PDF Best Practices for Document Sharing
PDFs are the standard for sharing documents professionally. Follow these best practices to ensure your PDFs are optimized, accessible, and look great everywhere.
File Size Optimization
Keep your PDFs manageable:
- Email attachments: Keep under 10MB for reliable delivery
- Web downloads: Under 5MB for fast loading
- Print quality: Higher resolution is acceptable for physical printing
Image Resolution Guidelines
72 DPI
Screen/web viewing
150 DPI
Home printing
300 DPI
Professional print
Naming Conventions
Good file names help with organization:
✓
Invoice_2025-01-15_ClientName.pdf✓
Report_Q1_2025_Final.pdf✗
document (1).pdf✗
final final FINAL.pdfMargins and Bleed
- Screen viewing: 10-15mm margins are comfortable
- Office printing: 15-20mm for safe print area
- Professional print: Add 3mm bleed for edge-to-edge printing
- Binding: Add extra margin on the binding edge
Security Considerations
Do
- Remove metadata before sharing externally
- Consider password protection for sensitive docs
- Use "print only" permissions when appropriate
Don't
- Include hidden sensitive information
- Share editable PDFs of final documents
- Assume PDF security is unbreakable
Quick Checklist
- ✓ Appropriate page size for your audience
- ✓ Images at correct resolution for intended use
- ✓ Descriptive file name
- ✓ Reasonable file size for delivery method
- ✓ Margins suitable for viewing/printing
- ✓ No sensitive metadata
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