PNG is lossless and right for text, diagrams and anything with hard edges. JPG is smaller and right for photographic pages. Resolution sets the render scale: 72 dpi is the page at 1x, 150 dpi (the default) is about 2.08x, 300 dpi is about 4.17x. Quality, shown for JPG and WEBP only, sets how hard the image is compressed, not its size in pixels.
Every page becomes one file, named after the PDF with -page-1, -page-2 and so on, inside a ZIP; a single page downloads as the image itself. Text and vector content render sharply at any scale; a scanned page cannot be rendered sharper than the scan.
Slides need a page as a picture. A portal only accepts JPG. A messaging app previews images inline but hides PDFs behind a download. A design reference folder wants one file per page. In each case the job is the same: draw the page to a bitmap at a sensible size and save it in the right format. The decisions are the format and the size, and both are easier once you know what the page is made of.
How to convert a PDF to images
Add the PDF
Drop it or browse. The file is read into memory; nothing is uploaded.
Pick PNG or JPG
PNG for text and line art, JPG for photographs. When unsure, PNG, then switch if the ZIP is too large to send.
Pick a resolution
72 dpi for previews and thumbnails, 150 dpi for screens, 300 dpi for printing or zooming in. For JPG and WEBP, Quality then sets the compression: Small, Balanced or Sharp.
Press Export images and download the ZIP
Each page is rendered with PDF.js, the same engine Firefox uses, and encoded in the browser. Unzip with the tool built into every OS and phone.
PNG or JPG
Lossless, exact
- Text stays crisp at every edge
- Diagrams, tables, logos and screenshots
- Transparent backgrounds are preserved
- Larger files, especially for photographs
- The safe default when you are not sure
Lossy, compact
- Photographic pages at a fraction of the size
- Scanned documents where the scan is already a photo
- Sharing on messaging apps and social platforms
- Faint artefacts around sharp text if you look closely
- Pick when the ZIP is too large to send
A page that mixes both, a report with a photo and a paragraph, is fine as either. PNG keeps the paragraph perfect and the photo large; JPG keeps the photo small and the paragraph very slightly soft. For screens, most people never see the difference. For print, PNG.
What the resolution and quality settings mean
A PDF measures its pages in points, 72 to the inch, and that is the base scale. The resolution setting multiplies it: 150 dpi is 150 ÷ 72, about 2.08 times, and 300 dpi is about 4.17 times. Nothing else changes: the same page content is drawn into a larger or smaller grid of pixels.
Quality is a separate control, and it appears only for JPG and WEBP, because PNG is lossless. Small, Balanced and Sharp hand the browser's encoder a quality of 0.7, 0.85 and 0.95. They change how much detail the compression throws away, not the number of pixels. Balanced is the default.
- 72 dpi, 1xThumbnails, web previews
- 150 dpi, about 2.08xSlides, screens, email
- 300 dpi, about 4.17xHome printing, zooming, archives
8.5 × 150 by 11 × 150. Sharp on a high-density screen.
8.5 × 300 by 11 × 300. Prints cleanly at letter size on an inkjet or laser.
(300 ÷ 150)² = 4: twice the width and twice the height. Files grow with it, by an amount that depends on the page.
If the images are going to print
On screen, pixel count decides sharpness. On paper, what matters is pixels per printed inch. The 300 dpi setting gives 300 pixels per inch at the page's own size, which is what a print shop that asks for 300 dpi means. 150 dpi prints acceptably on home and office printers for most handouts. One ceiling applies: the tool never renders a page above 40 million pixels. A Letter page at 300 dpi is 2550 × 3300, about 8.4 million, well inside it. An A1 poster page at 300 dpi would be about 69.7 million, so the tool renders it at about 227 dpi instead. For a large-format print, send the PDF itself, which prints at the printer's native resolution.
- Handouts and internal decks. 300 dpi, PNG for text-heavy pages, JPG for photo pages.
- Client deliverables and posters. Send the PDF. Rendering it to an image can only lose information.
- Web and email. 150 dpi. Anything larger is wasted bandwidth on a screen.
Common reasons to export
- Slides in PowerPoint, Keynote or Google Slides150 or 300 dpi, PNG
- A portal that only accepts JPG or PNG150 dpi, JPG
- WhatsApp, Slack, social previews150 dpi, JPG
- A design reference library300 dpi, PNG
- Feeding pages to an image-based OCR300 dpi, PNG
For a handful of pages out of a long document, type them in the Pages box and export only those. The tool renders every page it is given, and a 300-page book at 300 dpi is a large ZIP nobody needs. The reverse direction, images back into a PDF, is Images to PDF.
Why the rendering happens in your browser
Rendering a PDF to images means drawing every page in full. On a server, that is a copy of every page on someone else's machine, for a task a browser can do as well as any cloud. Statements, contracts and personal records are the documents people most often need as images, for portals and messaging apps, and they are the ones that should never be uploaded to get there.
The tool is right above
Everything on this page runs in your browser. Scroll up, drop the file, and keep it on your machine.
Common questions
What people ask with the format buttons in front of them.
01PNG or JPG: which should I pick?
PNG for pages with text, diagrams or hard edges, because it is lossless. JPG for photographic pages where a smaller file matters more than perfect edges. When unsure, PNG.
02What do 72, 150 and 300 dpi mean?
The render scale. 72 dpi is the page at screen size, the smallest files. 150 dpi is crisp on any screen and fine for a desk printer. 300 dpi is print quality and produces large files; a Letter page is about 2550 by 3300 pixels.
03How many pages can I export at once?
There is no page cap in the tool. Pages are rendered one at a time, but every finished image is held in memory until the ZIP is built, so your browser's memory is the limit, and it arrives sooner at 300 dpi than at 150. For a section of a long file, type a page range.
04Can I export just a few pages?
Yes. Type them in the Pages box, such as 1-3, 7, 10- for pages 1 to 3, page 7 and page 10 to the end. The thumbnails grey out the pages left out, and a single page downloads as one image rather than a ZIP.
05Can I get one long image instead of one per page?
No. Each page becomes its own file. Stitch them in an image editor if you need a single strip.
06Why do my scanned pages look no sharper at 300 dpi?
Because a scan is a photograph inside the PDF and cannot be rendered above its own resolution. A higher setting enlarges it without adding detail. For a scan, choose Embedded images instead: it hands you the original scan pixels at their native resolution.
07Can I export a password-protected PDF?
If it opens without a password, yes: a file that only restricts printing or copying exports normally. If it asks for a password to open, the tool stops and says the PDF is password-protected. Remove the password with the Unlock tool, using the password you have, then export.
08Is it free?
Free. Every tool, unlimited use, no signup.