For example, I use Preview as the default for jpg and png files and QuickTime X as the default for audio and video.įor instructions, see: How to Change the Default App that Opens Files on a Mac Open Only Select Files in Preview You can also apply these steps to change the default app that opens other file types, such as images or audio. You can always open a specific PDF file within Adobe Reader, if you’d prefer. (3) To change your default settings so that all PDFs automatically open in Preview when you double-click on them, click on the “Change All” button and confirm your change.

(2) In the Get Info dialog box that opens, use the dropdown menu of applications under Open With to select Preview. (1) Find the file in your Finder and right-click (or control-click) on it to access the contextual menu. If Preview isn’t already the default PDF viewer on your Mac (meaning that it’s the app that launches if you double-click on a PDF file), follow these steps to make it the default.

While many web sites direct you to download Adobe Reader to open PDFs, I recommend that you use Preview instead, as it’s faster and less clunky than Reader, and it has more user-friendly annotation tools. Preview is a PDF and image viewer made by Apple that comes installed with the Mac OS.

2 Change the Default for Other File Types.

1 Change the Default PDF Reader to Preview.

Its properties custom tab will not show the PDF/A version, but will for PDF/X series PDF. Acrobat Reader will present a pale blue banner for a PDF/A standard document, and a thin, red display border around X/3 documents. Strictly use Adobe Acrobat Reader DC for best PDF/A, and PDF/X standard viewing. Open PDF/A-1a, and PDF/X standard documents in Preview, and 1) it will display them, but is completely ignorant of these standards requiring newer v1.4 or later PDF specs, and 2) will autosave any annotations, overwriting these documents with PDF v1.3 - thus damaging their standards functionality.

Crop, bleed, registration marks, and color bar options.Īpple's Preview is based on PDFKit, which is still mired in the PDF v1.3 specification.

Uses third-party PDFLib+PDI 9.0.5-i Library.

Crop, bleed, registration marks, and color bar options.

Open existing single, or multipage PDF, edit, and export as:.

Serif Labs Affinity Designer (Mac App Store, free trial).

Here are some PDF/A, and PDF/X output solutions for macOS Sierra:

How to open pdf in preview mac os x