To print only certain pages of a PDF on a Mac, open it in Preview, show the page thumbnails, Command-click each page you want, then choose File > Print and select Selection in the Preview section. Check the print preview before sending the job. For a continuous page range, you can also enter its first and last page in the print dialog’s page range fields.

Select specific PDF pages in Preview

  1. Open the PDF in Preview. If it opens in another app, use Finder to locate the file, Control-click it, choose Open With, then choose Preview. Preview can open and print a PDF even if you don’t have the app that created it. Apple’s Preview guide

  2. Choose View > Thumbnails. Preview displays small versions of the document’s pages in a sidebar. If you do not see the sidebar, return to the View menu and select Thumbnails. Apple documents the thumbnail view here.

  3. Click a thumbnail for the first page you want to print. To add individual pages that are not next to one another, hold Command while clicking each additional thumbnail. For example, to print pages 2, 5, and 8, select page 2, then Command-click pages 5 and 8. The selected thumbnails should remain highlighted together.

  4. Choose File > Print, or press Command-P. In the print dialog, find the Preview section and choose Selection. This tells Preview to print the selected thumbnails rather than all pages. Click Print when the preview and other settings look right. Apple’s instructions specifically pair selected thumbnails with the Selection option.

The thumbnail-selection method is handy when you need scattered pages—for example, a signed form and two supporting pages—because you can select those pages directly without including everything between them.

Print a continuous page range instead

If the pages you need are consecutive, such as pages 6 through 9, use the page range fields in the print dialog. With the PDF open, choose File > Print. In Pages, choose the range option if the dialog presents a choice, then enter 6 as the start and 9 as the end. Apple notes that the print dialog’s options can vary by app and printer, so the exact layout may differ. Apple’s Mac print settings guide documents entering a page range and selecting individual pages in the sidebar.

For a single page, enter the same number in both range boxes—for example, 4 and 4. Use the range method for one uninterrupted block; use thumbnail selection for separated pages. If you select thumbnails in Preview and also change page-range settings, inspect the preview carefully so the final job contains the pages you intend.

Check the page numbers before printing

A PDF’s page index may not match a printed page number shown in its footer. A document can have a cover page, a preface with Roman numerals, or section numbering that starts over. Preview’s thumbnails correspond to the PDF pages in order, while a visible footer may use the document’s own numbering. If you need “page 3” from a printed reference, confirm which page that means in the thumbnail list before selecting it.

For a long PDF, use View > Thumbnails and click through the relevant page previews to verify the content. Preview also lets you jump to a particular page using Go > Go to Page, but check the page itself rather than relying only on a printed page label. Apple describes thumbnail navigation and Go to Page in Preview.

Review the print preview and settings

Before clicking Print, check the preview pages and the printer name. Confirm that the page count and order match your selection. Then review settings that can affect the result: paper size, orientation, scaling, copies, and double-sided printing. Which controls appear depends on the app and printer. Apple documents these as common print options, with some options available only when supported by the printer. See Apple’s print settings reference.

In Preview, Pages per Sheet controls how many PDF pages appear on each physical sheet; it does not choose which PDF pages to include. Likewise, Copies per page repeats the same page on a sheet. Use the page selection or range to limit which PDF pages print, then use layout settings only if you also want to change how they fit on paper. Apple distinguishes these Preview and Layout options.

If you want to keep a digital copy of the selected pages instead of using paper, open the print dialog’s PDF menu and choose Save as PDF. This saves the output as a new PDF; it does not require changing the original document. Apple describes saving a document as PDF from the Mac print dialog. Apple’s guide to printing documents on Mac.

If the wrong pages appear

If the print preview includes every page, return to Preview and check that the intended thumbnails are still selected. Open File > Print again and confirm Selection is chosen in the Preview section. If you meant to print a continuous range, verify both endpoints in the page range fields. Avoid assuming that selecting thumbnails alone completes the setup: Apple’s Preview instructions include a separate Selection option in the print dialog.

If the expected selection controls are missing, check that the file is open in Preview and that you are looking at the Preview section of its print options. The Mac print dialog can show different settings depending on the app and printer; the app’s own options are not identical in every workflow. If a printer is unavailable, the page-selection steps can still be used to prepare a PDF copy via the PDF menu, while printer setup depends on the device and its supported connection method. Apple explains that print options vary and describes printer setup.

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