Why should I set the print area first?

Page breaks follow the workbook’s print layout. A board pack that looks right on screen can still spill columns if the print area is the entire used range. Set the area, the breaks, and the headers in Excel, then upload. Charts and borders come from LibreOffice’s conversion, so compare those in the PDF before you circulate it.

What size uploads most reliably?

Spreadsheets around 4 MB or smaller upload most reliably on this standard path. The free plan accepts up to 12 MB and eight conversions a day. Pro raises the cap to 100 MB. If a file is near the top of the free cap, consider whether every sheet needs to be in the PDF, and keep the original workbook either way.

Will the PDF look exactly like Excel?

LibreOffice draws the pages, so charts, borders, and fonts can shift a little from the Excel window. That is why the practical step is a proof: open the PDF beside the sheet and check the pages someone will actually read. If a figure moved, adjust the print layout in the workbook and convert again.

Can I choose portrait pages?

Yes. Landscape is only the default. Choose portrait when the sheet is a narrow list or a statement. The choice is applied by the spreadsheet converter on the server. It still follows the print area you set. A wide tracker is usually happier on landscape, which is why that option is selected when you arrive.

Canonical Excel to PDF Converter

Excel to PDF: a spreadsheet you can send

Q: Which spreadsheet files can I convert?

xlsx, xls, and csv are the accepted types. Each run sends the file on the edge path to LibreOffice through Gotenberg. It stays off the in-browser editor and off the chunked server upload. Landscape is the default orientation, and you can switch to portrait before the PDF is built. Proof the download against the sheet.

Q: How long is the spreadsheet kept?

The file is uploaded so LibreOffice can build the PDF. The privacy policy says uploads and outputs are deleted after processing, typically within one hour and no later than 24 hours. Download the PDF and keep the workbook on your side. Free runs are 12 MB and eight a day, and Pro is 100 MB.

Drop an .xlsx, .xls, or .csv and download a PDF. Landscape is the default, and you can switch to portrait before the file is built.

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Written by Safaat Rahman Siham, Founder & Developer at Convertify4u. Contact us.

Someone asked for the spreadsheet as a PDF, and the file is still an .xlsx, .xls, or .csv. Drop it here, leave the orientation on landscape or switch to portrait, and download pages you can attach. Every spreadsheet is sent on the edge path. LibreOffice, through Gotenberg, builds the PDF there. The job stays off the in-browser editor and off the chunked server upload. Page breaks follow the workbook’s print layout, so set the print area in Excel first when a board pack has to match. Charts and borders come from that LibreOffice conversion, so proof the PDF against the sheet before you send it. Spreadsheets around 4 MB or smaller upload most reliably on this standard path. Free runs allow 12 MB and eight a day. Pro raises the cap to 100 MB. The privacy policy says uploads and outputs are deleted after processing, typically within one hour and no later than 24 hours.

Print layout, orientation, and the edge path

Landscape is the default because many sheets are wide. The PDF still follows the print area you set in the workbook, and LibreOffice is the engine that draws the pages.

Landscape unless you choose portrait

The orientation control defaults to landscape. Choose portrait when the sheet is a narrow list or a statement that should read like a letter. That choice is sent with the file. It replaces a guess about paper, and it still respects the print area, headers, and page breaks you already set in Excel.

LibreOffice on the edge path

routeJob sends Excel to the edge path every time. Gotenberg runs LibreOffice there. The conversion is outside the local browser tools and outside the chunked upload used for other large office files. Spreadsheets around 4 MB or smaller are the reliable size on this standard path. Larger files still have to fit the plan cap.

Proof charts, borders, and page breaks

Set the print area before you upload if a board pack must match the workbook. Columns that fit on screen can still spill when the print area is the whole used range. Charts and borders come from LibreOffice’s conversion, so open the PDF and compare a page of figures with the sheet. Fix the workbook and run it again if a line moved.

How it works

1
Set the print area in Excel
Decide which cells belong on the page, then check page breaks and headers. The PDF follows that print layout. Wide sheets usually stay on landscape, which is the default here.
2
Upload .xlsx, .xls, or .csv
Choose portrait only if you want it. The file goes to LibreOffice through Gotenberg on the edge path. Around 4 MB or smaller is the comfortable upload on this standard path.
3
Proof the PDF, then send it
Open the download and compare charts, borders, and the first page of numbers with the workbook. Free files are up to 12 MB, eight a day. Pro is 100 MB. Keep the spreadsheet as your original.

Use cases

A board pack that must match the print view

Set the print area first so the PDF pages follow the layout you already approved in Excel.

A CSV export someone asked to see as pages

A raw .csv becomes a PDF on the same LibreOffice path. Check the column widths after download.

A wide tracker that should stay landscape

Leave the default orientation when the sheet is wider than it is tall, then proof the last columns.

Problems we solve

The pages break in the wrong place

The PDF uses the workbook’s print layout. Set the print area and the breaks in Excel, then convert again.

A chart looks slightly different

Charts and borders come from LibreOffice. Compare the PDF with the sheet and adjust the workbook if a label moved.

Related guide

Guide: Excel to PDF
Set the print area and print titles before the server builds the pages.

Specialized Excel to PDF guides

Trust & privacy

A known engine and a known route

LibreOffice through Gotenberg on the edge path, for .xlsx, .xls, and .csv. Landscape unless you choose portrait.

Free cap and the privacy window

Free is 12 MB and eight a day. Pro is 100 MB. Uploads and outputs are deleted after processing, typically within one hour and no later than 24 hours.