How to Convert a PDF to JPG or PNG Images
Converting a PDF to images is easy; the two decisions that determine whether the result looks good are the format, JPG or PNG, and the resolution you export at.
You convert PDF pages to images when you need to drop a page into a slide, post it on the web, preview it as a thumbnail, or send it somewhere that only accepts images. Each page becomes its own picture file. The two choices that matter are which image format to use and how high a resolution to render.
This guide explains both so your exported images are the right size and stay sharp.
Choose JPG or PNG deliberately
JPG uses lossy compression that is efficient for photographs and continuous-tone images but smears sharp edges, which makes text and line art look slightly fuzzy. PNG uses lossless compression that keeps edges crisp, which is ideal for pages that are mostly text, diagrams, or screenshots, at the cost of a larger file.
The rule of thumb: choose PNG when the page is text-heavy or has sharp lines and you care about crispness; choose JPG when the page is photographic and you care about file size. If you are unsure, PNG is the safer default for document pages because it never blurs text.
- Text, diagrams, screenshots, logos: PNG, for sharp edges.
- Photographs, rich imagery: JPG, for smaller files.
- Need transparency: PNG, since JPG cannot store it.
Set the right resolution
Resolution, measured in dots per inch, controls how much detail is captured. For on-screen use, around 150 dots per inch is usually plenty. For print or when the image will be enlarged, 300 dots per inch keeps it crisp. Exporting far higher than you need just produces enormous files with no visible benefit.
Because images do not reflow the way a PDF does, exporting too low leaves text blurry and impossible to sharpen after the fact. It is better to export a little higher than you think you need and scale down than to export too low and be stuck.
Handle multi-page documents
Converting a multi-page PDF produces one image per page, so a 12-page document yields 12 files. Use a naming pattern so they stay in order, such as page-01, page-02, and expect to receive them zipped or in a folder rather than as a single file.
If you only need certain pages as images, extract those pages first, then convert, so you are not left deleting unwanted image files afterward. And remember that an image of a page is not searchable or selectable; if you need the text back later, keep the original PDF.
Doing it in Atlas
The Atlas PDF studio exports PDF pages as JPG or PNG images at a resolution you choose, so you can pull a clean image of a page for a slide, the web, or a preview. Since the source PDF stays on its record, you keep the searchable original while sharing the image wherever it needs to go. More at /all-in-one.