PDF N-up is a PDF layout that places two or four source PDF pages on one output sheet: 2-up uses a 2×1 grid and 4-up uses a 2×2 grid. PDF N-Up: Multiple Pages Per Sheet turns one local PDF into that compact arrangement in your browser. The source must be non-empty, no larger than 25 MiB, and limited to 500 pages. The tool embeds the source pages into a new PDF, places them in cells, and creates the download locally. It does not upload the source to Lizely or rely on server-side conversion. Every output sheet uses the width and height of the first source page as its sheet box. Each embedded page is scaled proportionally and centered using the smaller available fit, so it is not stretched to fill its cell. The tool also supports mixed page sizes by fitting each page separately. Two-up fills a single row; four-up fills two rows, with source pages assigned left to right and then top to bottom. If a final sheet has unused cells, they stay empty. The result is useful for review sheets, handouts, compact archives, and simple paper-saving layouts, while the original source file is not altered.
What PDF N-up changes
An N-up file changes the grouping, not the source sequence. The source PDF remains the source, and the tool places its pages in normal reading order in a new document. It does not reorder the source. Each output sheet contains either two or four embedded source pages, depending on the selected arrangement.
Every output sheet uses the dimensions of the first source page. This explicit rule is important: a first page that is wide creates wide sheets, and a tall first page creates tall sheets. The tool does not substitute a hidden Letter or A4 preset. After creation, the result reports the source page count, output sheet count, and approximate encoded size, so those counts are the check rather than an assumption.
| Arrangement | Grid | Source pages per sheet | Placement order |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2-up | 2 columns × 1 row | 2 | Left to right, then start the next sheet |
| 4-up | 2 columns × 2 rows | 4 | Left to right, then top to bottom |
When the source ends partway through a grid, only available cells are populated. Reading order remains normal: left to right across a row, then top to bottom for the next row. For 2-up, the next page starts a new sheet after the first two; for 4-up, the next group begins a new sheet after the first four.
How the sheet layout is built
The grid starts with the first page box, then reserves a fixed 18-point outer margin and a 12-point gap between cells. The usable cell space is derived from that sheet box and the chosen 2×1 or 2×2 arrangement. This makes the layout deterministic: the sheet dimensions, margins, gap, and arrangement are stated by the tool rather than guessed from a default print format.
Two-up has two columns and one row. Four-up has two columns and two rows. The source pages occupy those cells in reading order. An incomplete final sheet is not padded with extra pages or blank source content; its remaining cells stay empty.
Why the local tool fits the job
The task is to make a compact PDF without sending the source away or converting ordinary pages into screenshots. The PDF N-Up: Multiple Pages Per Sheet handles the essential choices in one focused operation: choose one local PDF, choose 2-up or 4-up, and let the browser place every source page. Loading, page embedding, layout, serialization, and download creation run locally, and the source is not uploaded to Lizely.
It also answers the parts of the task that a vague instruction to put pages together leaves unclear. The first page determines the sheet box, each page is fitted independently, mixed page sizes are allowed, and the output reports the page and sheet counts. The tool is a fit for review sheets, handouts, compact archives, and simple paper-saving layouts. It does not merge multiple PDFs, automatically rotate pages, or rearrange the source order, so the result follows one source sequence rather than a combined or edited document.
Prepare a source PDF that can be processed
Start with one non-empty PDF no larger than 25 MiB. The document can contain up to 500 pages. These are input limits for the operation, not formatting suggestions: a file above the size limit, above the page limit, or otherwise outside the supported document type may be rejected. The limits keep the browser work bounded.
Empty, mislabeled, encrypted, damaged, oversized, over-limit, or unsupported documents produce a visible error. The tool does not bypass or rewrite those errors. Check that the file opens as a PDF and resolve password protection or other document problems with an appropriate separate workflow before returning to N-up if necessary.
The layout control is deliberately limited to two choices: select two source pages per sheet or four. The operation does not create a general 6-up, 9-up, or other arbitrary count, and it does not set a separate output paper size. The first source page supplies that box.
Create the N-up PDF
- Choose a non-empty PDF. Use one local file no larger than 25 MiB and no more than 500 pages. If the chooser reports an empty, mislabeled, encrypted, damaged, oversized, over-limit, or unsupported document, use a corrected source rather than trying to proceed.
- Select the arrangement. Choose two source pages per sheet for 2-up, or four source pages per sheet for 4-up. The selection changes the grid and the new result; it does not alter the original PDF.
- Select Create N-up PDF. The operation begins when you press the button, and the control stays disabled while it is active. If you change the file or arrangement, the old result is invalid and its temporary URL is revoked.
- Check the source-to-sheet count. Review the reported source page count, output sheet count, and approximate encoded size. For a concrete official example, five source pages in 4-up produce two output sheets: four pages fill the first sheet and the fifth sits in the first cell of the second. In formula terms, 5 ÷ 4 = 1.25, so a remainder rounds the result up to 2 sheets.
- Download the new PDF. The downloaded filename includes the selected arrangement, such as report-4-up.pdf. The original source file remains unaltered.
The source-to-sheet count is important because a visual preview can make the final partial sheet easy to overlook. The reported count lets you confirm how many source pages were placed and how many output sheets were created before you download or share the result.
How each page is fitted
The fitting rule is visual and predictable. For each source page, the tool compares the available width scale with the available height scale, chooses the smaller value, and centers the result in both directions. A tall page is limited by its height and can leave space at the sides; a wide page is limited by its width and can leave space above and below. No page is stretched to fill a cell.
Because the fit calculation runs separately for every source page, mixed page sizes are supported. The implementation uses PDFDocument.embedPage to embed the source page and PDFPage.drawPage to place it in the output. This embeds PDF content rather than rasterizing ordinary pages into screenshots, which generally preserves vector shapes and text as PDF content while placing the page as a reusable form.
The first page's sheet box applies to every output sheet, but the fit for each embedded page is recalculated. That is why a mixed-size source does not need to be normalized to one page size before using the tool. The visual scale can differ from one cell to another when the source pages have different proportions; the common rule is proportional fit, not equalized content dimensions.
Where N-up is useful—and where it stops
N-up works well when the main goal is to review many source pages in a compact sequence, create handouts, make a compact archive, or use a simple paper-saving layout. It is especially useful when the first source page's dimensions are the dimensions you want for every output sheet and when proportional reduction is acceptable.
It is not a full document editor or print-production suite. The focused tool does not impose pages for duplex booklet signatures, add crop marks, rotate pages automatically, reorder source pages, print directly, remove annotations, flatten forms, or preserve interactive links as newly positioned clickable regions. It also does not guarantee a specific commercial printer workflow. The original file is not altered, but the output is a new layout and should be checked for annotations, forms, links, and intended print settings before relying on it for those uses.