How To Add Text To A PDF On A Mac - Small Business

Chron LogoHearst Newspapers LogoSkip to main contentWe handpick every product we feature. We may be compensated or earn commission from the links on this page.Small Business|Setting Up a New Business|Setting Up a New Business BasicsHow to Add Text to a PDF on a MacBy Ashley Donohoe

Whether you're dealing with forms, brochures, instructional guides or other business documents, PDF files remain a popular choice because there's wide compatibility for opening them on computers and mobile devices. If you need to add an annotation, provide your signature, or fill out a PDF form, you can usually do so using the built-in PDF editor on your Mac called Preview. The steps for using this software for PDF editing depend on the type of text you're trying to add and whether you're dealing with a fillable PDF.

Explore Preview's PDF Editing Options

While you might be most familiar with using your Mac's Preview app to open files, Apple lists a variety of PDF-editing tasks you can do with this built-in tool. Even if you're dealing with a PDF file that the creator didn't make with editable fields, you can still use text boxes to add content, take advantage of Preview's electronic signature tool, and highlight parts of the PDF file's text. You can also mark part of a document as redacted by putting a dark overlay over it, draw shapes and designs, and leave small notes.

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Add Text to Fillable PDFs

To get started with adding text to a PDF on your Mac, first check whether the document already has editable fields, a practice that's especially common with business forms. If so, Apple says you can open the PDF in Preview and click a field next to a form label to see an immediate text box where you type your text. Then, use the keyboard's tab key to quickly proceed through each of the form's fields if you don't want to click inside each one manually.

As you move through the fillable form, use your mouse to select check boxes and radio buttons or choose items from drop-down lists as needed. After you finish adding the text to complete the form, save or export the document using Preview's "File" menu or the "Command+S" key combination.

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Add Text to Other PDFs

With some extra work, you can add text to PDF files that aren't fillable by selecting the "Show Markup Toolbar" button, which resembles a pen tip in a circle, on the Preview toolbar. Click the button with the letter "T" on the editing bar that opens to bring up a text box that you move to the spot on the PDF where you need to add text. Double-click that text box to start typing. Repeat the process to add text where necessary throughout the PDF.

While writing text, you'll find a "Text Style" icon on the editing bar that lets you adjust the font used, color of the text and the text size. You can also use this to make text bold, underlined or italicized, as well as change the alignment within the text box. When you are done, save the PDF or export it as a different file type.

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Add a Signature to PDFs

When the text you need to add is a handwritten signature, the process works the same whether it's a fillable PDF or not. The Markup Toolbar has a signature option that either displays a saved signature or lets you create one using an Apple mobile device, trackpad or your camera. As soon as you have a signature created, adding it is as easy as selecting it from the signature menu and moving it to the right location on the PDF.

Other Software for PDF Editing

While you probably won't need to install anything new to add text to a PDF on your Mac, there are some situations where you might need to install a third-party tool like Adobe Acrobat DC or PDFelement Pro from Wondershare for advanced features. For example, you can use Adobe's software to create editable PDF files, change the existing fonts and text size used, insert images, and quickly delete text from a PDF on your Mac. PDFelement Pro can do similar things as well as allow you to extract PDF content and add watermarks.

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References

• Adobe: How to Fill in PDF Forms
• Apple: How to Edit Images and Mark Up PDFs With Preview on Your Mac
• Apple: Fill Out and Sign PDF Forms in Preview on Mac
• Wondershare: Effortlessly Powerful PDFelement

Tips

• Preview allows you to select different fonts and colors for the text entered into a PDF, a useful tool to make your text stand out from different PDF backgrounds. A font panel and color menu are included in the options that appear when you click on "Annotate" in the toolbar. Simply select your text and make the desired changes.
• Preview also includes a text note program for adding dialog boxes with comments over a specific part of a PDF. You can find this feature by clicking on "Annotate" in the toolbar, along with other options for highlighting, underlining and marking up text with different shapes.
• This process refers to Preview for OS X Lion. OS X Tiger includes similar tools, while OS X Snow Leopard limits the options to the text note feature.

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Warnings

• Some PDF forms, depending on the viewing privileges assigned, may be printable but not editable in Preview.

Ashley Donohoe