downloading)
- Google Docs mobile app
- Docs to PDF Pro add-on (batch, Drive folders, tab control)
Exporting a Google Doc with File > Download
Use this when you need a quick PDF of the Doc exactly as it looks on screen.
Open the Doc in Google Docs.
Click File > Download > PDF document (.pdf).
If the Doc has tabs, a dialog opens. Choose a tab option and click Export (see the next section).
Result: The PDF goes to your browser’s Downloads folder. Google’s download help lists the other formats on the same menu.
Exporting a Google Doc that has tabs
Use this when your Doc uses document tabs and you want one tab or the whole document.
Click File > Download > PDF document (.pdf).
In the dialog, the default is Current Tab. To include every tab, switch to All Tabs.
Click Export.
Result: One PDF of the current tab, or one continuous PDF of all tabs in tab order.
Note: An all-tabs PDF can include each tab’s name as a separator page before that tab’s content. The add-on method below can leave those pages out. For all three options compared, see how to download all tabs in Google Docs as one PDF.
Exporting a Google Doc with File > Print
Use this when you need to change margins, scale or the page range before saving.
Click File > Print, or press Ctrl + P (Windows) or Cmd + P (Mac).
If the Doc has tabs, choose Print current tab or Print all tabs.
In the browser’s print panel, set Destination to Save as PDF.
Adjust margins, scale and pages. To change the document’s own margins instead, set the document margins before printing.
Click Save, then choose a folder and file name.
Result: A PDF saved where you chose, matching the print preview. The panel’s labels come from your browser, so they vary slightly between Chrome, Edge and Safari.
Sending a Google Doc as a PDF by email
Use this when the PDF is for someone else and you don’t need a copy on your computer.
Click File > Email > Email this file.
Enter the recipient, subject and an optional message. Tick Send yourself a copy if you want one.
Set File type to PDF.
Click Send.
Result: The recipient gets the Doc as a PDF attachment. The email is sent immediately, so check the address first.
Exporting a Google Doc as a PDF on Android
Use this when you are on a phone or tablet and need the PDF on the device.
Open the Doc in the Google Docs app.
Tap the ⋮ menu at the top right, then tap Share and export.
Tap Save as.
Select PDF document (.pdf) and tap OK.
Result: The app creates a PDF copy you can open or share from your device. The iPhone and iPad app has a similar Share & export menu, but its options can differ.
Exporting Google Docs with the Docs to PDF Pro add-on
Use this when you need batch export, specific tabs without separator pages, password protection, or PDFs saved straight to a Drive folder.
Docs to PDF Pro is our sister add-on for Google Docs. After installing it, open Extensions > Docs to PDF Pro and launch the converter.
Under Conversion Settings, leave Include tab names as pages when exporting multi-tabbed documents unticked to skip separator pages.
Under Tab Selection, pick All Tabs or specific tabs.
Under Output Destination, choose Download PDF files and save a backup to Google Drive, Save PDF files only to Google Drive, or Download PDF files only.
Click Convert Current Document to PDF. For several Docs, click Select Multiple Documents & Convert to PDF.
Result: The PDF is downloaded, saved to Drive, or both.
The Marketplace listing states that conversion runs inside your Google account. Review the permissions on the listing and the Docs to PDF Pro privacy policy before installing.
Exporting several Google Docs as one PDF
Use this when the output should be one PDF from many separate Docs. Google Docs exports one document at a time, so you need tabs, a PDF merger or an add-on.
Our guide to combine several Google Docs into one PDF compares those three routes step by step.
Comparing the methods
| Method | Best for | Works on |
|---|---|---|
| File > Download | Fast PDF of the whole Doc or all tabs | Docs on a computer |
| File > Print | Margins, scale, page range | Docs on a computer (browser print panel) |
| File > Email | Sending a PDF without downloading | Docs on a computer |
| Android app | Exporting on the go | Google Docs for Android |
| Docs to PDF Pro | Batch export, Drive folders, tab control, passwords | Docs in a desktop browser |
Platform differences
- Tabs: both Download and Print ask for current tab or all tabs. Download defaults to Current Tab.
- Pageless Docs: pageless format hides headers, footers and page breaks. Switch to pages in File > Page setup before exporting to control how the PDF is paginated.
- Browser: the Print panel belongs to your browser, so labels differ between browsers.
- Mobile: the Android menu path is Share and export > Save as. iPhone and iPad labels can differ.
Troubleshooting
- Comments are missing from the PDF. Google’s PDF download and print don’t include comments. See how to download a Google Doc with comments.
- Only part of the Doc is in the PDF. It probably has tabs. Choose All Tabs in the download dialog, or Print all tabs.
- Extra pages with tab names. These are tab separator pages. Export each tab separately, or use an add-on that skips them.
- Margins or orientation are wrong. Fix them in File > Page setup, or use File > Print and adjust the margins there.
- The PDF never appears. Check your browser’s Downloads folder, and allow downloads for docs.google.com.
- You need the file on a server, not in a browser. Use a direct export link with curl or wget from the command line.
Related next steps
To lock the file down, export a password-protected PDF. If your source is a Word file, see how to convert Word files to PDF, or export to Word instead when people need to edit. More export guides are in the convert and export hub.