VBA To Quickly Save As PDF Document From Selected Excel Worksheets
What This VBA Macro Code Does
The business world has increasingly become more reliant on mobile computing with devices such as tablets and smartphones becoming mainstream. This, in turn, has provided an elevated demand for analysts to turn spreadsheets into PDF documents so management can view your reports on the go.
Below is a simple VBA macro that will allow you to quickly turn your selected worksheet(s) into a PDF file in a snap. The code is written to save your document in the same folder as the Excel file currently resides. If you need to make modifications, hopefully, you will be able to follow along with my code comments and customize the code to your specific needs.
Sub Excel_ExportPDF()
'PURPOSE: Generate A PDF Document With Selected Worksheet(s)
'NOTES: PDF Will Be Saved To Same Folder As Excel File
'SOURCE: www.TheSpreadsheetGuru.com/the-code-vault
Dim CurrentFolder As String
Dim FileName As String
Dim myPath As String
Dim UniqueName As Boolean
UniqueName = False
'Store Information About Excel File
myPath = ActiveWorkbook.FullName
CurrentFolder = ActiveWorkbook.Path & "\"
FileName = Mid(myPath, InStrRev(myPath, "\") + 1, _
InStrRev(myPath, ".") - InStrRev(myPath, "\") - 1)
'Does File Already Exist?
Do While UniqueName = False
DirFile = CurrentFolder & FileName & ".pdf"
If Len(Dir(DirFile)) <> 0 Then
UserAnswer = MsgBox("File Already Exists! Click " & _
"[Yes] to override. Click [No] to Rename.", vbYesNoCancel)
If UserAnswer = vbYes Then
UniqueName = True
ElseIf UserAnswer = vbNo Then
Do
'Retrieve New File Name
FileName = Application.InputBox("Provide New File Name " & _
"(will ask again if you provide an invalid file name)", , _
FileName, Type:=2)
'Exit if User Wants To
If FileName = "False" Or FileName = "" Then Exit Sub
Loop While ValidFileName(FileName) = False
Else
Exit Sub 'Cancel
End If
Else
UniqueName = True
End If
Loop
'Save As PDF Document
On Error GoTo ProblemSaving
ActiveSheet.ExportAsFixedFormat _
Type:=xlTypePDF, _
FileName:=CurrentFolder & FileName & ".pdf", _
Quality:=xlQualityStandard, _
IncludeDocProperties:=True, _
IgnorePrintAreas:=False, _
OpenAfterPublish:=False
On Error GoTo 0
'Disable Page Breaks
ActiveSheet.DisplayPageBreaks = False
ActiveSheet.Select
'Confirm Save To User
With ActiveWorkbook
FolderName = Mid(.Path, InStrRev(.Path, "\") + 1, Len(.Path) - InStrRev(.Path, "\"))
End With
MsgBox "PDF Saved in the Folder: " & FolderName
Exit Sub
'Error Handlers
ProblemSaving:
MsgBox "There was a problem saving your PDF. This is most commonly" & _
" caused by the original PDF file already being open."
Exit Sub
End SubFunction To Validate Save File Name
Below is a function that you will need to paste in along with the above macro. The VBA function provides a way of testing any file name your users provide to save the PDF document as.
Function ValidFileName(FileName As String) As Boolean
'PURPOSE: Determine If A Given Excel File Name Is Valid
'SOURCE: www.TheSpreadsheetGuru.com/the-code-vault
Dim TempPath As String
Dim wb As Workbook
'Determine Folder Where Temporary Files Are Stored
TempPath = Environ("TEMP")
'Create a Temporary XLS file (XLS in case there are macros)
On Error GoTo InvalidFileName
Set wb = ActiveWorkbook.SaveAs(ActiveWorkbook.TempPath & _
"\" & FileName & ".xls", xlExcel8)
On Error Resume Next
'Delete Temp File
Kill wb.FullName
'File Name is Valid
ValidFileName = True
Exit Function
'ERROR HANDLERS
InvalidFileName:
'File Name is Invalid
ValidFileName = False
End FunctionSame Macro Functionality For Other Office Applications
Upon request, I have made similar macros for other Office Applications you may use on a regular basis to convert their files into PDF documents. The links to those specific posts are as follows:
Using VBA Code Found On The Internet
Now that you’ve found some VBA code that could potentially solve your Excel automation problem, what do you do with it? If you don’t necessarily want to learn how to code VBA and are just looking for the fastest way to implement this code into your spreadsheet, I wrote an article (with video) that explains how to get the VBA code you’ve found running on your spreadsheet.
Getting Started Automating Excel
Are you new to VBA and not sure where to begin? Check out my quickstart guide to learning VBA. This article won’t overwhelm you with fancy coding jargon, as it provides you with a simplistic and straightforward approach to the basic things I wish I knew when trying to teach myself how to automate tasks in Excel with VBA Macros.
Also, if you haven’t checked out Excel’s latest automation feature called Power Query, I have put together a beginner’s guide for automating with Excel’s Power Query feature as well! This little-known built-in Excel feature allows you to merge and clean data automatically with little to no coding!
How Do I Modify This To Fit My Specific Needs?
Chances are this post did not give you the exact answer you were looking for. We all have different situations and it’s impossible to account for every particular need one might have. That’s why I want to share with you: My Guide to Getting the Solution to your Problems FAST! In this article, I explain the best strategies I have come up with over the years to get quick answers to complex problems in Excel, PowerPoint, VBA, you name it!
I highly recommend that you check this guide out before asking me or anyone else in the comments section to solve your specific problem. I can guarantee that 9 times out of 10, one of my strategies will get you the answer(s) you are needing faster than it will take me to get back to you with a possible solution. I try my best to help everyone out, but sometimes I don’t have time to fit everyone’s questions in (there never seem to be quite enough hours in the day!).
I wish you the best of luck and I hope this tutorial gets you heading in the right direction!
After 10+ years of creating macros and developing add-ins, I've compiled all the hacks I wish I had known years ago!
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Chris Newman
Chris is a finance professional and Excel MVP recognized by Microsoft since 2016. With his expertise, he founded TheSpreadsheetGuru blog to help fellow Excel users, where he shares his vast creative solutions & expertise. In addition, he has developed over 7 widely-used Excel Add-ins that have been embraced by individuals and companies worldwide.