PDF to TIFF Converter

Convert PDF to TIFF: What This Tutorial Covers

This page walks you through rasterizing a PDF into a TIFF image (the .tif and .tiff extensions are the same format, just spelled differently). It is written for people who need TIFF for a specific reason — a fax server, an OCR or eDiscovery pipeline, or an archive that requires lossless images — and who need the DPI, bit depth, and compression set correctly so the output is actually usable.

How to Convert PDF to TIFF

1. Upload Your PDF File: Drag and drop your PDF onto the page or click "+ Add Files". Your file is sent over an encrypted connection to our servers for conversion.
2. Set Conversion Quality (DPI): Open Advanced Options and pick a DPI under "Conversion Quality". 300 DPI is the default and the right choice for print and most archives; raise it to 400 or 600 for small-text OCR, or drop it to 150 for screen-only use.
3. Choose Bit Depth and Compression Type: Under Advanced Options, set "Bit Depth" (1-bit, 8-bit, or 16-bit) and "Compression Type" (JPEG, LZW, DEFLATE, or PACKBITS) to match where the TIFF will be used.
4. Convert and Download: Click "Convert" and download your TIFF. No sign-up, no watermark. Files are deleted automatically a few hours later.

Walk-through: Picking DPI, Bit Depth, and Compression

The three settings that decide whether your TIFF works for its purpose are DPI, bit depth, and compression type. Because a PDF page is being turned into a fixed grid of pixels, these choices directly control sharpness, color, and file size — there is no single "best" combination, only the right one for your destination.

• For print or a quality archive: keep 300 DPI, 8-bit, and LZW or DEFLATE compression. LZW and DEFLATE are lossless, so no detail is thrown away.
• For OCR on small or dense text: raise DPI to 400 or 600. OCR engines read more reliably from higher-resolution pages, and the extra pixels cost only file size, not accuracy.
• For a fax server or a pure black-and-white document: choose 1-bit (Black & White) bit depth. Pair it with a fax-oriented workflow; bilevel TIFF is what most fax systems and eDiscovery platforms expect, and it produces the smallest files for line-art and text.
• For photographic pages where size matters more than perfect fidelity: use JPEG compression inside the TIFF. It is lossy but can shrink continuous-tone scans dramatically. Avoid JPEG compression for line art or 1-bit pages — it adds visible artifacts around sharp edges.

If your PDF has a transparent background, the "Color" control under Image Transparency sets the fill color (White by default). TIFF does not need an alpha channel for most document work, so leaving this on White gives you a clean, printable page.

Common Errors and How to Fix Them

• "My TIFF is huge (tens of MB per page)" — You are likely at high DPI with no compression or with 16-bit depth. Switch Compression Type to LZW or DEFLATE (lossless but much smaller), drop to 8-bit, or lower the DPI if 600 is more than you need.
• "Text looks blurry or jagged" — DPI is too low for the text size. Re-convert at 300 DPI minimum, or 400–600 DPI for fine print and OCR.
• "The page background is black instead of white" — The source PDF had transparency and the fill color was set wrong. Set the "Color" option under Image Transparency to White before converting.
• "My fax system or eDiscovery tool rejects the file" — Those systems usually require bilevel TIFF. Convert with 1-bit (Black & White) bit depth so the output is a true black-and-white image.
• "Colors look posterized or banded" — You used too few colors or 1-bit depth on a color page. Use 8-bit for normal documents and 16-bit only when you genuinely need high color precision.

When This Doesn't Work

If the PDF is password-protected or DRM-restricted, the pages can't be rasterized until the protection is removed. Scanned PDFs that are already low-resolution won't gain detail from a high DPI setting — you can only preserve what's in the source, not invent sharper pixels. And if you actually need a searchable document rather than a flat image, TIFF is the wrong target: a plain TIFF holds no text layer. In that case keep the PDF, or go the other direction and turn images back into a document with TIFF to PDF. For a smaller, more shareable raster you can also try PDF to JPG or PDF to PNG.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this produce one multi-page TIFF or one image per page?

This converter outputs one TIFF per page, delivered together as a ZIP — per-page images are the default, not the exception. TIFF the format can store multiple pages as separate image directories inside one container, which is why it is popular for faxing and archiving, but this tool does not bundle the pages into a single file. If you need every page in one container, keep it as a PDF.

What DPI should I use to convert a PDF to TIFF?

300 DPI is the default here and the standard for print-quality output and most archives. Use 400–600 DPI when the document has small text or will be run through OCR, and 150 DPI when the TIFF is only for on-screen viewing and you want a smaller file. Going above 600 DPI rarely helps text documents and mainly increases file size.

Which TIFF compression should I pick — LZW, DEFLATE, PACKBITS, or JPEG?

LZW, DEFLATE, and PACKBITS are lossless, so they shrink the file without discarding any image data — LZW and DEFLATE are the usual choices for documents. JPEG compression inside a TIFF is lossy; it can make photographic scans much smaller but adds artifacts around sharp text and line art, so avoid it for bilevel or text-heavy pages.

Will I lose quality converting a PDF to TIFF?

Rasterizing always converts vector text and graphics into a fixed pixel grid, so the result is resolution-dependent in a way the original PDF was not. At 300 DPI with a lossless compression type (LZW or DEFLATE) the visible quality is excellent for print and archiving. Quality loss only becomes noticeable if you choose a low DPI or apply lossy JPEG compression to detailed pages.

Why would I convert a PDF to TIFF instead of keeping the PDF?

TIFF is the format many fax servers, document-management systems, and legal eDiscovery platforms require, and it is widely used for long-term archival because lossless TIFF preserves the page image exactly. In our testing, a text-heavy A4 page converted at 300 DPI with LZW compression produces a sharp, lossless TIFF that opens in standard imaging software without needing a PDF reader.

Is the conversion private — does my PDF stay confidential?

Your PDF is uploaded over an encrypted connection, processed on our servers, and the files are deleted automatically a few hours after conversion. There is no sign-up and no watermark, and your files are never shared or made public.