PDF Editor · Windows 10 and 11
Merge PDF files
Open several PDFs at once and they become one document, every page in view. Drag pages into the order you want, drop out the ones you do not need, and save. Your files never leave your computer.
How to merge PDFs
- 1
Open them together
In the PDF Editor, choose Open a PDF or pictures… and select all the files, or drop them onto the window. They are joined in the order you picked them.
- 2
Add more
Forgot one? Use Add pages from other files… in the PDF menu, press + in the page bar, or drop it on the open document. JPG and PNG pictures become pages too.
- 3
Put the pages in order
Drag thumbnails in the page bar. Ctrl-click or Shift-click to pick several, then Delete the pages you do not want or Turn left / Turn right the sideways ones.
- 4
Save one PDF
Press Save (Ctrl S) and choose a name and a folder. Your original files stay as they were.
Merging, page by page
Many merge tools join whole files end to end. Octoolo opens them as one document with every page in the page bar, so merging and tidying happen in the same place: put the signed page after the contract, drop the blank back of a scan, turn the landscape table the right way up.
You can mix PDFs and pictures. A phone photo of a receipt (JPG, PNG, WebP, GIF or BMP) becomes a page shaped like the photo, so expense reports and applications come out as one file.
Before you save, the PDF Editor can also number the pages of the merged document, stamp a watermark on every page, or let you sign it.
What carries over, and what does not
The pages keep their text, pictures and links exactly as they were, and the text stays searchable and selectable. A few things belong to a whole document rather than its pages, and do not survive a merge of several files:
- Bookmarks (the outline in the side panel of a PDF reader).
- Fillable form fields. Fill a form in first, or fill it in Octoolo before merging.
PDFs locked with a password to open cannot be merged until they are unlocked with that password in the program that made them.
Why merge on your own computer
The PDFs people merge are often the private ones: bank statements for a mortgage, ID scans for a visa, medical letters, signed contracts. Online merge sites need you to upload them to a server you know nothing about. Octoolo merges on your own PC: nothing is sent anywhere, there is no file size or page limit, and it works without an internet connection.
Octoolo or an online tool?
| Detail | Octoolo | A typical online tool |
|---|---|---|
| Your files | Stay on your computer | Usually uploaded to the site's server |
| Without internet | Works | Does not work |
| File size | No limit | Often capped on free use |
| Watermarks and ads | None | Common on free plans |
| Cost | $4.99 a month, all 17 apps | Free with limits, or a plan per site |
Questions, answered
How many PDFs can I merge at once?
There is no set limit. Open as many as you need; very large documents only take longer to show and to save.
Can I change the order after opening the files?
Yes. Drag any page's thumbnail to a new place in the page bar. Pick several pages with Ctrl-click or Shift-click to delete or turn them together.
Can I merge pictures and PDFs together?
Yes. JPG, PNG, WebP, GIF and BMP pictures can be opened or dropped in with PDFs, and each picture becomes a page.
Does merging change my original files?
No. Save asks for a name and a folder for the merged PDF, and the files you opened stay as they were.
Is it really offline?
Yes. The PDF Editor runs on your computer and works without an internet connection. Nothing you open in it is uploaded.
Merge PDF, and 16 more apps.
Download for Windows7 days free, then from $3.99 a month for all 17 apps. Windows 10 and 11.