How to create a PDF from scratch or from several files

▶ 1. Where to start

123 PDF Editor PRO is a Chrome extension: no desktop software to install, no registration, and it works the same way on Windows, Mac and Linux. To build a new document you have three routes.

• ✓ Blank page — the white sheet, to build everything from scratch.
• ✓ Professional template — a ready-made layout to customise.
• ✓ Merging several PDFs — a single document built from files you already have.

＋ 2. Creating a blank PDF

This is the starting point when you want full control over the layout: a blank page in the format you prefer, to fill in as you would a word-processor sheet.

1. Install the extension from the download page and click its icon in the toolbar.
2. On the home screen choose Create a new PDF.
3. Select Blank page — the option is described as blank page or professional template.
4. Set the page size (A4, Letter, Legal or a custom measurement).
5. Confirm: the document opens in the editor, ready to receive your content.

▥ 3. Starting from a professional template

If the document has a familiar shape — an invoice, a CV, a contract — it is worth starting from a template: the layout is already there and you only replace the text.

There are 16 editable templates, among them invoice, résumé, contract, quote, proposal, business report, newsletter, magazine and data table. Every element stays editable: text, colours and images are changed as in any other PDF.

1. From Create a new PDF choose a template instead of the blank page.
2. Replace the placeholder text: select the block and type your own content.
3. Adjust font, size and colour from the side panel, as explained in the guide on text colour and background.
4. Need another page in the same style? Use Add Template Page to insert one.

✍️ 4. Adding the content

Everything you put into the document lives in the Insert bar: text boxes, images, tables and signatures.

1. Add text — draw a box wherever you want and type; then adjust font (13 are included), size, colour and background.
2. Add image — insert a PNG or JPG from your computer and position it by dragging the handles.
3. Add table — choose rows, columns, header labels and colours, then move and resize it like an image.
4. Add signature — place a previously saved image signature on the page.

▦ 5. Adding and ordering pages

A new document grows one page at a time. Page management all happens in a single visual panel.

1. Open Organize pages to see all the pages as thumbnails.
2. Add pages with Blank page or Add Template Page.
3. Drag the thumbnails into the right order; use Duplicate page to repeat a layout that works.
4. Correct the orientation with Rotate left/right and make sizes uniform with Resize page.
5. Click Apply page changes to bring the new structure back into the editor.

⧈ 6. Creating a PDF by merging several files

When the new document is built from material you already have — separate chapters, attachments, scans — merging is the quickest route.

1. From the home screen choose Merge/Split PDF, or Merge multiple PDFs from Organize pages.
2. Add the files to combine and order them as they should appear in the final document.
3. Click Import: the pages flow into a single PDF you can carry on editing.
4. If you need the opposite, set Split every N pages and use Split PDF.

◩ 7. Finishing touches and saving

Before calling it finished, it is worth adding the elements that make a document look professional.

1. Page Numbers for numbering, Header and Footer for the top and bottom bands.
2. Watermark if the document is a draft, Background for a colour or an image behind the content.
3. A clickable table of contents at the front: see the guide on how to create a table of contents in a PDF.
4. Click Download PDF to save the document, or Save project to pick it up later from Projects.

? 8. Frequently asked questions

The questions that come up most often on this topic.