⧉ Merge PDF

Combining several PDFs into one file makes a set of documents easier to send, print, and archive. Instead of attaching five separate files to an email, you attach a single well-ordered PDF.

What merging PDFs means

Merging places the pages of two or more PDFs one after another into a single new document, preserving each page exactly as it was. The order you arrange the files in becomes the page order of the result, so a cover letter, a report, and an appendix can be joined into one continuous file.

Each source file keeps its own page size and orientation, which means a merged document can legitimately contain a mix of A4 and Letter pages or both portrait and landscape sheets. The visible content of every page is copied faithfully, so nothing is re-rendered or degraded in the process. Merging is the natural first step before adding page numbers or a watermark across the whole combined document.

When merging PDFs is useful

• Assembling a single application packet from separate forms, letters, and certificates.
• Combining monthly statements or invoices into one file for your records.
• Joining scanned chapters or sections into a complete document.
• Turning a batch of individual receipts into one file for an expense report.

How Slate merges PDFs privately

You add the files you want to combine, drag them into the order you need, and Slate stitches them together in your browser. Because the merge happens on your device, sensitive contracts and personal records never leave your computer. The original files are untouched; Slate produces a new combined PDF for you to download.

Good to know before you merge

• Bookmarks and form fields may or may not carry over, depending on the source files.
• Mixed page sizes and orientations are preserved rather than forced to match.
• Password-protected files should be unlocked first so their pages can be read.
• Combining many large scans produces a large combined file that you may then want to compress.

Tips for a clean combined document

• Arrange files before merging; the top-to-bottom order is the final page order.
• If a document is upside down or sideways, rotate it first so the whole file reads consistently.
• Name the output clearly, for example Application-Complete, so you can find it later.
• To combine only some pages of a file, extract those pages first, then merge.