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Should I send a screenshot of the page or extract it as a PDF? What is the difference in quality?

A screenshot captures only what your screen shows, at screen resolution, so small text blurs when printed or zoomed and none of it can be copied or searched. An extracted PDF page keeps the original text, graphics and image resolution. If you really need a picture, the PDF to images tool renders one at a resolution you choose.

Published · 2 min read

What a screenshot loses

  • Resolution: a screenshot holds no more detail than your screen displayed at that moment. A whole A4 page on a phone screen means each line of text is only a few pixels tall.
  • Text: it becomes a picture, so the recipient cannot copy an invoice number or account number, or search for a word.
  • Edges: it often catches the status bar and app buttons, or crops part of the page without you noticing.
  • Printing: printed on a full sheet, the letters come out blurry with jagged edges.

What an extracted page keeps

When you extract the page with the split tool, the page itself moves into a new file. Text stays real text that can be selected and copied, logos and tables drawn as vectors stay sharp however far you zoom, and images keep their original resolution. The recipient prints it on A4 and it comes out as if they had printed the original.

Extracting one page in under a minute

  1. Open Split PDF and choose the file.
  2. Choose “Extract to one PDF” and type the page number, such as 4.
  3. Press “Split and download” and send the file.

When a picture is enough, and when you really need one

A picture suits a quick look: a product in an Instagram or Snapchat story, or a fast reply in a chat so someone sees the page without opening an attachment. Even then, skip the screenshot and turn the page into an image with PDF to images. It renders the whole page with no buttons or cropping, at the resolution you set, so the picture is far clearer than a screen grab.

A quick rule for choosing

  • A document that will be printed, filed or copied from: an extracted PDF page.
  • A post, a story or a preview inside a chat: an image from the conversion tool.
  • A screenshot: only when you want to show someone what is literally on your screen, such as an error message.

Common questions

Is the extracted page bigger than a screenshot?

Sometimes, because it carries fonts and images at their original resolution. For an ordinary text page the file is usually small.

Can the recipient edit the extracted page?

It is an ordinary PDF, so anyone with an editor can change it, as with any PDF.