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Export your edited PDF

Choose fillable or flattened output, decide whether comments come along, and download the finished PDF.

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or paste with Ctrl/⌘+V

Start free without an account. Create a free account to download.

PDF · up to 25 MB

Start without an account. A free account includes 3 edited-document downloads a month. See plans

What it does

Export PDF, explained

Export turns the document you edited in PDFBetter into a downloadable PDF. The preview and the export are drawn from the same document model, so the file matches what you saw in the editor.

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The main choice is fillable or flattened. Fillable keeps form fields interactive, so the next person can still type into them. Flattened draws every field value, signature and annotation into the page so nothing can be changed in an ordinary viewer; use it for a final copy you send or file. You also decide whether comments and sticky notes are included, and you can export only the content you added, on blank pages, for printing onto pre-printed paper forms.

Exporting needs a free account. The Free plan includes 3 edited-document downloads a month, Pro and Business are unlimited, and a Day Pass gives 24 hours of Pro. Export produces a PDF; for Word, Excel or images, use the conversion tools afterwards. To send to a printer instead, use Print PDF.

How to do it

Export your edited PDF in 4 steps

  1. 1A finished PDF

  2. 2Link, email, print or fax

  3. 3Delivered

  1. 1

    Finish editing

    Make your changes in the editor; they save automatically.

  2. 2

    Open Export

    Choose fillable or flattened, and whether to include comments.

  3. 3

    Name the file

    Set the file name you want the recipient to see.

  4. 4

    Download

    Create an account if prompted; your edits are kept through sign-up.

Example

Before and after

Before

An invoice filled in the editor with a signature, a highlighted due date and two internal sticky notes.

After

A flattened PDF without comments: the values and signature are part of the page, and the internal notes are not in the file the client receives.

Settings & formats

What you can control

Fillable or flattened
Keep fields interactive, or burn values, signatures and annotations into the page.
Include comments
Keep comments and notes as PDF annotations, or leave them out.
Added content only
Export just what you added, on blank pages of the same size, for printing onto a pre-printed form.
File name
The name of the downloaded file.

Input

PDF

Output

PDF

Good to know before you start

  • Flattening is one-way in the exported file: fields become static content and can't be filled again from that copy (your editable version stays in your account).
  • Export produces PDF only; converting to Word, Excel or images is a separate step.
  • If the document contains unapplied redaction marks, export stops until you apply them.
  • Without an account there is no download; the Free plan allows 3 edited-document downloads a month.
If something goes wrong
Fields aren't fillable in the downloaded file
You exported flattened. Export again with Fillable selected; your editable version is still in your account.
Export says redactions must be applied
Redaction marks only take effect when applied. Apply them in the Redact tool, then export.
I've used my downloads for the month
The Free plan includes 3 a month. A Day Pass gives 24 hours of Pro, or upgrade for unlimited downloads.

Export PDF: questions people ask

Should I export fillable or flattened?

Fillable when someone else still needs to fill the form. Flattened for a final copy you send, file or archive, so values can't be changed in an ordinary viewer.

Does the export have a watermark?

No. Downloads on every plan, including Free, have no PDFBetter watermark.

What is “added content only” for?

Printing onto a pre-printed paper form. You get only your typed text, checks and signature in the right positions on blank pages.

Are comments included?

Only if you choose to include them. In a fillable export they stay as PDF annotations; in a flattened export they are drawn onto the page.

Can I export to Word?

Export the PDF, then use PDF to Word. Expect some layout cleanup, as with any PDF to Word conversion.

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