Rotate a PDF and save it (fixing sideways scans)
How to turn PDF pages that are sideways or upside down in 90-degree steps and save them the right way up.
PDFs made from scanned documents or phone photos often have pages lying on their side. Rotating only in the viewer leaves the saved file unchanged, so you need to save a new file with the rotation applied.
How to do it with DocDori
- Open the PDF in the Workspace.
- Go to the page you want to turn and press the rotate button. Each press turns it 90°. For an upside-down page, press it twice.
- Rotate other pages the same way if needed.
- Press ‘Download edited copy’ to download a new PDF with the rotation applied.
Good to know
- If you plan to use ‘Add text’ on a page, add the text before rotating. Adding text to a rotated page has not been verified yet.
- Rotated form PDFs open as view-only.
When this comes in handy
- When you need to stand a sideways scanned document upright before submitting it
- When pages fed into the scanner upside down got mixed in
- When you want to turn only the pages with wide tables so they’re easier to read
Frequently asked questions
Can I rotate all pages at once? Rotation works one page at a time, on the page you’re viewing. If several pages need turning, go through them and rotate each the same way.
I rotated it in my viewer, but it goes back when I save. That’s because it was only rotated on screen. You need to save a new file with the rotation applied for it to display the right way on other computers too.