It is handy to save websites and articles as PDFs so you can read them later. Here’s how you can quickly Save a Website as a PDF on iPhone or iPad, and then save it with a service like Pocket.
How to Save a Full-Page Screenshot as a PDF
In iOS 13, iPad OS 13, and the newer version, you can take a full-page screenshot of a website in Safari and save it as a PDF in the Files app.
Kindly note there are two notable points about this new method:
1. The PDF generates as one continuous page without any page breaks.
2. Instead of a regular PDF with an A4 page width, the PDF is the same width as the iPhone or iPad on which you are viewing it.
In case you want to generate a cleaner PDF of the page, without the ads and formatting then switch to Reader Mode first. To do this, click and hold “AA” in the upper-left corner. Then tap it again to customize the text layout.
Open the website on your iPhone or iPad and then take a screenshot. If you have an iPhone X-style device with a notch or an iPad Pro with Face ID. Then just press and hold the “Side” and “Volume Up” buttons together until you see the screenshot animation.
If you are using an iPhone or iPad with a Home button. Then press the Home button along with the “Power/Sleep” button to take a screenshot.
You will see a little screenshot preview in the bottom-left corner—tap it.
You are now in the screenshot editor. Tap “Full Page.”
Now, the whole page opens. You can also use the scrollbar at the right edge of the screen to navigate. Because you are in the screenshot editing screen, the entire annotation suite is available to you. You can doodle over the PDF or use just arrows to highlight sections.
You can either save the PDF to the Files app or export it to any app of your choice. To save it to the Files app, select “Done.”
In the appearing popup, tap “Save PDF to Files.”
Next, select the location in which you want to save the PDF. Then, you can choose the local drive, external storage, or a cloud storage account. After you select the location, click “Save.”
If you want to send the PDF to an application as an attachment in the Mail or Books apps. For example—tap the Share button (the box with an upward-pointing arrow). Then select the app to which you want to send the PDF.
How to Save a Website as a PDF From the Share Sheet
If you prefer a more traditional method to save a website as a PDF, you can save it in the Share Sheet. This method creates the more familiar and paginated PDF in the A4 size.
In iOS 13, iPad OS 13, and above versions, a new option allows you to choose between a regular PDF and a Reader PDF.
Open the page in Safari app and tap the Share button.
At the top of the Share Sheet, you will see the title of the page; just below it, tap “Options.”
If necessary, you can switch to the “Reader PDF” option to create a stripped-down version of the webpage. If you plan to read a long article on your iPad then, this is the best option.
After you select the PDF option you want, click “Done.”
Now return to the Share Sheet. There, tap “Save to Files.”
Next, select the output folder, and then click “Save.”
You can now go to the Files app and select the file to preview it. Then select the “Share” button to open the PDF in the Apple Books app or a third-party PDF reader.
How to Save a Website as a PDF From Any Brower Using Shortcuts
If you use a third-party browser, then you do not have the same PDF creation options you do in Safari. However, you can still use a shortcut called “Make PDF.” This shortcut creates a PDF using a URL from any application.
Open the Shortcuts app on your iPhone or iPad and select “Gallery.”
Here, select the “Search” field, and then type, “Make PDF.”
Select the plus sign (+) next to the “Make PDF” option.
Now click “Add Shortcut.”
The shortcut is added to your Gallery, and it will appear directly in the Share Sheet if your device runs iOS 13, iPad OS 13, or above. If your device runs iOS 12 or below, then tap “Run Shortcut” in the actions bar to access the shortcut.
Go to the website, and then tap the Share button.
In the Share Sheet, scroll down and select “Make PDF.”
Now you can see the shortcut working. After the PDF generates, you can see a preview of it. click the Share button.
Choose “Save to Files” option to save the PDF to an iCloud Drive or local storage. You can also choose an action, like “Copy to Books,” option to open the PDF directly in the Apple Books app. If you have a third-party PDF reader, you can also select it.
How to Save a Website as a PDF in iOS 12 and Earlier
If your iPhone or iPad runs iOS 12 version, you can use the Create PDF action to convert a website into a PDF.
First, open the page in Safari and tap the Share button.
Next, go to the Actions list on the second horizontally scrolling list and tap “Create PDF.”
Now you can see the PDF preview—scroll to view the entire page, and then tap “Done.”
If you want to share the PDF to a particular app, select the Share button to open the Share Sheet. In the popup, click “Save File To.”
Now, choose the location where you want to save the file, and then tap “Add.”
The PDF is now in the location you have specified. Open the Files app, and then click the file to open or share it.