How to replace a page in a PDF with another

Swapping a page for one from another PDF is a single command in PDF by Zaweba. Choose the page you want to swap out, use Pages > Replace, and pick the PDF holding the new page. The new page takes the old one's place, and the rest of the document stays exactly as it was.

The usual situation is a long document where just one page has changed. A contract where a single page has been signed and scanned. A price list where one page has been corrected. A report where a chart has been updated. Rebuilding the whole file for one page is slow, and replacing it is quick.

Replacing a page

Open the document that needs the change. In the thumbnails panel (F4 if it's hidden), click the page to be replaced. To replace several pages, choose them all with Ctrl+click or Shift+click.

Choose Pages > Replace and pick the PDF that has the new page or pages. Its pages go in where the chosen ones were.

Scroll through the document to check, then save. If you want to keep the original version too, Save as with a new name. The replacement is one undo step, so Ctrl+Z puts things back if the wrong page went in.

Why replace rather than delete and insert

You could delete the old page and insert the new one, and for one page that works. Replace does both in one step and puts the new page in exactly the right position, which matters in a long document where it's easy to drop an inserted page one place out. For several pages at once, it saves a lot of care.

Getting a good match

A replaced page sits among pages from another file, so a little checking pays off.

Page size is the first thing to look at. If the new page comes from a scan or a different program, it may be a slightly different size. Pages > Change page size scales the content to fit or centres it, so the page matches its neighbours when printed.

Orientation is the second. A signed page scanned sideways can be turned with Ctrl+R before you save.

Links and bookmarks are the third. A bookmark that pointed to the old page, or a link from a contents page, may need checking afterwards. The bookmarks panel lets you click each entry and see where it goes.

When the new page is a picture

Sometimes the corrected page arrives as a photo or a scan in a picture format, not as a PDF. PDF by Zaweba can make a PDF from pictures with File > New > From pictures, a page per picture, and you can then use that file as the source for Replace. Pages can also be inserted straight from a copied picture on the clipboard.

When pages are locked

A PDF can be made with permissions that forbid page changes, and documents that have been signed digitally are designed to show any change made after signing. PDF by Zaweba says when page changes aren't allowed. For a signed document, check with whoever needs it whether a replaced page is acceptable before you send it.

PDF by Zaweba is free software for Windows. It works offline with no account, so contracts and reports are corrected without leaving your computer.