This shortcut extracts specified pages and page ranges from a PDF file selected in a Finder window. It is similar to the shortcut in post 1 above, except that multiple pages and page ranges can be extracted, Also this shortcut contains additional error correction, although it does not check the number of pages in the source PDF. The following screenshot only shows a portion of the shortcut.
PDF Extract.shortcut (25.5 KB)
Here’s another approach to get the number of pages in a PDF. This works if the PDF is on a drive that’s not indexed, but it’s slow.
PDF Page Count.shortcut (22.0 KB)
The shortcut included below is similar to that noted above, differing only in that the shortcut works on a PDF being viewed in the Preview app. I successfully ran the shortcut on macOS 26.3 by way of: Spotlight; menu-bar shortcut collection; menu-bar shortcut icon; AppleScript in the AppleScript menu; and AppleScript and shell script in FastScripts. I was unable to run the shortcut by way of the Preview app Services menu and a keyboard shortcut set in the Shortcuts app.
I was uncertain what should happen after the PDF pages are extracted and saved. Options I considered are:
Open the new PDF in a Preview window.
Open a Finder window with the new PDF selected.
Show a notification.
Do nothing.
As written, the shortcut shows a notification.
PDF Extract.shortcut (25.3 KB)
The following shortcut is identical to that above with two exceptions. First, consecutive sequential pages and page ranges entered by the user are combined (e.g. “1 2-3 4” is made into “1-4”). This change is reflected in the file name and notification. Secondly, an existing file (which is never the PDF being viewed) is always overwritten by the saved file with the extracted pages. The shell script in the shortcut was written by Nigel.
PDF Extract.shortcut (26.2 KB)
BTW, if the user enters a page number that does not exist in the source PDF, one or more blank pages may be included in the newly-created PDF. The shortcut can be edited to prevent this, but its operation would be slowed considerably.
Both of the shortcuts in the prior post do not work correctly if two or more PDFs are being viewed in the Preview app. There’s no fix for this that I could find, so the following shortcut alerts the user and stops if two or more PDFs are viewed.
PDF Extract.shortcut (26.6 KB)
This thread is long and a bit convoluted, and, to simplify somewhat, I’ve included below four of the shortcuts that would appear to be most useful. A few comments:
The shortcuts all work without issue on my macOS Tahoe 26.4 computer. The PDF Extract shortcut requires macOS Tahoe.
Source files are selected in a Finder window, but this is easily changed to use a Select File action. The PDF Extract shortcut is an exception and works on a PDF being viewed in the Preview app.
The destination folder for saved files is the folder that contains the source file.
I typically run these shortcuts by way of Spotlight or a Finder window toolbar icon.
PDF Merge. This shortcut merges selected PDF and image files.
PDF Merge.shortcut (24.0 KB)
PDF Extract. This shortcut extracts user-specified pages and page ranges from a PDF being viewed in the Preview app. The pages are saved in a single PDF file. I have not been able to run this shortcut by way of a Quick Action or Service.
PDF Extract.shortcut (27.1 KB)
PDF Split. This shortcut creates a separate file for every page of a selected PDF.
PDF Split.shortcut (23.1 KB)
PDF to Text. These shortcuts extract and save text from a selected PDF file. The text from each page of a multi-page PDF is separated by a line of dashes or page numbers. The page numbering of the PDF and the text file may differ if the PDF contains pages with no extractable text.
PDF to Text.shortcut (24.1 KB)
PDF to Text with Page Numbers.shortcut (24.2 KB)
