How To Create Table of Contents in PDF

Last updated on January 6, 2023

Summary :

To improve the readability and accessibility of PDF, usually some working people or scholars will add a directory for it. However, if you also want to add a directory in the PDF how do it? In the next introduction, we will share 2 different ways to create a table of contents in PDF for you.

Content Table

A table of contents generally contains a title, chapter headings or keywords, and a starting page number, usually abbreviated as TOC, which not only gives you a quick overview of the PDF, structure, and main content but also makes your PDF look more professional. If you are very confused about how to create a Table of contents in PDF, then this article is very useful for you.

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How To Create Table of Contents in PDF With PDFgear

PDFgear is a highly recommended all-in-one PDF processor that can provide you with various PDF solutions. Convert formats, compress, crop, split, merge, and edit PDFs in seconds. Let you easily achieve an efficient office. The following will introduce you step by step to how you can create a directory in PDF through PDFgear.

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Step 1. Convert PDF to Word in PDFgear

Enter the PDFgear Online PDF to Word Converter, upload the PDF document and click “Convert”, wait for a few seconds of processing time, and click “Download” to save it after completion.

Convert PDF to Word Through PDFgear

Convert PDF to Word Through PDFgear

Step 2. Open the File in Microsoft Word

After the conversion of PDF documents in Microsoft Word to open, and then the contents of your content following the format are set up in the format: Heading format, Heading 1, Heading 2, Heading 3, Heading 4 …. This is mainly to facilitate the automatic generation of the directory after.

Set Document Formatting in Microsoft Word

Set Document Formatting in Microsoft Word

Step 3. Add Table of Contents in Microsoft Word

Once you have completed all the formatting settings, you can start the last step – creating a Table of Contents, Microsoft Word can help you generate a Table of Contents automatically. The first “Table of Contents” drop-down menu. You can automatically add the built-in table of contents format directly to the place where your cursor is positioned. The contents of the table of contents will be automatically populated with the text formatting you have set up. Of course, you can also customize the Table of Contents by clicking “Custom Table of Contents” in the drop-down menu and then adding first-level headings, second-level headings, page numbers, etc. to the resulting table of a contents text box.

Create a Table of Contents in Microsoft Word

Create a Table of Contents in Microsoft Word

Step 4. Update Table of Contents in Microsoft Word

After you have modified the title content or title formatting of the article, you do not need to manually change the content of the Table of Contents you have added. Just click “Update Table of Contents” at the top left of the table of a contents text box and select the settings you want to update in the pop-up box: Update page numbers only or Update entire table.

Update Table of Contents settings in Microsoft Word

Update Table of Contents settings in Microsoft Word

Step 5. Save as PDF from Microsoft Word

After finishing all the operations, you can click “File-Save As” on the top left corner and select PDF in the Save File Type drop-down box. You will learn the specific conversion steps in How to Convert Word to PDF article by converting Microsoft Word.

Save as PDF from Microsoft Word

Save as PDF from Microsoft Word

How To Create Table of Contents in PDF With Adobe Acrobat

Adobe Acrobat has become the primary choice for many people dealing with PDF file formats. Adobe Acrobat provides users with very easy-to-use logic while ensuring rich functionality. So you can quickly get started in a short time. Please read on to learn how to add a directory in PDF through Adobe Acrobat.

Step 1. First of all, you need to add the directory of the PDF you want to open and enter edit mode. You can add comments, and signatures, or merge multiple PDFs, etc. to your PDF in edit mode.

Open PDF Document in Adobe Acrobat

Open PDF Document in Adobe Acrobat

Step 2. To increase the readability of the whole PDF, you will generally add a blank page to edit the table of contents first. Place the mouse on the left thumbnail display interface and click the right button to select “Insert Pages-Blank Page” to add a blank page. Unfortunately, Adobe Acrobat can not automatically generate the contents of the table of contents for you, so you need to add all the contents and formatting of the table of contents yourself. Click “Tools-Content Editing-Add Text” to customize the creation of the directory.

Create PDF in Adobe Acrobat

Create PDF in Adobe Acrobat

Step 3. Adobe Acrobat has a very convenient setting, you can add links to the text in the directory to jump to the corresponding page. Click “Tools-Content Editing-Add or edit link” to set the jump page. If you are interested, you can learn how to add links in a PDF. Finally, click Save to select the storage address.

Set the Jump Page in Adobe Acrobat

Set the Jump Page in Adobe Acrobat

FAQs

How Do I Create a Table of Contents in Adobe PDF?

Adobe is probably one of the tools you will often think of when working with PDFs. You can follow these steps to create a table of contents with its help: Table of contents settings – General – Create an internal or external table of contents – Insert table of contents into an existing PDF document (internal table of contents) – Specify page numbers.

How Do I Add a Table of Contents to a PDF Online?

Because of some limitations, you can add a table of contents to a PDF online directly. First of all, you can directly access the PDFgear Online PDF to Word Converter to convert PDF to Word, then select “Reference” in the toolbar, click the “Table of Contents” drop-down box, and select a table of contents you like to add.

How To Create a Clickable Table of Contents in PDF?

Click on the table of contents font and will be able to jump directly, is it possible to achieve? First of all, you need to put the cursor in Word to specify the location of the added table of contents, click “Reference” > “Table of Contents” > “Customize Table of Contents”, in the “Table of Contents” button, check “Show page numbers”, “Right-aligned page numbers” and “Use hyperlinks.

How Do I Create a Table of Contents in PDF Mac?

Microsoft Word and PDFgear are compatible with both Windows and Mac systems. So you can use the first way introduced above to create a Table of contents for your PDF.

Conclusion

When you don’t know how to add a Table of Contents, you may think it is a very difficult challenge. But through the introduction of this article, you will find that the creation of a directory for your PDF is a very easy and simple thing. Therefore, hurry up and try it.

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