How to Use the Format Painter for PDF

One the best time savers out there is the famed “Format Painter” provided in Microsoft Office applications. This tool is quite simple, it looks at how text is currently formatted, then applies that formatting to other text in your document. Learning how to use the format painter for PDF is a key tool to make you more efficient.

One of the biggest hurdles when working with PDFs is making sure the formatting remains consistent. You’d open a PDF to make some changes and need to guess the specific font settings. Sure, you could click into each text box and take note of its configuration, but what if there was an easier way.

Any PDF editor worth using will come with a format painter tool. While using Soda PDF,  you’ll see how to use the format painter to keep your files looking professional.

How to Use the Format Painter – Formatting Options

If your document is already formatted correctly, feel free to skip this section. Here we’ll quickly go over the available font settings.

All text is housed in text boxes, and these are sections of your PDF that play the role of text editor. To configure font settings, you must click on a text box.

1. Make sure you are in Edit Mode.
2. Click on any text in your document.
   1. Double-click on an empty part of the page to create a new text box.

All the font formatting tools can be found in the Edit Tab. When you update any font setting it will be applied to any new text added to your document. You’ll need to first select any existing text you’ll want to update.

1. Hold down the left mouse button and drag your cursor selecting the text.

You can install any font that is already available on your system. Click here to learn more about adding new fonts or here to learn about installing custom fonts to Soda PDF.

1. Click the drop-down menu to change the font.
2. Choose one font from the list.

You can also change the text color.

1. Once you’ve selected your text, choose text color option.
2. Choose a color from the box.
   1. Click here for more information on custom colors.

You can also highlight your text, apply an underline or strike through with the same steps.

1. Select the feature.
2. Choose your color.

You can also Bold or Italicize any text by choosing the appropriate button.

1. Select the text you want to modify.
2. Choose the B for bold or I for italicize.
   1. Please note, for specialized fonts that include bold or italics these options will not be available. They are exclusively for standard fonts.

How to Use the Format Painter – Using the tool

Using the format painter is fairly straightforward. You’ll select the text that has the formatting you want to use. Then you’ll choose the text whose formatting will be updated.

1. Select the text that has the correct format.
   1. Make sure you are in Edit Mode.
2. Choose Format Painter.
3. Hold down the left mouse button and drag your cursor over the text that will be updated.
4. Release your mouse button and the changes will go into effect.

Any updates to the formatting will take place within a single text box. If you increase the font size with the format painter, the font will increase in each text box.

Depending on how your document was created you may have multiple text boxes next to each other. The text below is in two text boxes next to each other.

To optimize the use of the format painter, it’s best to merge these text boxes into one.

1. Click into the first text box while in Edit Mode.
2. Drag your cursor selecting all text across each text box.
3. Right-click and choose Merge Text Blocks.

When you now use the format painter, the text will be within the same text box and the text will be easier to place in your document.

Why not download Soda PDF and see how to use the format painter yourself!