
Granted, there are document readers available that support both formats. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said about XPS readers, as only folks with Microsoft apps installed will be able to quickly read it. At this point, most people know the PDF format and have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on their computer (and maybe even their phone and tablet).

This is an important thing to do because it will make your document more accessible to a greater number of people. Yes, you can easily convert XPS files to PDF. This is the key difference between the two formats! Can you convert XPS to PDF? The big difference, however, is that Microsoft owns the XPS file format so most PDF readers - including the very popular Adobe Acrobat Reader - won’t be able to open it. It also is a self-contained document that looks the same on any system that can open it.

In fact, it will look the same anywhere it’s opened.Īn XPS (XML Paper Specification) file is very similar to a PDF.

If you create a PDF on your Windows tablet, it will look the same on your friend’s MacBook, for example. It is a terrific format for sharing documents on the internet because it is relatively compact and looks the same on any system that can read it. A PDF (Portable Document Format) is a document file containing text, hyperlinks, and sometimes even images.
