How to Convert a PDF to JPG or PNG (and Choose the Right Resolution)
Turn PDF pages into image files, and pick JPG vs. PNG and the right resolution for what you're actually using them for.
Converting a PDF page to an image sounds like one operation, but the right format and resolution depend entirely on what happens to that image next — a thumbnail for a webpage and a print-ready page need very different settings.
JPG or PNG — which one for a PDF page?
Most PDF pages are text and simple graphics, which PNG handles more efficiently and with crisper edges than JPG's compression artifacts. Choose JPG only when a page contains a photo or photo-like content where PNG's larger file size wouldn't be worth it.
Picking a resolution that matches the use case
A page destined for a webpage or a quick preview doesn't need more than roughly 100-150 DPI-equivalent resolution. A page that will be printed needs considerably more (around 300 DPI) to avoid visible pixelation on paper. Exporting everything at maximum resolution by default just produces unnecessarily large files for the majority of use cases.
One image per page, not one combined image
Converting a multi-page PDF produces one image file per page, not a single tall image — this keeps each page individually usable (attaching just page 3 to an email, for example) instead of forcing you to crop a combined image afterward.
When to convert vs. when to keep it a PDF
Convert to images when you need to insert a page into something that only accepts images (a slide, a social post, an image-only upload form). If the recipient can accept a PDF, keeping it as one is usually better — a PDF preserves selectable text and stays a single file instead of scattering into several images.
Quick tips
- For scanned documents that are already essentially images, PNG vs JPG barely matters — use whichever produces the smaller file for that specific scan.
- If you only need a few pages, not the whole document, Split PDF first, then convert just the pages you need — smaller job, fewer files to manage.
- Keep the original PDF; once converted to images, a page can't easily be turned back into selectable, editable text.