How to Change Rounded Corners to Square in Acrobat

Hi @wardben,

Thanks for sharing the details and screenshots — that helps clarify the situation.

What you’re seeing isn’t caused by a setting in Acrobat itself. Acrobat doesn’t control whether images display with rounded or square corners. Instead, the corners are part of how the PDF was authored: the image has been placed inside a frame or clipping mask (most likely a rounded rectangle) when the document was originally created in tools like InDesign, Illustrator, or another design program.

When you edit the image in Photoshop and save it back, Acrobat replaces the image inside that frame, but the mask/frame itself is preserved — which is why you still see rounded corners.

What we can do:

Here are some ways to get square corners instead:

1. Check for a clipping path/mask in Acrobat Pro

• Go to Tools → Print Production → Output Preview.

• Use the Object Inspector to see if the image is inside a rounded frame.

2. Edit in Illustrator (most reliable)

• Export the page/object to Illustrator.

• Select the frame and change the rounded rectangle to a square one.

• Save back to PDF — Acrobat will then display the square corners.

3. Flatten transparency

• Try Print Production → Flattener Preview in Acrobat Pro.

• This sometimes removes vector masks (though it may also “bake” the image and reduce editability).

4. Adjust in the source file (best long-term fix)

• If you have access to the original design file (e.g., InDesign), adjust the image frames there and re-export the PDF with square corners.

What won’t work

• Acrobat preferences or settings — there’s no toggle for rounded vs. square corners.

• Editing just the raster image in Photoshop — the frame/mask will remain applied.

Let us know how it works.

Best regards,
Tariq | Adobe Community Team | Meet Acrobat Studio