Merging PDFs is one of those tasks that comes up just often enough to be annoying: you've scanned a multi-page document one sheet at a time, or you need to send a resume and cover letter as a single attachment, or you're combining several reports into one file for a client. Whatever the reason, you don't need a full desktop PDF editor to do it.
The one thing that actually matters: order
Before you upload anything, get your files named or sorted in the order you want them to appear - 01-cover-letter.pdf, 02-resume.pdf, and so on works well. Merge PDF Files combines your files in the order you select them, so if page order matters (and it usually does), sort this out first rather than trying to fix it after.
Steps
- Go to Merge PDF Files
- Select two or more PDFs - drag and drop works, or click to browse
- Double-check the order they're listed in
- Click convert, and your combined PDF downloads immediately
No account, no watermark, no limit on how many times you use it.
Common situations this solves
- Scanned documents. Phone scanning apps often save one PDF per page - merge them into a single file before sending.
- Job applications. Cover letter + resume + portfolio as one attachment, rather than three separate files a recruiter has to open individually.
- Reports and invoices. Combining monthly reports into a single quarterly document, or bundling multiple invoices for one client.
- Chapters or sections. If you're assembling a longer document that was written in pieces.
A couple of practical notes
If one of your files uses an unusual PDF structure (some scanned or specially-encrypted PDFs do), you might occasionally hit an error saying the file can't be read - that's a known limitation of the free PDF-parsing library this runs on, not something wrong with your file in general. Re-saving that specific PDF through "Print > Save as PDF" in any PDF viewer usually fixes it, since it rewrites the file in a more standard structure.
Otherwise, this handles pretty much everything you'd throw at it - dozens of pages, mixed page sizes and orientations included.