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PDF to JPEG converter

PDF → JPG turns each PDF page into a flat JPEG image, which is useful for thumbnails and previews but discards PDF structure.

  • Converted with Image engine · input deleted within 24 h
  • Free: 5 conversions a day · 5 MB each
  • Higher limits →

From real runs

What you get — and what changes

  • Page count Kept

    Each PDF page renders to one JPG; outputs are zipped when the PDF has more than one page.

  • Vector art Changed

    Lines, logos, and charts are rasterized at the chosen DPI and no longer scale like vectors.

  • Selectable text Lost

    PDF text becomes pixels in the JPG, so copying words from the output image is not possible without OCR.

  • Transparency Changed

    Transparent page regions are composited onto white because JPEG has no alpha channel.

  • Links and form fields Lost

    Interactive PDF links, buttons, and fillable fields do not survive in a static JPG page image.

  • Compression Changed

    The quality option controls JPEG compression; small text can show ringing at low quality settings.

Sample conversions

One-page flyer preview

Input
A vector-heavy PDF flyer with a teal logo, embedded fonts, and a transparent logo shadow.
Output
One 150 DPI JPG. The logo shadow appeared on white and the vector edges were fixed to the rendered pixel grid.

Four-page product datasheet

Input
A four-page PDF containing selectable specifications tables and internal links in the footer.
Output
A ZIP containing page-1.jpg through page-4.jpg. Tables were readable as pixels; footer links were gone.

A real PDF → JPEG run

We converted our PDF sample (21 KB) with Image engine on 2026-10-20. It took 125 ms and produced a 68 KB JPEG file, 3.2× larger than the input. The engine raised 1 warning, listed below.

Input · sample.pdf · 21 KB

PDF 1.7, 1 page, selectable text (LibertinusSerif-Bold-Identity-H, LibertinusSerif-Bold, LibertinusSerif-Regular-Identity-H, LibertinusSerif-Regular), 0 image objects

Version
1.7
Pages
1
Fonts
LibertinusSerif-Bold-Identity-H, LibertinusSerif-Bold, LibertinusSerif-Regular-Identity-H, LibertinusSerif-Regular
Images
0
Text layer
yes

Output · sample.jpg · 68 KB

1224 × 1584 px, baseline

Width
1,224
Height
1,584
Encoding
baseline
  • PDF pages rendered as images; selectable text is not preserved.

Options and when to change them

dpi
Use the 150 default for web previews; raise toward 300 when small type must remain legible in the JPG.
quality
Increase quality for screenshots of text or diagrams; lower it for photo-heavy pages where file size matters more.

Do it yourself

Poppler pdftoppm

bash
pdftoppm -jpeg -r 150 in.pdf page

pdftoppm writes page-1.jpg style files and may render some transparency or annotations differently from Pillow image-ir.

PDF to JPEG by API or MCP

The HTTP API and the MCP server run the exact engine this page uses (Image engine); the response carries the same warnings the web converter shows. Check support first with GET /api/v1/pairs?from=pdf&to=jpg.

curl
curl -X POST https://filetypeconverters.com/api/v1/convert \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $FTC_API_KEY" \
  -F "file=@input.pdf" -F "from=pdf" -F "to=jpg" \
  -F 'options={"dpi":96}' \
  --output output.jpg

Options this engine accepts for PDF → JPEG

KeyApplies toTypeDefault
dpiReading PDFnumber96
widthWriting JPEGnumber0
heightWriting JPEGnumber0
fitWriting JPEGcontain · cover · fillcontain
qualityWriting JPEGnumber90
backgroundWriting JPEGstring#ffffff
stripMetadataWriting JPEGbooleantrue
API reference

When this is the wrong conversion

  • Use PDF → PNG when the page has sharp UI text, flat colors, or transparency you do not want flattened to white.
  • Use PDF → DOCX with Deep Read when you need editable text rather than a screenshot of each page.
  • Keep the PDF if links, form fields, bookmarks, or selectable text are part of the deliverable.

PDF to JPEG questions

Why do I get a ZIP from PDF → JPG?

A multi-page PDF produces one JPG per page. The files are zipped so the page images download together.

What DPI should I use for PDF pages?

150 DPI is the default for previews. Use up to 300 DPI when the PDF has fine print or you plan to crop the JPG later.

Why did transparent areas become white?

JPEG has no transparency channel, so the rasterizer has to composite transparent PDF regions onto a solid background.

Can I search text inside the output JPG?

No. The output is an image. Run OCR on the original PDF or on the rendered images if you need searchable text.

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