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PDF tools

Picmal’s sidebar has a PDF section with two tools: Combine PDFs merges documents into one, and Images to PDF turns a set of images into a multi-page PDF. Both run entirely on your Mac, like everything else in Picmal.

Combine PDFs

Section titled “Combine PDFs”
  1. Select Combine PDFs in the sidebar
  2. Drop two or more PDFs into the window
  3. Drag rows to set the page order — the list order is the document order
  4. Click Combine

Combine PDFs in Picmal: two PDFs queued under the PDF section of the sidebar, with the PDF Options popover naming the output file

The merged file is saved next to the first PDF as <name> (combined).pdf. If that name is taken, Picmal counts up instead of overwriting — <name> (combined) 2.pdf, and so on.

  • Drag rows to reorder; the number on each row is its position in the merged document.
  • Select rows and press Delete to remove them, or right-click for Remove / Show in Finder.
  • Locked PDFs show an orange lock badge and block the merge. Unlock them in Preview first, then re-add.
  • If your Convert or Compress list has only PDFs when you switch to Combine PDFs, they carry over automatically.

Images to PDF

Section titled “Images to PDF”
  1. Select Images to PDF in the sidebar
  2. Drop your images in — each image becomes one page
  3. Drag rows to set the page order
  4. Pick a page size, and adjust quality or add a password in the options popover
  5. Click Create PDF

Images to PDF in Picmal: two images queued, with the PDF Options popover showing output name, image quality, and password fields

The PDF is saved next to the first image as <name>.pdf, uniquified the same way.

Accepted inputs are the formats macOS decodes natively: JPEG, PNG, HEIC/HEIF, TIFF, GIF, BMP, WebP, AVIF, JPEG 2000, and JPEG XL. Sideways photos from iPhones render upright — EXIF orientation is applied automatically.

Page sizes

Section titled “Page sizes”
OptionBehavior
Fit to ImageEach page exactly wraps its image — no borders, no scaling. Default.
A4Standard A4, auto-rotated to match each image’s orientation.
US LetterStandard Letter, auto-rotated the same way.
Custom…Your own size in millimeters (10–2000 mm per side).

The row thumbnails preview the layout: change the page size and they reshape instantly to show how each image sits on its page.

Quality

Section titled “Quality”

Images are embedded as JPEG at the quality you choose (40–100%, default 85%). Lower quality makes a smaller file. The setting is remembered between sessions.

Password protection

Section titled “Password protection”

Type a password in the options popover and the PDF requires it to open. The password is kept for the current session only — Picmal never stores it on disk.

Use them from Finder, Shortcuts, and the terminal

Section titled “Use them from Finder, Shortcuts, and the terminal”

Both tools are available everywhere Convert and Compress are:

  • In Finder, right-click a PDF selection and choose Picmal — Combine PDFs, or an image selection and choose Picmal — Images to PDF. Both run with your saved settings, in selection order, even with Picmal closed. See Integrations.
  • In Shortcuts, the Combine PDFs and Make PDF from Images actions take files in and return the finished PDF. Add a ready-made Combine PDFs or Make PDF from Images shortcut, or see Integrations.
  • From the terminal, use picmal-cli combine and picmal-cli images-to-pdf. See Command line.

Like Convert and Compress, both tools require an active license.