How to Convert XLS to PDF?

Part 1: About XLS & PDF

Before converting XLS to PDF, we will talk about XLS and PDF.

What is XLS?

XLS is the document used in Microsoft Excel 2007 and the earlier versions. The digital table, calculation, drawing, pivot table, the macro programming language can be hold in Excel. This powerful application is usually used in data storage, processing and financial analysis. Although the XLS document can be opened with OpenOffice and LibreOffice, these applications are not compatible well with the document. You should open and edit the XLS documents with Microsoft Excel.

What is PDF?

PDF (Portable Document Format) is the common file format developed by Adobe. Compared with the other formats, PDF is mainly used to view content because it remains the original layout and styles prior to conversion. What’s more, the PDF document can be opened with any device. Now, many e-books, product instructions, reports, online information and e-mails are saved as PDF.

To quickly convert XLS to PDF, you should draw support from the professional tools. Next, we will introduce the PDF applications and the online tools.

Part 2: How to Convert XLS to PDF with Software?

These are the useful tools which can quickly convert XLS to PDF.

1. Microsoft Excel

Using Microsoft Excel is one of the quickest way of converting Excel to PDF. You can use the virtual printer [Microsoft Print to PDF] to save Excel as PDF. But if you need to convert multiple XLS files, you should process them one by one.

① Open the XLS file with Microsoft Excel.

② Click on [File] – [Print] – [Microsoft Print to PDF], and then click on [Print] to save XLS as PDF.

③ In the following window, name for the PDF file and select the storage position. Finally, click on [Save] to save the PDF file well.

2. Numbers

Numbers, developed by Apple Inc., is the application specializing in digital table on Mac OS. This application is built in many iOS devices, with many functions similar with Microsoft Excel.

① First, open the XLS file within Numbers.

② Then, at the top menu, click on [File] – [Export To] – [PDF]. Finally, name for the file and select a folder to save. Click on [Export] to convert XLS to PDF.

3. Adobe Acrobat DC

Adobe Acrobat DC is the popular PDF software that can be used to convert XLS to PDF. What’s more, this multifunctional software supports users to view, edit, manage and share PDF documents. But it costs a lot. We suggest that it I should be the choice for the companies, not the individuals. Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and Windows Phone are available. It can easily convert Word, Excel and PowerPoint to PDF.

① First, download and install Adobe Acrobat DC. Open the software and then click on [Tools]. Next, select [Create PDF].

② After that, click on [Single File] > [Select a File], and then select the target XLS file. If you need to convert multiple files, please select [Multiple Files] and then click on [Create] to convert XLS to PDF.

③ Finally, click on [Save] in the following window to save the converted PDF file.

4. Icecream PDF Converter

You can also use Icecream PDF Converter to quickly and easily convert XLS to PDF. It supports to convert XLS, XLSX, DOC, JPG, PNG, EPUB, HTML and TIFF to PDF, but also convert PDF to the other formats.

① Download and install Icecream PDF Converter. Open the software and click on [To PDF].

② Click on [Add file] or drag and drop the XLS file into the software. Besides, click on the [+] icon to add more files at a time.

③ If you want to combine these files together, you should check the option [Merge all into one PDF file]. Finally, select a folder to save the file and click on [CONVERT] to convert XLS to PDF.

Part 3: How to Convert XLS to PDF Online?

If you don’t want to install any application, you can use the online tool to convert formats under the stable network.

1. Google Sheets

Google Sheets is the online replacement of Microsoft Excel. You can view and convert XLS to PDF. Here are the steps.

Link: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/

① Get access to Google Docs. Then, log in the Google account.

② Then, click at the [+] icon to create an XLS document. Then, select [File] – [Open] – [Upload], and then drag a file to the website.

③ Finally, select [File] – [Download] – [PDF document (.pdf)]. Download and save the XLS file as PDF.

2. Zamzar

Zamzar is the powerful tools which can convert between XLS, PDF, Word and JPG. This online tool can be used in any browser. However, if your files are confidential, or they are too large, you should not use the online tool because it contains the potential risk and the network status easily affects the processing.

Link: https://www.zamzar.com/convert/xls-to-pdf/

① Get access to the browser and then click on [Add Files] to upload the XLS file.

② After that, select PDF as the output format. Finally, click on [Convert Now] and download the converted file.

3. Online-convert.com

Online-convert.com is the website where you can convert various formats. But there are some ads in the website. Next, we will show you how to convert XLS to PDF in this website.

Link: https://document.online-convert.com/convert/xls-to-pdf

① Get access to the website. Click on [Choose Files] to upload the XLS file. Of course, support to import the file from Dropbox, Google Drive and through the URL.

② Use the OCR function and finally click on [Start conversion] to convert XLS to PDF.

4. PDF Converter

PDF Converter can convert Word, Excel, PowerPoint and the other formats to PDF online and exchange PDF with these formats. The steps are very easy. But the available PDF files are limited every time. If you want to continue using this online tool, you should pay for a membership.

Link: https://www.freepdfconvert.com/excel-to-pdf

① Go to the website and click on [Choose Excel file] to upload the XLS file. Or, import the file from Google Drive, Dropbox and through the URL.

② Then, the XLS file will be automatically converted to PDF. Finally, download and save the converted PDF file.

Part 4: How to Convert PDF to XLS?

As we known, XLS and PDF are different from each other. Since the PDF file cannot be directly edited, you should convert PDF to XLS when the table on the PDF file needs modified.

1. Convert PDF to XLS

Renee PDF Aide can help you convert PDF to XLS. This is the simple, quick, free PDF software which can convert PDF to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Image and Text. Over 80 pages can be processed per minute. Besides, it is compatible well with many Windows versions, such as Windows 10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP.

① Download and install Renee PDF Aide. Open the software and get into [Convert PDF].

② Click on [Add Files] to select the PDF file. Besides, support to convert multiple files in batch. Then, select the pages to convert.

③ Select [Excel] at the top menu and finally click on [Convert] to convert PDF to XLS.

2. Extract PDF Content & Convert to XLS

If it is the scanned PDF file or the image-based PDF file, you should use the OCR-based PDF software to recognize the characters and then convert the file to the editable format. You can use the OCR function to recognize different languages and convert to the editable text. Renee PDF Aide supports English/French/German/Spanish/Portuguese/Chinese/Korean/Japanese. What’s more, the new languages are allowed to install into the software.

① Download and install Renee PDF Aide. Open the software and click on [Convert PDF] – [Add Files] to select the PDF file.

② Select [Excel] as the output format and check the option [Enable OCR] > [A: Recognize text in images/scanned PDF].

There are 3 OCR options:

• A. Recognize words on image and PDF. You can use this function to improve text recognition when you are going to convert the image-based PDF and the scanned PDF.
• B. Recognize the font style to avoid garbled codes when there are different embedded font styles on the PDF file.
• A+B (Slower). Recognize words and the font styles at the same time and extract them from the PDF file, but the process is time-consuming.

③ Finally, select a folder to save the converted file and click on [Convert] to convert the file.

Conclusions

In this essay, we’ve talked about how to convert XLS to PDF. You can select one of the ways, with the installed applications or the online tools. The former way is not affected by the network environment and suitable for large files. If you want to convert PDF to XLS, you can use Renee PDF Aide. This multifunctional software also provides many editing functions. What’s more, free trail is available.