Bulk convert .pub files to PDF

This guide is for IT admins and office managers with a share full of Publisher files. If you need to bulk convert .pub files to PDF, the right route depends on one question: does a computer you control still have a working, licensed copy of Publisher? If yes, Microsoft's own script is a good option. If no, stillPUB does the job without Publisher.

Why convert the files now?

According to Microsoft's support article on the Publisher retirement, Microsoft 365 subscribers lose access to Publisher "on or shortly after October 1, 2026, as the removal update process rolls out", and support for the perpetual version ended October 13, 2026. The same article says Microsoft 365 subscribers "will no longer be able to open or edit Publisher files in Publisher" and recommends converting existing files to another format.

The files themselves are not deleted. The risk is that the last computer that can open them changes, and nobody notices until a file is needed. A PDF of every file is cheap insurance: anyone can open it, print it or email it, now and later.

Which route fits your situation?

Pick the route that matches what you have. You can also use both: Publisher for the files it still opens, and stillPUB for the rest or for the editable copies.

Your situation	Best route	What you get
A Windows PC still has a licensed Publisher	Microsoft's PowerShell script	One PDF per .pub file, made by Publisher itself
No Publisher anywhere, a few hundred files	stillPUB in the browser	One zip with a PDF and an editable copy of each file, plus a report
No Publisher, a file server or a scheduled job	The stillPUB command line tool	One PDF per file, one result line per file, an exit code for scripts
You do not know what is on the share yet	Scan first with stillPUB	A read-only report of every .pub file and whether it opens

How do you bulk convert with PowerShell and Publisher?

Microsoft publishes a sample script, Convert-PubFileToPDF.ps1, that opens each .pub file in Publisher and exports it as a PDF. It is the official route, and the PDF comes from Publisher's own renderer. The catch is in the first requirement: Publisher must be installed on the computer that runs the script.

What do you need before you run the script?

1. A Windows PC with a working, licensed copy of Publisher. The script talks to Publisher through its automation interface, so it cannot run without it.
2. The script. Download Convert-PubFileToPDF.ps1 from Microsoft's download server.
3. A PowerShell window that is allowed to run scripts. Microsoft's instructions say to open PowerShell "with the required execution policies". Follow your own policy for unsigned scripts.
4. Room to write. The script saves each PDF next to its .pub file, so the account needs write access to the share.

How do you run Microsoft's script?

Open PowerShell in the folder that holds the script, then point it at your files with the Filter parameter. Add Recurse to include subfolders. These are Microsoft's own examples:

.\Convert-PubFileToPDF.ps1 -Filter "C:\Documents\MyFile.pub"
.\Convert-PubFileToPDF.ps1 -Filter "C:\Documents\*.pub"
.\Convert-PubFileToPDF.ps1 -Filter "C:\Documents\*.pub" -Recurse

The first line converts one file. The second converts every .pub file in that folder. The third also goes into every subfolder, which is usually what an admin wants for a department share.

What does the script do when a file fails?

The script keeps going. It opens each file, exports it, and reports which files converted and which failed. At the end it prints a count of converted files and errors. If a PDF with the same name already exists, the script does not replace it: it reports an error for that file and moves on. Delete or rename the old PDF and run the script again for that file.

Because the PDF lands beside the original, you can run the script more than once on the same share. Files that already have a PDF are reported and skipped, and only the missing ones are converted.

Can you change the PDF settings?

Yes, if you edit the script. It calls Publisher's ExportAsFixedFormat method. Microsoft's ExportAsFixedFormat reference lists the options. The ones an archive project cares about most:

• Intent sets the output quality of the exported file.
• UseISO19005_1 makes the file comply with ISO 19005-1 (PDF/A), the archive format. It is off by default.
• BitmapMissingFonts draws text as a picture when a font license does not allow embedding. It is on by default.
• DocStructureTags adds structure tags for accessibility. It is on by default.

Microsoft calls the script instructional and recommends that you modify and test it for your own needs. Test any change on a copy of a few files first.

Where does the PowerShell route fall short?

• It needs Publisher. On a computer where the Microsoft 365 copy was removed, the script stops with "Microsoft Publisher is not installed or accessible."
• It runs one computer at a time. Every file passes through the one PC that still has Publisher, with Publisher running behind the script.
• You get a PDF and nothing else. A PDF is good for reading and printing. It is a poor starting point for next month's newsletter.
• The output mixes with the originals. PDFs land next to the .pub files across the share, so plan where they should end up before you start.

How do you bulk convert .pub files without Publisher?

stillPUB reads .pub files directly with its own converter, so it needs no copy of Publisher. The Convert a folder of Publisher files button on the stillPUB app start screen converts a whole folder in one step. It runs in the browser, on your computer: the files are never uploaded.

What are the steps in the browser?

1. Open stillpub.com/app in a desktop browser.
2. On the start screen, click Convert a folder of Publisher files.
3. Click Choose a folder and pick the top folder. stillPUB converts every Publisher file in it, including subfolders.
4. If the browser asks, choose where to save the zip. Each file is then written into the zip as it converts, so a large folder needs little memory.
5. Wait for the counter to finish. It shows which file it is on, for example "Converting 12 of 340".
6. Save the zip if it is not saved yet, then open the report inside it.

Some browsers cannot open a whole folder. In that case the dialog says so, and you click Choose .pub files and select all the files in the folder instead.

What is in the zip?

• PDF/ holds one PDF per .pub file.
• Editable/ holds one .stillpub file per .pub file. This is a working copy you can open and edit in stillPUB later.
• Migration report.html lists every file with its status, page count, warnings and output paths.
• Migration report.csv has the same rows, with the columns File, Pages, Status, Warnings and Output paths, ready for Excel.

Folder paths are kept, so "Bulletins/Jan.pub" becomes "PDF/Bulletins/Jan.pdf". When two files would get the same name, the second gets "(2)" added. Files that are not .pub are skipped and counted. The hidden "._" files that macOS leaves on USB sticks and network shares are skipped too.

What do Ready, Review and Failed mean?

Every file gets one of three statuses in the report:

• Ready: converted with no known warnings.
• Review: converted, but open it and check the items the report lists.
• Failed: could not be converted. The report gives the reason, and the batch continues with the next file.

Ready means no warning was detected. It does not prove that every page matches Publisher. Spot check a few Ready files too, especially the ones that go to a printer.

What are the limits of the browser route?

• One file at a time. Files convert in order on your computer, so a big share takes a while. Leave the tab open.
• 4 GB per zip. When the browser writes the zip as it goes, the zip stops at 4 GB with the message "Convert the folder in smaller parts." Split very large shares by subfolder.
• Cancel is clean. Cancel stops after the current file, and the zip keeps everything that finished.
• No .pub output. stillPUB does not write .pub files. Keep every original.
• Import is not perfect. Some WordArt, master page and linked text details can be flattened or lost. The Publisher compatibility guide lists what converts and what does not.

How do you bulk convert from a command line without Publisher?

For a file server, a scheduled task or a remote session, the stillPUB command line tool does the same conversion without a browser. It is a single program with nothing to install: no Node, no npm and no Publisher.

Where do you get the command line tool?

Download the standalone folder for your system from the stillPUB downloads. There are builds for Windows x64, macOS on Apple silicon and Intel, and Linux on x64 and ARM. The macOS programs are Developer ID signed and notarized by Apple. Unzip the folder and open PowerShell or Terminal inside it.

Should you scan the share first?

Yes, on any share you have not looked at. The scan command walks a folder and all its subfolders, opens each .pub file with the same import engine, and writes a read-only report. It never changes or uploads the originals, and it does not convert anything.

.\stillpub.exe scan "\\fileserver\Office" --report "C:\Temp\publisher-scan.html"

The report tells you how many Publisher files there are, which ones open cleanly, which have warnings and which fail. That is your inventory before you convert. The scanner guide covers the options in full.

How do you convert a folder with stillpub batch?

The batch command converts every .pub file in one folder to PDF:

.\stillpub.exe batch "\\fileserver\Office\Bulletins" --to pdf --out "D:\Archive\Bulletins"

• --to pdf writes a PDF per file. --to json writes the editable .stillpub document instead.
• --out sets the output folder. Leave it out and each PDF goes next to its .pub file.
• --force replaces outputs that already exist. Without it, an existing file is not overwritten and that file is reported as failed.

On macOS or Linux, run ./stillpub instead of .\stillpub.exe, with the same options.

What does the batch command not do?

It does not go into subfolders. It converts the .pub files in the folder you name and nothing below it. For a tree of folders, run it once per folder, or use the browser folder conversion, which includes subfolders. It also writes plain files, not a zip, and it does not write the HTML or CSV migration report. Use the scan report as the inventory instead.

How do you use the result in a script?

Each file prints one line that starts with "ok" or "FAIL", with the reason on failure. The last line gives the total, such as "338/340 converted". The command exits with code 1 if any file failed, so a scheduled task or a wrapper script can flag the folder for a person to check.

How do you check the PDFs before you rely on them?

Check before you archive, and never delete the originals. Whatever route you used, a quick review catches most problems:

1. Open the report and sort by status. Start with Failed, then Review.
2. Open a sample of Ready files from each department or year.
3. Compare page count and page size with what you expect.
4. Look at fonts. stillPUB substitutes Carlito for Calibri, Caladea for Cambria, and Liberation faces for Arial, Times New Roman and Courier New, and its export report names each substitution.
5. Check pictures, tables and any text on a curve or in WordArt.
6. Print one page of anything that goes to a print shop.

For one important file at a time, the single file PDF guide shows the export report and the print checks in detail.

What should you keep after the conversion?

Keep three things for every file: the original .pub, the PDF and, for documents people still edit, the .stillpub copy. The PDF is the safe copy to read and print. The .stillpub copy is the one to open next month. The original .pub matters because future converters, from stillPUB or anyone else, can only improve on what they can still read.

Store the CSV report with the archive. It is a record of what was converted, where each output went, and which warnings came up. That is useful when someone asks two years from now why a bulletin looks different from the one they remember.

Frequently asked questions

Can Microsoft's PowerShell script convert .pub files without Publisher?

No. The script drives Publisher itself through its automation interface. Microsoft's instructions say to install a working, licensed copy of Publisher first, and the script stops with an error when Publisher is not installed.

Does stillPUB upload my Publisher files?

No. The folder conversion runs in your browser on your computer, and the command line tool runs on your machine. stillPUB uploads and stores no documents.

Does the folder conversion include subfolders?

In the browser app, yes: it converts every Publisher file in the folder, including subfolders, and keeps the folder paths inside the zip. The stillpub batch command converts only the .pub files in the folder you name, so run it once per folder.

Can stillPUB save the files back as .pub?

No. stillPUB does not write .pub files. It saves an editable .stillpub copy and exports PDF, JPG and PNG. Keep the original .pub files.

Is stillPUB free?

Yes. The browser app and the standalone downloads are free, with no account.