Japanese companies, schools and city offices often ask for résumés, reports and application forms as PDFs. A PDF keeps its layout on other computers and phones and is harder to change by accident. This guide covers how to turn a Word file into a PDF for free, whether you have Word, don’t have Word, or are on a phone.
Use Word to PDFFree, no sign-up. Your files stay on your device.
| Method | What you need | Is the file uploaded? | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Word’s Export or Save As | Word (Windows or Mac) | No | You have Word and want the exact layout |
| Google Docs | A Google account | Yes, to Google Drive | You don’t have Word |
| Pages | Mac, iPhone or iPad (free Apple app) | No | Mac or iPhone without Word |
| Our Word to PDF tool | Just a browser (any device) | No (processed on your device) | No Word, on a phone, or documents with personal details |
If you have Word, saving the PDF from Word itself is the most reliable way. Fonts are embedded in the PDF, so it looks almost exactly like the document on your screen.
Choose File → Export → Create PDF/XPS Document → Create PDF/XPS, pick where to save it and click Publish. You can also use File → Save As and set the file type to PDF. Options lets you choose which pages to include.
Choose File → Save As, set File Format to PDF and click Export.
Upload the Word file to Google Drive, open it with Google Docs and choose File → Download → PDF Document (.pdf).
This uploads the file to Google Drive, and because Google Docs lays out pages differently from Word, tables, images and page breaks can shift.
Open the Word file in Apple’s free Pages app. On a Mac choose File → Export To → PDF; on iPhone or iPad tap the “…” menu, then Export → PDF. Fonts Pages doesn’t have are replaced, so check the layout before saving.
Our Word to PDF tool converts in the browser on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android, even without Word. Your file is never uploaded to a server; it’s processed on your own device, so résumés and other documents with personal details stay private.
To convert a Word file you received by email or LINE, no app is needed: open Word to PDF in Safari or Chrome and pick the file from Files or your Downloads folder.
If you use the Google Docs app on Android, open the Word file and tap “⋮” → Share & export → Save as → PDF Document (.pdf).
The most common cause is fonts. If the device doing the conversion doesn’t have the fonts used in the document, similar fonts are used instead, character widths change, and line and page breaks move. Japanese documents are especially affected: résumé (rirekisho) templates often use Japanese fonts such as MS Mincho or Yu Gothic, which most phones and many non-Japanese computers don’t have.
Saving the PDF from Word on the computer you wrote the document on embeds the fonts as they are, so almost nothing shifts. Use this for the final version you submit when you can.
With other methods, check that no single line has spilled onto a new page and that table borders still line up. If something shifts, tightening the line spacing or margins slightly in Word often fixes it.
Some methods don’t support the “.doc” format from Word 2003 and earlier. Open the file in Word and save it as “Word Document (.docx)” first.
To combine several Word files into one PDF, convert each one and then join them with Merge PDF. If the file is too big to email, make it smaller with Compress PDF, and protect documents with personal details with Protect PDF.
A. Yes. Word’s Export and Save As, Google Docs, Pages and our Word to PDF tool are all free.
A. Yes. Use Google Docs, Pages (Mac and iPhone), or the Word to PDF tool in your browser.
A. Usually because the device doing the conversion doesn’t have the document’s fonts, which is common with Japanese fonts. Saving the PDF from Word on the computer where you wrote it avoids this.
A. Open Word to PDF in Safari or Chrome and select the Word file. No app is needed.
A. Convert each one to PDF, then combine them with Merge PDF.
A. Not with our Word to PDF tool: the file is processed only on your own device.