How to Add Clickable Hyperlinks to a PDF
A PDF that says "see https://example.com" but doesn't make it clickable is a small frustration. PDFShed lets you add real, clickable hyperlinks to any text or area in a PDF.
The problem
You wrote a report with URLs in the body. When exported to PDF from Word, most URLs aren't clickable. You want them to actually link in the PDF.
Use the tool now
Open the edit pdf tool and follow the steps below.
Step-by-step
- 1
Open the Edit PDF tool
Drop your PDF in.
- 2
Switch to "Add Link" mode
Click the link icon in the toolbar.
- 3
Drag a rectangle over the text or area
Wherever you draw the rectangle becomes the clickable region.
- 4
Enter the URL
Paste a https:// URL, mailto: address, or page-jump (#page=5) target.
- 5
Save and verify
Download the PDF, open in any reader, click the link to confirm it works.
Pro tips
- •For internal page jumps (table of contents linking to chapters), use #page=N format. Clicking jumps to that page.
- •For mailto: links, use mailto:name@domain.com — most readers open the default email client on click.
- •For long URLs, link the visible text but use a shorter display text. The URL doesn't need to be visually long; the rectangle is what becomes clickable.
- •After adding links, [add bookmarks](/en/guides/add-bookmarks-to-pdf) for easy navigation.
Frequently asked questions
Do hyperlinks work when the PDF is printed?
No — links are digital-only. Print copies show the visible text but the click target is lost.
Will the link be visible (blue underline)?
Optional — you can style the link as blue-underline (web convention) or invisible (clickable-but-undecorated).
Can I link to a specific anchor on a website?
Yes — full URLs work, including #anchors and ?query=params.
Will Adobe and other PDF readers honor my links?
Yes — PDFShed produces standard ISO 32000 link annotations. Acrobat, Preview, Foxit, and any modern PDF reader handle them identically.