Why do my columns get cut off when I convert Excel to PDF?

Because the PDF is built from the sheet's own print setup. If the print area is wider than the page, Excel pushes the extra columns onto separate pages — and the converter reproduces exactly that. The fix is in Excel, before converting: Page Layout → Scale to Fit → Width: 1 page.

How do I fit all columns on one page?

Two equivalent routes. Ribbon: Page Layout → Scale to Fit → set Width to '1 page' and leave Height on 'Automatic'. Print dialog: File → Print → the scaling dropdown at the bottom → 'Fit All Columns on One Page'. Setting Width only — not Height — keeps the table readable, because it shrinks horizontally and lets long sheets run over several pages.

How do I convert Excel to PDF without losing formatting?

Save the file before uploading so the print setup travels with it, and check Print Preview first — what you see there is what the PDF will contain. Colors, borders, merged cells, number formats and conditional formatting are all preserved; only the page layout can surprise you.

What paper size does the PDF use?

The size set in the sheet — Page Layout → Size. A4 is the default in most regions, Letter in the US. For a very wide table, A3 in landscape gives you far more room than shrinking everything to fit A4.

Can I convert .xls as well as .xlsx?

Yes, both work, along with spreadsheets exported from Google Sheets, LibreOffice Calc and Numbers.

Can I convert the PDF back to Excel later?

Yes. Use the PDF to Excel tool to pull the tables back into an editable spreadsheet when you need to change the numbers.

Are my files private?

Files are processed on our own infrastructure and are never sold or shared. The converted PDF is yours to keep.

How to Convert Excel to PDF (Without Cutting Off Columns)

Short answer: In Excel, go to Page Layout → Scale to Fit and set Width: 1 page. Then open the Excel to PDF tool, upload your .xls or .xlsx, and download. Every column lands on the page.

A PDF is the right format for sharing a finished spreadsheet: the recipient can't accidentally change a formula, and the layout looks the same everywhere. The one thing that goes wrong is width — spreadsheets are usually wider than a sheet of paper.

Why columns get cut off

This is the single most common complaint about Excel PDFs, and the cause is not the converter.

A spreadsheet has no pages. It's an endless grid, and the only thing that decides where a page ends is the print setup saved inside the file — print area, orientation, paper size and scaling. Converting to PDF applies that setup, exactly as printing would. So if the last three columns fall outside the printable width, they don't get cut off by the conversion; they were already destined for another page, or for nowhere.

Which is good news: fix the print setup once and every export after it is correct — printing, PDF, and anything anyone else does with the file.

The exact fix in Excel

Do this before uploading. Either route works; they set the same thing.

Ribbon (Windows and Mac):

Page Layout tab → the Scale to Fit group.
Set Width to 1 page.
Leave Height on Automatic.

Print dialog:

File → Print.
The scaling dropdown at the bottom (it says No Scaling by default).
Choose Fit All Columns on One Page.

Setting Width only is the part people get wrong. "Fit Sheet on One Page" squeezes a 200-row table into a single page and the text ends up unreadable. Width: 1 page + Height: Automatic keeps the type at a sensible size and lets a long sheet run over as many pages as it needs — which is what you want for anything with more than a screenful of rows.

The other four settings worth knowing

Setting	Where	Why it helps
Print area	Page Layout → Print Area → Set Print Area	Exports only the range you selected, not stray cells far to the right
Landscape	Page Layout → Orientation → Landscape	The cheapest width you can get; try it before scaling anything down
Paper size	Page Layout → Size	A3 in landscape fits roughly twice the columns of A4
Repeat header row	Page Layout → Print Titles → Rows to repeat at top	On a multi-page table, every page keeps its column headings

A stray value in a far-off cell is worth checking for on its own: it silently widens the print area and shrinks everything else to nothing. Press Ctrl+End to jump to the last used cell — if it lands somewhere unexpected, delete those rows and columns, then set the print area.

Check before you convert

View → Page Break Preview draws the page boundaries straight onto the grid as blue lines, and you can drag them. Thirty seconds here saves re-doing the export: what Page Break Preview shows is what the PDF will contain.

Google Sheets and LibreOffice

The same idea, different menus:

Google Sheets — File → Download → PDF opens an export panel. Set Scale: Fit to width, choose landscape, and use Set custom page breaks if you want control over where pages split. Or export to .xlsx and run it through the Excel to PDF tool.
LibreOffice Calc — Format → Page Style → Sheet tab → Scaling mode: Fit print range(s) to width/height, then set width to 1 page.

When to convert Excel to PDF

Sharing reports with people who shouldn't edit the numbers.
Sending invoices or quotes that need to look identical for everyone.
Archiving a snapshot of the data at a point in time.

Need to edit the numbers again?

A PDF is meant to be final. When the data changes, convert the PDF back to Excel to get an editable spreadsheet, update it, and export to PDF again. The same one-step flow also works for Word and PowerPoint files.

Tips

Save before uploading. The print setup is stored in the file, so unsaved changes to it don't travel.
Hide helper columns you don't want in the shared version — hidden columns aren't printed or exported.
One sheet per PDF if the workbook has several tabs with different layouts; each tab keeps its own print setup.
Compress afterward if the sheet has charts or images and you're emailing it — see reduce PDF size.