PDFs are one of the most prominent document types when it comes to digital documents. Most of us even convert simple Word documents to PDFs before sharing or printing them to preserve the different elements like spacing or alignment.

But despite their popularity, they are also one of the most daunting document types to exist. Most people are comfortable as long as they’re only viewing the PDF, but add any other action to the mix, and suddenly their confidence goes out the window.

Take, for instance, merging two or more PDF files. Whether you want to compile a portfolio or are decluttering the PDFs that could have been a single file, merging PDFs can be very handy. And despite the complicated rep PDFs get, it’s also rather easy to merge them. You just need access to the right tools.

Use Adobe Acrobat to Merge PDFs

Adobe Acrobat may be one of the most popular software when it comes to working with PDFs. If you’re a Pro user and you pay for the services, merging PDFs with the desktop app is the easiest way. From the desktop app, go to ‘Tools’.

Then, click the ‘Combine Files’ option. Upload the files you want to merge and Adobe will merge your files in a matter of seconds.

The paid subscription for Adobe Acrobat Pro costs around at least $13 a month. But if you aren’t a paid subscriber, most of the features, including the ‘Combine Files’ feature, are out of reach for you. But there’s no need to lose hope.

If you have a decent internet connection, you can still use Adobe Acrobat to merge PDF files in just a few seconds. Adobe offers a few online free tools that anyone can use, and merging PDFs happens to be one of the freebies.

To use the Adobe online Merge tool, click here. Click the ‘Select Files’ button to upload the PDF files you want to merge.

The number of files you can merge isn’t limited to two. Upload as many files as you want to merge. To select multiple files, use the Ctrl or Shift keys.

To add more files after the initial Open dialog box has closed, click the ‘Insert Files’ button and select more files.

After adding the files, you can reorder the files any way you want. The order of the files in this selection will determine the order in the merged PDF. Drag and drop the files to rearrange them.

To delete a file you no longer want to include, hover on the file and click the ‘Delete’ button.

Once you’re satisfied with the selection of files, click the ‘Merge’ button.

The merge will only take a few seconds (10 seconds or less) for files with a median size of 1.2 MB. Bigger files might take a little longer. A preview of the merged file will also be available.

Once the files have merged, you’ll have two options if you’re using the tool for the first time. You can either directly download the file onto your computer, or you can sign in to perform more actions. If you download the file directly, the file isn’t saved to Adobe cloud. But if you log in, the merged PDF is saved to the cloud.

But if this is not your first time using the online tool, you’ll have to sign in even to download the file. Without signing in, Adobe only allows one free transaction. But after signing in, there is no limit on how many times you can use the Merge or other free tools, for that matter. You can sign in using your Adobe account, Google account, or Apple account. If you don’t have an account, you can create one for free on the Adobe site.

Tip: If you want to download the files without signing in every time, use the tool in Incognito Mode.

After signing in, you can also reorder the pages like add, delete, move or rotate the pages in the PDF. You can also share the file with anyone after signing in without downloading.

Use PDF Merger & Splitter app for Windows 10

If you want an option that you can use even when you don’t have access to an internet connection, the alternative is using another desktop app. There are plenty of options you can use, one of them being the PDF Merger & Splitter app you can download for free from the Microsoft Store.

To get the app, either search for it in the Microsoft Store or click here to jump directly over there. Then, click the ‘Get’ button to download the app.

Launch the app once the download finishes. On the home page of the app are two options: ‘Merge PDF’ or ‘Split PDF’. Click the former to combine one or more PDF files.

Now, click ‘Add PDFs’ and select the files you want to merge.

To change the order of the PDFs, select a file and click the ‘Move Up’ or ‘Move Down’ options. Click ‘Remove’ to delete one or more files from the selection. You can also ‘Preview’ what the merged PDF will look like by clicking the ‘Preview’ button.

Click ‘Merge PDF’ to finally perform the merging action once all the settings are in place. Enter the name for the merged file, and click ‘Save’ to save the merged file.

The output file will be saved to the selected folder.

With these tools, you can easily merge any PDF files you want. Whether you are a paid Adobe Acrobat user or not, whether you prefer online or offline tools, there’s a solution for everybody.