How to make small size PDF from INDD

Hi,

I think it is important to highlight what impacts the pdf file size.

Pictures are usually the elements that will 'cost' you the largest amount of memory. Sadly the only way to reduce significantly the file size is to adjust the compression of the images. As a result, the quality/sharpness/colors of the images will be affected. I recommend that you experiment with the settings described in an earlier answer to finding which suit you best and save them as a preset for future reuse.

If you insert a video, you will generate a larger pdf file. The export panel (see above) does not include compression settings for video, you should compress the video before inserting it. My experience is that, even after using very strong compression to a point where the quality is drastically reduced, the pdf is still quite large.

I experimented with different export settings and different fonts, I didn't find any way to reduce significantly the pdf size for a document with mostly text.

If you plan to upload your pdf, you might consider breaking it up into several 'chunks'. Each file could have a link to the next part, which would avoid a long wait by the users to open the whole larger single file.

You can tinker with all-sorts of setting here:

Changing the resolution and compression quality will reduce your pdf size

Moving to InDesign​

How is file size even relevant for print production? The whole point is to retain as much resolution and quality as possible by using the standard PDF-X specifications. Of course you can still tweak the output, but without more specific information nobody can really advise and it will end up being "out of spec" quite likely. We would have to know things like contents of the file and assets used and what exactly the print facility wants. Insisting on a PostScrip-based legacy workflow doesn't bode well...

Mylenium