Skip to content 
Would you like to easily add a PDF to WordPress by using Elementor? If you use the Elementor page builder, you probably love its ease of use. When it comes to adding or embedding a PDF can you do this with Elementor?
The short answer, yes, you can add a PDF to your WordPress website with Elementor. There are a couple of ways to do this. You can use a PDF plugin to embed a PDF on a page or upload it directly to your media library.
I am going to show you how to add a PDF using either method. Both, are very easy to do, even if you’re a beginner. We will walk you through how to add a PDF to your media library. Then show you a couple of methods for adding the PDF to your pages.
HOW TO UPLOAD A PDF TO YOUR MEDIA LIBRARY
When you add a PDF to your WordPress website, you can add it directly to your media library or embed it on a page. The easiest way to add a PDF to a WordPress site is to upload it to your media library. Simply go to your media library and upload your PDF. You upload a PDF the same way you upload images to your WordPress site.
Your hosting company may have a limit on the file size you can upload directly through your WordPress dashboard. Ideally, you have compressed your PDF down to a small file size. You can use a PDF compressing tool to reduce the size of your PDF.
HOW TO UPLOAD A LARGE PDF
Sometimes PDF files are just too large to upload through the dashboard. If your PDF is print-quality or contains a lot of pages, it may be too large to upload. Depending on your hosting company, you have a maxim upload file size that keeps you from uploading large PDFs. If your PDF is over the maximum limit, you can still upload it.
There are a couple of ways to do this. If you have direct access to your server, you can upload your file through the Cpanel file manager or use an FTP program to upload it.
Option 1: Upload PDF through Cpanel or FTP
Step 1: Upload your PDF using Cpanel or FTP
To upload a PDF to your server using FTP or file manager, open up your Cpanel File Manager or FTP program.
Step 2: Find the public_html folder. Click on it to expand it.
Step 3: Open the wp-content folder and find the uploads folder.
Step 4: Locate your WordPress uploads folder (wp-content/uploads). Navigate to the most current month. For example, /wp-content/uploads/2021/07. Then upload your PDF to this folder.
Step 5: Import PDF to your media library
Once you upload the file, you would think it would automatically show up in your media library. Because it was uploaded through your server, and not the WordPress dashboard, you won’t see it in your media library. In order for it to show up in your media library, you need to import it.
The easiest method for importing your server files into your media library is to use a plugin.
We used the plug-in Add from Server.
Install the Add From Server Plugin and activate it.
Navigate to your media library, under your dashboard. You will now see an option to Add From Server. Select Add from Server.
You will see a directory of all the content located within the /wp-content/ directory. Click on the folder uploads. Then drill down until you find the folder your PDF was uploaded to.
For example
/wp-content/
uploads/
021/
07/
Select your file. And import. You will now find your PDF located in your media library.
Option 2: Increase your WordPress Maximum Upload File Size
Alternatively, if you do not want to use a plugin, you can increase the maximum upload file size for WordPress by editing your .htaccess file. If you are a beginner, we do recommend editing your website’s .htacess file. Contact your hosting company. They should be able to help you increase your WordPress site’s maximum upload size..
Some hosting companies do not provide access to this file as editing can seriously impact your website. If you feel comfortable with editing the .htaccess file, make sure you make a backup of your .htaccess file first.
To increase your upload size, add the following code to your .htacess file. You can adjust the values as needed.
php_value upload_max_filesize 64M
php_value post_max_size 64M
php_value max_execution_time 300
php_value max_input_time 300
Once you have increased your upload size, you should be able to upload your PDF through the media library. When you have the PDF uploaded, you can embed the PDF on a page with Elementor.
HOW TO EMBED PDF USING PDF POSTER PLUGIN FOR WORDPRESS
There are a few plugins that can be used to embed or add a PDF to WordPress with Elementor. The PDF Poster plugin is one of the easiest to use. Install the PDF Poster plugin.
Navigate to PDF Poster under your WordPress dashboard.
With the PDF Poster plugin you can upload a PDF directly or select it from your media library. Select Add New Pdf in your dashboard. Add a name for your uploaded file. We used Sample PDF. Then choose the PDF file and save.
Once you have saved your PDF, select PDF Poster from the dashboard. You will see your PDF listed with a shortcode. You can now add this shortcode to any Elementor page.
Select shortcode from your list of Elements. Then copy the shortcode and click on Apply.
Add any additional content to your page and publish. You now have a PDF embedded on a page in WordPress.
To share your PDF, you can share the link to either your media file or your page. Embedding a PDF on a page is a great way to keep visitors on your site. If you only provide a link to a PDF, your visitors will not see your surrounding navigation bar or any of your website content.
