How to Save Excel as PDF

Discover how to efficiently print, save, and convert your Excel documents to PDF using MS Excel on your desktop, Xodo online in your browser, and Xodo’s app on your mobile device.

Tired of struggling to share your Excel spreadsheets with others? Well, one solution we're about to look at will eliminate that struggle: save Excel as PDF.

Doing so, ensures compatibility across different platforms and preserves the formatting and layout of your data. A perfect solution for any important data you need to share.

We’ll go step-by-step over the process of transferring your Excel to PDF, exploring the different methods below:

• Saving Excel to PDF in MS Excel
• Saving Excel to PDF online
• Saving Excel to PDF on mobile

So get ready to seamlessly share your spreadsheet data as PDF documents.

How to save Excel as PDF with MS Excel

Saving Excel to PDF in MS Excel can be done by adjusting and customizing the built-in PDF printer driver and printing options. Using the print functionality, you can save either a workbook, a worksheet, or a selection of your Excel data to PDF.

How to save an Excel workbook as a PDF

To save an Excel workbook as a PDF, open it in Microsoft Excel and follow the steps below:

1. Go to File > Print.

2. Under the “Printer” section, click on the drop-down menu and select Microsoft Pint to PDF.

3. Under the “Settings” section, select Print Entire Workbook. At this point, you may also want to select options like Landscape Orientation and Fit All Columns on One Page.

Depending on how many columns you have, you can try selecting a lengthier paper size and adjust your margins, as well. We suggest trying the Legal Paper size and Narrow Margins options.

4. When your preview looks alright, click on Print.

EXPERT TIP: To make more refined adjustments, go to the Page Layout tab and among the Page Setup section options you can get more precise with how Excel prints your data on a page.

Here’s a brief look at some of the options:

• Set boundaries for your print area: Constantly printing a specific selection on a worksheet? You can define a print area that includes just that selection using the Print Area option.
• Specify margin measurements: You can further refine your margins down to the decimal point, adjusting all margins individually. Click on Custom Margins... in the bottom right-hand corner of the Margins drop-down list of options to start.
• Insert, move, or delete page breaks: For Excel worksheets that contain data that can’t fit onto one page, you can customize your page breaks and decide how you want your data to split across PDF pages.

These options also apply to saving an Excel sheet, which we'll cover next.

How to save an Excel sheet as a PDF

In cases where you may not need the entire workbook, you can focus in on the worksheet you want.

To save one Excel sheet as PDF, follow these steps:

1. Open your Microsoft Excel workbook and go the worksheet you wish to save as a PDF.

2. Go to File > Print.

3. Under the “Printer” section, click on the drop-down menu and select Microsoft Print to PDF.

4. From the “Settings” section, select Print Active Sheets.

5. Just as in the previous method above, set your printing options that will maximize your page area and content to get Excel to fit on one page as much as possible.

6. Once your preview looks alright, click on Print.

How to save selected cells in Excel as PDF

If you want a more tailored version of your Excel data saved to PDF, you can convert only the data you highlight and select. Use the below method:

1. Open your spreadsheet in Excel.

2. Highlight the cells containing the data you need by selecting them.

3. Go to File > Print.

4. In the printing options, ensure Microsoft Print to PDF is set as your printer and under the “Settings” options, select Print Selection.

5. For the other settings, as mentioned in the previous methods, adjust the orientation, paper size, margins, and scaling options to ensure all the data is visible on the page in the print preview.

6. Click on Print.

How to save Excel as PDF online

One of the quickest ways to save Excel as PDF is by using an online Excel to PDF converter online. A handy alternative if you don't have access to MS Excel. Here's how:

1. Go to Xodo’s Excel to PDF converter tool.

2. Upload your Excel spreadsheet.

3. Click on Convert.

Like with the other methods, some dynamic spreadsheet elements like column filters and formulas won’t transfer over. However, the conversion will retain the fonts, formatting, and charts that are in your spreadsheet.

One advantage of using Xodo is that once your spreadsheet is converted, you can use Xodo’s PDF tools to further refine your PDF. Simply click on any of the tools under the “Continue to” section to get started.

How to save Excel as PDF on mobile

Using Xodo is ideal because it also has an Android app and iOS app available. So, if you’re using Xodo online and decide to save your spreadsheet on Xodo Drive, you can save Excel file as PDF right from your device, as well.

We'll show you how to do it on Android, but if you're using an iPhone, don't worry—the process is the same for iOS.

1. Tap on the Xodo icon on your phone.

2. Tap on the Toolbox icon at the bottom of the screen and tap on Convert to PDF.

3. Then from the "Files" list, select your Excel file. If you don’t see the file displayed, tap on ADD FILES at the top of the screen and browse for your file from the list of locations available.

4. Once your file is selected, tap on NEXT > CONVERT. You can also opt to save your converted file to Xodo Drive by toggling the option on.

Xodo will automatically convert your file, saving it to either your Processed files folder or Xodo Drive. Whether you’re online or on the go sharing financial reports, Xodo lets you work from anywhere.

Effectively save and share data with Xodo and more

Now that you know how to save an Excel file as a PDF by using MS Excel, online in your browser, and on your mobile device, you can save and share your spreadsheet whenever you need.

From editing PDFs to compressing your files – or even converting your PDF back to Excel, Xodo has your back. With over 30 tools at your fingertips, you can tackle any PDF task that comes your way.

Try Xodo today!