Manage versions of a Preview document on Mac
Preview automatically saves changes for you as you work, so you don’t have to save your changes manually. You can save a document manually if you want to, for example, save a copy of the document in a different location.
Preview periodically saves “snapshots” of your document, called versions, so that you can view the document as it appeared in the past and revert to a previous version. When you’re actively editing a document, Preview saves a version at least every hour, and more often if you’re making significant changes. Preview also saves a version when you open a document, save or duplicate a document, lock or rename a document, or revert to a previous version.
Manually save a Preview document
In the Preview app
on your Mac, open a PDF or image that you want to save.Do any of the following:
To make sure you have a version of a document with all of your changes: Choose File > Save.
If you created a new document by choosing File > New from Clipboard and now you’re ready to name the document and place it in a particular location: Choose File > Save, enter a name, select a file format, then choose where you want to save it. When you create a document from the Clipboard, your changes are saved automatically as you edit. However, you must save it to give it a name and store it in a location.
To save the document using a different filename, location, or format: Press and hold the Option key and choose File > Save As.
If you have iCloud set up and iCloud Drive turned on, you can save your documents in the Preview folder in iCloud Drive by clicking the Where pop-up menu, choosing “Preview — iCloud,” then clicking Save. See Use iCloud Drive to store documents.
Tip: You can also hold the pointer over the document title and click the arrow to save the document or change its location.
Create a copy of a document
In the Preview app
on your Mac, open a PDF or image that you want to copy.Do any of the following:
To create a copy of a document to edit in Preview: Choose File > Duplicate. When you’re ready to save the document, choose File > Save, enter a name, select a file format, then choose where you want to save it.
To create a copy of a document so you can archive it or convert it to another format: Choose File > Export.
Revert to the last saved or opened version
In the Preview app
on your Mac, open a PDF or image that you want to revert.Choose File > Revert To > Previous Save [date, time].
If you edit the PDF or image, choose File > Revert To > Last Saved [date, time] or File > Revert To > Last Opened [date, time].
Examine, recover, or duplicate previous versions
In the Preview app
on your Mac, choose File > Revert To > Browse All Versions.Click a gray tick mark along the timeline on the right to display various versions of your document.
Do one of the following:
To restore your document to the state of a particular version: Display that version, then click Restore.
To create a new untitled document that duplicates a particular version: Display the version, press and hold the Option key and click Restore a Copy.
To leave your document in its current state: Click Done.
For information about editing iCloud documents, see If document versions conflict in iCloud Drive.