Save Microsoft Word Documents as Accessible PDFs

PDF documents are a common fixture in both academic and professional settings. They enable the sharing of fixed documents across a large audience, but they are often not accessible. Making accessible documents in Microsoft Word and saving them as PDF/A retains all aspects of the document to create an accessible PDF.

The resources on this page consist of video tutorials and text directions to save Word documents as accessible PDFs on PC and Mac.

1. Open a completed and accessible Microsoft Word document.
2. Select File, then select Save as Adobe PDF.
3. Select the location you want your file to be saved at, i.e.: Desktop, Documents folder
4. Select the Options button at the bottom of the Save window.
5. Check the box next to the ‘Create PDF/A-1a:2005’ then select OK to close the Options window.
6. Select the Save button at the bottom of the Save window. The resulting PDF will maintain accessible structure from Word.

1. Open a completed Microsoft Word document.
2. Click File tab and select Save As.
3. Select the location you want to save your file (i.e. Desktop, Documents folder, or other location)
4. Select PDF from the Save as Type drop-down menu.
5. Select the button next to ‘Best for electronic distribution and accessibility’
6. Click Export