To convert a PDF to an image on a Mac, open it in Preview, choose File > Export and pick JPEG or PNG. That handles one page at a time. For automation, use a Shortcut. For a pile of PDFs, use a converter app. All three run on your Mac, so the file never goes to a website.

I make Picmal, a Mac converter, so one of the three below is mine. I’ll say which and why.

You usually need this for a website upload, a slide deck, a chat app that rejects PDFs, or a form that wants a picture of a page. The first result for this search is often an online tool. It works, but it means uploading the PDF. These three don’t.

Method 1: Preview, the built-in option

Preview is the quickest way to turn one page into a picture.

  1. Open the PDF in Preview (double-click it).
  2. Go to the page you want in the sidebar.
  3. Choose File > Export.
  4. Set Format to JPEG or PNG. Move the quality or resolution fields if you see them.
  5. Pick a name and a folder, then click Save.

The resolution field matters. A low number gives a blurry page you can’t read once it’s zoomed in. Raise it before you save if the page has small text. Export saves the page you have open. For a whole document, use Shortcuts or Picmal below.

It’s good for: one page, right now, nothing to install. It’s clumsy for: a PDF with many pages, or a folder of PDFs.

Method 2: Shortcuts, free automation

The Shortcuts app can turn every page of a PDF into an image and file the results in a folder. You build it once and reuse it from Finder.

  1. Open Shortcuts and create a new shortcut.
  2. Set it to accept PDFs, for example as a Quick Action in Finder.
  3. Add the Make Image from PDF Page action and point it at the PDF.
  4. Add Save File and choose a destination folder.

Then right-click a PDF in Finder, open Quick Actions and run it. The action makes one image per page. It has three settings: Image Format, Color and Resolution (dots per inch). Check the format before you save, so you get JPEG or PNG on purpose.

It’s good for: people who like building small automations. It’s fiddly for: anything you need to adjust per file, such as format or resolution, and it can trip on unusual PDFs.

Method 3: A converter app, for batches

Once you have a stack of PDFs, or you want to choose the format and resolution each time, an app is less work than Preview or a hand-built Shortcut.

Picmal is the one I make. It’s a native Mac app that converts and compresses images, video, audio and PDFs, and it works offline. Drag your PDFs in, choose JPG or PNG as the output, and convert. It renders each page at a resolution you pick in Settings > Images, from quick previews up to print quality.

It also batches. You can drop in many files at once, or select PDFs in Finder and run it from a Quick Action. There’s no account, and the PDFs stay on your Mac. It’s a one-time purchase, and the full app has a 7-day trial. The docs on converting files cover the steps. A multi-page PDF becomes one image per page, named after the PDF with a page number: report-page-0.png, report-page-1.png and so on. The count starts at 0.

The other PDF jobs live in the same app. It can merge, split and reorder pages, and turn a folder of images into a PDF.

It’s good for: many files, or control over format and DPI. It’s more than you need for: a single page once a year. Use Preview.

Mistakes to avoid

Exporting at low resolution. The image looks fine small and unreadable when you zoom in. Pick a higher DPI for pages with small text.

Choosing JPG for a page of text. JPG blurs sharp edges. PNG keeps them. See the best image formats for the web for when each one wins.

Forgetting there’s one image per page. Convert a long PDF into an empty folder, or you’ll be hunting for the files.

Alberto Gallego makes Picmal, a native Mac app for converting and compressing images, video, audio and PDFs locally. More about the person behind it.