Linked InDesign 20.5 Files Rasterize When Exporting from InDesign 21.0

Forum|Forum|6 months ago
November 6, 2025
2 replies
826 views

Good morning,

I’m having an issue with Adobe InDesign 2026 v21.0.
In my project, I have two linked InDesign files – one created in the newest version of the program, and the other in an older version 2025 v20.5.

When exporting to PDF, I noticed that the file originating from the older version of InDesign is exported as an RGB bitmap with a resolution of 72 PPI, while the newer one exports correctly and retains vector data.

In InDesign’s preview, everything looks fine – the issue appears only after exporting to PDF.

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D

David22430226j03g

Participating Frequently

Newer version of Indesign does not export correctly.

Abhishek Rao

Community Manager

Hi @David22430226j03g,

Thanks for reaching out and sorry to hear that you experience this issue. Could you please confirm the exact InDesign version and OS details you are currently using, such as whether you are on InDesign 21.3 or another build?

Also, could you please confirm whether you are specifically seeing linked INDD files getting rasterized in the exported PDF, similar to the original report, or if you are noticing any other visual/output differences as well?

If possible, please share screenshots comparing the placed/linked INDD content inside the InDesign document window and the resulting exported PDF window showing the rasterization or quality difference.

I’d also like to let you know that this issue is currently being worked on by the product team, and I’ll continue to keep the thread updated as I hear back from them. Your additional details would be very helpful for the ongoing investigation.

Looking forward to your update.

Abhishek

D

David22430226j03g

Participating Frequently

MacOS 15.4.1

Two Screenshots of consistent issue with placed INDD files with placed PDFs.

Other issues with Certain Type of Placed PDF files in INDD when Exporting and Printing.

Anubhav M

Community Manager

Hello @grupa 3 druks45568294,

Thanks for reaching out. Could you share a link to sample files after uploading them to a file-sharing service, so we can check this behavior on our end?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Anubhav