Apr 8, 2019
I can't download a document as a pdf. Any fixes?
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You can read about incognito mode by clicking on those words in my post above. I've linked it there to a Google Help Center article.
~Jo
Original Poster Craig Pickering marked this as an answer
There are limits to the size of PDFs that can be downloaded from Docs (though I don't know exactly what that is). If your document is very large, break it into two or three or more smaller documents and download those individually. After they've been downloaded, you can glue them into a single PDF using the merge feature in the free online app I Love PDF.
~Jo
Original Poster Craig Pickering marked this as an answer
Yes, that's a workaround, but you shouldn't have to go that route. What happens when you try to do the download from within the document?
Does it work for you if you in incognito mode?
~Jo
Original Poster Craig Pickering marked this as an answer
All Replies (20)
Hi, Craig,
To download a Docs document as a PDF, open the document. Then go to File > Download as ... and select PDF.
Does that resolve it for you?
~Jo
May 16, 2019
System tested: Windows, Android, OpenSuse all with Firefox
Last edited May 16, 2019
May 16, 2019
Jun 1, 2019
Jun 2, 2019
There are limits to the size of PDFs that can be downloaded from Docs (though I don't know exactly what that is). If your document is very large, break it into two or three or more smaller documents and download those individually. After they've been downloaded, you can glue them into a single PDF using the merge feature in the free online app I Love PDF.
~Jo
Original Poster Craig Pickering marked this as an answer
Aug 7, 2019
The print to PDF workaround seems to work but create twice as heavy (in terms of size in MB) PDF files.
Are google going to fix this issue?
Zachi, the help communities are managed by volunteer product users (this is a peer-to-peer message board), not Google employees. We can offer assistance with troubleshooting and how-to questions, but we have no control over product improvements or general issues/complaints.
You can submit your concerns via Help > Report a problem. The team reviews all feedback sent to them but is unable to respond to individual users. Google doesn't check the help forums for user feedback, so it's important that you use the in-product tool. The more users who register this complaint via in-product feedback, the greater the chances are of the team taking a look at it.
~Jo
Aug 28, 2019
Hello.
I have the same problem in a spreadsheet, and I found the problem. (But not how to solve).
I created a new document (spreadsheet) and downloaded the normal PDF
I copied my spreadsheet that is over 1000 rows long (selected all content and copied ctrl + c and ctrl + v) into the new document.
After this I could not download the PDF anymore.
My conclusion is the lines, because all content is text and numbers.
Aug 30, 2019
Hi
I have a problem I would like some help to solve..
I can´t download a document to my Huawei phone, the document is described as a google doc, when I try I get a note saying "the document is in a wrong format" but when I download it on my laptop, I have no problems, I can send it to my phone using the bluetooth function and open it on the phone, so do any of you have a solution, my phone is just being reset to factory settings.
Oct 4, 2019
Google user
Dec 22, 2019
Angie, as your question is different from the original poster's, please start a new thread in the Docs help forum so we can try to address your particular issue. Please also include whether you're on a mobile or desktop device and your operating system and browser.
Here's a direct link for your convenience:
Scroll down and select "Ask now" on the bottom right.
~Jo
Google Product Expert Volunteer (not a Google employee)