If you’re new around here, I have been creating a series of short tutorials to help with some of my frequently asked questions on using Adobe InDesign.
This week, you’ll learn how to export two kinds of PDF files (Interactive and Print) and a JPG file in InDesign.
Watch the tutorial below for an InDesign export run-down. Or keep reading for the notes from the video tutorial, if you prefer to read along. And if you’re a fan of YouTube, click here to subscribe to my channel for more design tutorials and tips!
I’m going to use my InDesign Cliff Notes guide as an example first to show you the two types of PDFs you can export from InDesign.
Go to File > Export, then at the bottom of the screen you can select a file type. I’ll choose PDF Interactive to start. This is best for a PDF that you’re NOT going to print – like one you would email or share as a download on your website or blog. I’ll change my file name to label this one as the interactive option, so we can compare it with the print option in a second.
Click Save, and you’ll get an Export window like this with additional options for your final file.
The most common things you might change here would be the page range (if you want to export just a few pages and not the entire document).
And you can adjust the quality of any images in your file by clicking Compression and adjusting the JPG Quality.
Most everything else can stay as the default for most projects. Click Export and your file will be saved.
Now let’s export a PDF for print – Go to File > Export, then at the bottom of the screen select PDF Print.
I’ll label this one as “print” and click Save to take me to the Export window.
This export window has a few more options than the Interactive PDF export window, but again, most of this can stay as the default for most projects. I’ll use the High Quality Print pre-set at the top of the window, and make sure my page range is All. Then I’ll click Export to save it.
Now let’s check out the file size of these two PDFs and see how they compare. The Interactive PDF (best just for on-screen use) is only about 500 KB (or half a MB), a great size for emailing or downloading online. While the print PDF is about double that size (1 full MB), because it’s higher quality for the printer to print it clearly without any pixelation or fuzziness.
Ok, lastly, what if you just want to export a JPG for a social media graphic or something like that? We’ll use this file of Instagram designs as an example. Go to File > Export, and this time select JPG in the bottom of the window. Click Save, and then it will open the JPG Export window where you can change the page range and the image quality. The rest of the options, I usually leave as the default for most projects.
Keep in mind here – if you select All for the page range, it will export each page in your file as a separate JPG file. This can be a huge time saver for exporting a ton of JPGs with just one click. But if you’re only wanting to export certain pages as JPGs, you can type that into the Range field before exporting.
Then, if we go back to my desktop where I saved all these, you’ll see each JPG saved as a separate file, each one numbered so I can keep them all straight and in order.
Want to learn more about InDesign? Check this out 👇
Free Beginner InDesign Workshop
If you want more Adobe InDesign training, watch my free workshop where I breakdown the most popular design apps + programs and show you when it’s best to use each one (pssst – you can do way more with InDesign than you probably realize), PLUS I walk through exactly how to design a PDF worksheet and promo graphic from start to finish using Adobe InDesign. Drop in your name + email here and I’ll send it to you right away!
