How to convert PDF files to JPG on Mac

Convert a PDF page to a JPG image file

To convert a specific page in a PDF file to a JPG image file, you can use the built-in Preview app on your Mac.

Start by opening the folder containing your PDF in Finder.

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Right-click the PDF file and choose Open With > Preview from the menu that appears.

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In the Preview interface, select the PDF page you want to convert to a JPG file. Then, from the menu bar, click File > Export.

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Preview's file export window will appear. At the top of this window, click the "Export As" text field and enter the converted JPG filename. Then choose a folder to save this file.

At the bottom of the export window, click the 'Format' drop-down menu and select 'JPEG'. Drag the 'Quality' slider to the left to reduce the output file quality, or to the right to increase the file quality.

Alternatively, you can also click in the "Resolution" field and enter a resolution value. However, this is not required.

Now, scroll to the bottom of the Export window and click 'Save' to save the JPG file.

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You will find the converted JPG file in your specified folder.

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Convert all PDF files to JPG

In case you have a multi-page PDF file and want to convert it to a JPG file, the method of using the Preview tool mentioned above will not be ideal. Use the Automator Quick Action instead by following these steps.

First, open the Automator tool on your Mac. Do this by pressing Command + spacebar, typing 'Automator' in the Spotlight search bar, and clicking on the corresponding search result that returns.

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In the Automator window, choose File > New from the menu bar.

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In Automator's 'Choose a Type for Your Document' prompt, click 'Quick Action'. Then, at the bottom, click 'Choose'.

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You are now on the Quick Action editing screen. Here, at the top, click the 'Workflow Receives Current' drop-down menu and select 'PDF Files'.

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In the top left corner of Automator, click 'Actions'. Then, tap in the text field next to 'Variables' and enter 'Render PDF Pages as Images'.

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From the search results, drag the 'Render PDF Pages as Images' item and drop it into the task interface on the right.

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In the 'Render PDF Pages as Images' section on the right, click the 'Format' drop-down menu and select 'JPEG Image'.

You can click 'Resolution' to specify a custom resolution for the image and click 'Compression' to choose a file compression level.

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Click again in the search box next to 'Variables'. This time, enter 'Move Finder Items'. Then, from the search results, drag the 'Move Finder Items' item and drop it into the 'Render PDF Pages as Images' section on the right side of the interface. How to convert PDF files to JPG on Mac Picture 13

In the 'Move Finder Items' section on the right, click the 'To' drop-down menu and choose a folder to save the converted JPG files.

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Your Quick Action tool is now ready. To save it, from the Automator menu bar, choose File > Save, or press the keyboard shortcut Command + S.

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You'll see a save prompt in Automator. Here, enter a name for your Quick Action and click 'Save'. This name will appear as you use the tool, so give it a descriptive, confusing name, such as 'PDF to JPG'.

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Now that your Quick Action tool is saved, close Automator by clicking Automator > Quit Automator in the menu bar.

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To use the Quick Action tool and convert PDF files to JPG, first open the folder containing the PDF file you want to convert.

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Select PDF files to convert to JPG. Then right-click on any PDF file and click Quick Actions > the name of the Quick Actions tool you just created, as in the example in the article is PDF to JPG.

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Automator will immediately start converting the selected PDF files to JPG. When the conversion is complete, you will find them in the folder you specified.

Hope you are succesful.

Lesley Montoya

Update 20 September 2021