How to Add Hyperlinks to a PDF Document: Step-by-Step Guide

James Lintzer |

Do you want to make your PDF documents more interactive? Adding hyperlinks is an excellent way to do so, offering readers more info with just one click. For business owners, students, and casual users, the ability to link to other pages from PDFs can be highly beneficial. 

Check out this guide to learn how to add hyperlinks to your PDFs with ease. We’ll go over the methods you can use and the best tools available to make it happen.

Unlock the Advantages of Hyperlinking in PDF Documents

Enhance the accessibility of your electronic documents with text or graphic hyperlinks. Utilize links in your table of contents to let readers hop to any section they desire – or, you can even send them to attachments, webpages, videos, and audio files.

  • Make your PDF more organized – Connecting sections of your document can bring a huge increase in the structure of your material. Instead of having to search for information back and forth between pages, readers can swiftly navigate from one section to another.
  • Make sharing easier – Sharing is a breeze when you use hyperlinks! Forget about having to manually send a single file; with a click of a button, you can instantly share your content by linking to other files or websites. 
  • Market your product or service more effectively – By adding hyperlinks to your PDFs, you can turn them into powerful marketing tools. If you are offering a product or service that is accessible through the web, you can easily link your PDF to your website – and this could skyrocket the number of visitors to your site.
  • Save time – Share PDFs as links to save time, rather than uploading them as attachments. There’s no need to send the entire file. Store it securely in the cloud and create a shareable link. It’s that easy.

Types of Links in PDFs

PDF documents can be spruced up with different elements, like text, images, and links. There are two main types of links to include within a PDF file. Let’s take a closer look:

1. Link to a Website

By including a hyperlink in your document, you can easily link one page on the internet with another. When users click the link, they’ll be automatically taken to the page in their web browser. This makes it easy to connect different resources directly to the document, and provides readers with the exact reference of the content.

2. Link to a PDF Page

If you have a lengthy document with multiple PDF pages, such as a research report or a study, linking readers to the relevant pages may be necessary. 

You can easily add a link to a PDF page with a PDF editor, thereby allowing you to manage the documents and provide readers direct access to the content they are looking for, instead of them having to scroll through the pages to find it.

How to Add Hyperlinks to a PDF Document: 3 Different Ways 

Using Adobe Acrobat

Adobe makes it easy to add hyperlinks to your PDF document.

  1. Simply open the document, select “Tools” > “Edit PDF” > “Link” > “Add/Edit Web or Document Link” and draw a rectangle to where you want to add the link. 
  2. Next, adjust the link appearance and select “Open a Web Page” for the link action in the “Create Link” dialogue box. 
  3. Don’t forget to save the PDF once you’re done to add the hyperlink to the document.

You can also use different types of hyperlinks within Adobe:

  • Go To A Page View: Perfect for swiftly navigating to a new location in the same document, or even another document.
  • Open A File: Access another file or document by opening a file.
  • Open A Web Page: Guides the viewer to a web address.

If these link settings don’t work for you, choose Custom Link to explore more advanced options.

Using Microsoft Word

Don’t have Adobe? No problem. You can use Microsoft Word to add a hyperlink to a PDF. Here’s how:

  1. Open your Microsoft Word and import the PDF you’d like to edit. 
  2. Select the area where you’d like to insert the hyperlink.
  3. Click “Insert” > “Links” group > “Hyperlink”.
  4. Enter the web address in the “Address” box.
  5. Finally, export the document as a PDF and voila! Your PDF now has a hyperlink.

Using Google Docs

Google Docs is another great option for adding links to PDF files.

  1. Just open a Google doc, type out the contents of your PDF, and select the word or phrase you wish to link.
  2. Next, click the “Insert” link button, enter the destination URL, and hit “OK”.
  3. Finally, convert the doc to PDF by going to “File”, then “Download as”, and choosing “PDF Document.”

Alternative Options for Inserting Hyperlinks Into PDFs 

Don’t want to use any of those tools? There are numerous alternatives you can go for. For instance, you could use a PDF conversion tool to change your PDF file into a Word doc. 

After that, you’ll be able to insert the hyperlink and then convert the document back to a PDF. If you’re looking for the perfect PDF converter, Cisdem is the way to go for Mac users while Readiris would be ideal for PC users.

Cisderm is the perfect pick for anyone who needs to insert hyperlinks into scanned PDFs – and when you export, you’re sure to get a high-quality result. 

Plus, it comes with the capability of converting batches of PDFs to editable formats, as well as the tools to create, protect, unprotect, and compress PDF documents. If you’re looking for additional options, PDFelement, PDFescape, and Bluebeam are all great choices as well.

Final Thoughts

PDFs are a terrific way to share important documents, marketing campaigns, and much more. With so many possibilities for embedding links in your PDFs, you can choose the one that best meets your needs. However, if you want to make the most of your PDFs, the trick is to be creative and discover what works for you.

Adding links is just one of many ways to make your documents more interactive. Looking for an easy way to take your PDF documents to the next level? Try jSign. Our e-signature solution can help you manage, edit, and sign PDF documents in no time. Get started with a 14-day free trial today and see how jSign can streamline document management and electronic signatures.

James Lintzer
Senior Marketing Manager

White Pen Icon

Worry-free Document Signing in the Cloud

Whether you’re signing a document or need to collect signatures, jSign makes electronic signing a breeze. Get started today.