How to Automatically Convert Google Docs, Google Drive Files to PDF for FREE and with NO Payments or Services Required

Sep 2, 2024·7 Minutes Read

Converting Google Docs, Google Sheets, or Google Slides documents into PDF is easy and can be done for free! You only need to change the link parameters. Just follow the steps below.

You can get a PDF version of editable documents inside Google Docs/Sheets/Slides because Google generates them automatically for your Google documents. But if your file was uploaded (in formats like RTF, DOCX, XLS, XLSX, CSV, JPG, PNG, etc), you will need to convert them to a Google document first, then create a link to the PDF of that document.

How Convert Google Docs to PDF

Open Document

Open your Google Docs document.

Share Document

Click on Share and change to Anyone with the link.

Copy Document Link

Now copy the link to the document, it will look like this:

  • https://docs.google.com/document/d/UNIQUE_DOCUMENT_ID/view
  • where UNIQUE_DOCUMENT_ID is your document’s id

Create Link to PDF Version

Now you can create a link to the PDF version of your document, use your document id for that purpose and make the link like this:

  • https://docs.google.com/document/d/UNIQUE_DOCUMENT_ID/export?format=pdf

Access PDF Version

Congrats! Now use this link from the previous step to access the latest PDF version of your document. You can share this link with others and re-use it in automation scenarios.

How to Convert Google Sheets to PDF

Open Document

Open your Google Sheets document.

Share Document

Click on Share and change to Anyone with the link.

Copy Document Link

Now copy the link to the document, it will look like this:

  • https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/UNIQUE_SPREADSHEET_ID/view
  • where UNIQUE_SPREADSHEET_ID is your spreadsheet id

Create Link to PDF Version

Now you can create a link to the PDF version of your document, use your spreadsheet id for that purpose and make a link like the following:

  • https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/UNIQUE_SPREADSHEET_ID/export?format=pdf

Access PDF Version

Congrats! Now use this link from the previous step to access the latest PDF version of your spreadsheet. Share this link with others and re-use it in your automation scenarios.

How to Convert Google Slides to PDF

Open Document

Open your Google Slides presentation.

Share Document

Click on Share and change to Anyone with the link.

Copy Document Link

Now copy the link to the document, it will look like this:

  • https://docs.google.com/slides/d/UNIQUE_PRESENTATION_ID/view
  • where UNIQUE_PRESENTATION_ID is your document id

Create Link to PDF Version

Now create a link to the PDF version of your presentation. Use your presentation id for that purpose and make a link like this:

  • https://docs.google.com/slides/d/UNIQUE_PRESENTATION_ID/export?format=pdf

Access PDF Version

Congrats! Now use this link from the previous step to access the latest PDF version of your spreadsheet. You can also share this link with others and re-use it in your automation scenarios.

How to Convert Uploaded Files to PDF

Open Google Drive

Open your Google Drive folder.

Open Document

Open your document by clicking on it.

Choose Format

At the center click on Open With and select Google Docs, Google Sheets, or Google Slides if this file can be converted into them.

This will convert your document into a document for Google Docs.

Follow Next Steps

Now follow the steps for Google Docs/Sheets/Slides accordingly:

No subscription or paid services are required to get a PDF version of Google Docs, Google Sheets, or Google Slides documents stored in Google Drive. All you need is to modify a link to your Google Docs document and Google will return a PDF version of your document. When you access this link again, it will generate a PDF for the latest version of your current spreadsheet, document or presentation. Google can convert DOC, DOCX, XLS, XLSX, PPT, PPTX, JPG, PNG to PDF automatically just by adjusting the link.

If you need to extract data from a PDF, or generate a PDF from links or HTML, then please consider our PDF.co Web API.

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