MS Word: Preserving vector graphics (SVG) when saving document as PDF [closed]

Question

Microsoft recently added SVG support to Word 2016. But when trying to save a document containing a SVG vector graphic as PDF the graphic will be converted to a raster image.

I tried to change the Image Size and Quality Options (-> "do not compress images in file" and "high fidelity") but this had no effect whats-o-ever. My second approach was to use the "Microsoft Print to PDF"-printer but this didn't preserve the graphics either.

Is there a way to preserve the scalability of my graphics when saving to document as pdf? Is there somewhere an option in the settings that I haven't discovered yet?

If this is only a SVG issue: Which other vector graphics format will work better?

Answer 1

In response to your final question:

"If this is only a SVG issue: Which other vector graphics format will work better?"

For years the only vector format that Word supported was Microsoft's proprietary .emf file format. If you encounter further issues, you can always try converting your .svg to .emf. Inkscape can export as .emf, and in my experience it's a much more accurate conversion than Adobe Illustrator.

Incidentally, the workaround that Andrew posted above works by converting your clipboard data into an .emf file. However there are a few times when exporting from Inkscape directly would be preferable, for instance when you want to preserve a buffer of blank space around your graphic (using the clipboard will not select blank space).

Answer 2

Microsoft seems to have improved SVG support in Word. SVG vector graphics are now perfectly preserved when saving the document as PDF.

(I'm using Office version 1806)

Answer 3

I have Adobe Acrobat X Pro 10.1.16.13 installed, which gives me a Save as PDF file option in Word 2016 that does put the SVG graphic into the PDF file as a vector graphic.

I user Insert|Picture to get the SVG graphic files into word.

A 70K SVG file, for example, slows down the editing in Word significantly, so I put placeholder JPG or PNG graphics in the Word file until the final draft, then I replace them with SVG files as the last step before saving as PDF.