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I have my company profile in Arabic and in English. How do I merge them so each Arabic page is followed by its English page?

In two steps: merge the Arabic file and then the English one in [[merge-pdf]], which gives you all the Arabic pages followed by all the English ones. Then open the result in the page reordering tool and interleave them. For a profile of 3 pages in each language, the order you want is 1, 4, 2, 5, 3, 6.

Published · 2 min read

Before merging: make sure both versions have the same page count

Interleaving assumes Arabic page 2 matches English page 2. But English text often runs longer, and one version spills onto an extra page. Check each file's page count in the merge list before pressing the button. If the Arabic has 3 pages and the English 4, fix the layout first, because any order after that leaves a page without its partner.

The steps

  1. Add the Arabic file and then the English file to Merge PDFs, and check the Arabic is in position 1.
  2. Press 'Merge and download'. The result has Arabic pages 1 to 3 and English pages 4 to 6.
  3. Open the file in Reorder PDF pages and move pages until the 'New order' line reads 1, 4, 2, 5, 3, 6.
  4. Download in the new order and page through it to check every page is followed by its translation.

The rule for any page count

Worked example

If each version has n pages, Arabic page k sits in position k and its translation in position n + k.

For 5 pages in each language: 1, 6, 2, 7, 3, 8, 4, 9, 5, 10.

Write the target order on paper before you start moving pages; with ten or more pages it is easy to lose your place.

A bonus you may not have thought of: double-sided printing

Print the interleaved file double-sided and each Arabic page lands on the front of a sheet with its English translation on the back. That gives you a bilingual printed profile from one file, where a client simply turns the sheet to find their language. Just check the long-edge or short-edge flip setting in the print dialog, and try one sheet first.

Common questions

Can I put Arabic and English side by side on one page?

No. Merging and reordering work with whole pages and do not place two pages on one.

Should the Arabic or the English page come first?

It depends on your main audience. For clients in Saudi Arabia, Arabic usually leads; for a foreign client, put the English file in position 1 before merging.

Does text direction or the font change after merging?

No. Each page is copied as it is, with its fonts and text direction.