Fancy modest minimalism instead of garish glitz? Looking to give a document an instantly cool, sleek b&w appeal — or get it ready to print when a printer driver won’t do grayscale? Find out here how to convert a PDF file to black and white grayscale on a Mac using Preview ⤓.
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How to Convert a PDF to Grayscale on a Mac Using Preview
Time needed: 2 minutes
To save a PDF file converted to black and white or grayscale using macOS Preview on a Mac:
- Open the PDF document in Preview.
- Select File | Export… from the menu.
Preview keyboard shortcut: You can set up a keyboard shortcut for exporting in Preview if that’s a frequent action.
- Select Gray Tone under Quartz Filter:.
Black and white: You can also choose Black & White for a strictly black and white document; this is best suited, of course, to text documents.
Other tints: Blue and sepia tones are also available and work similar to grayscale.
- Enter a different name for the exported copy under Export As:.
Overwrite: You can also keep the old file name and overwrite the document so it turns to a grayscale PDF file in place.
Caution: Overwrite the original file only when you are fully prepared to forfeit its color for good. - Click Save.
Their word: Apple include (sparse) information on exporting in the Preview User Guide.
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How to Convert a PDF File to Black and White with Mac Preview: FAQ
Can I undo converting the PDF to grayscale?
No.
You cannot easily restore color to a grayscale PDF document, and macOS file versions will often not work to let you recover the original file either. it is best to save the grayscale version as a new copy.
All gray on display: How to Use Grayscale Mode on a Mac
Can I convert to grayscale for printing?
Yes.
If a printer does not offer the option to print in grayscale (or black and white entirely), you can print a copy you have converted to grayscale instead.
(Tested with Preview 11 on macOS Tahoe 26.0–26.4, Sequoia 15.2–15.5 and Sonoma 14.5; first published July 2024, last updated May 2026)