How to Download Adobe® Reader®

Many websites use Adobe Reader software to save PDF (Portable Document Format) files. Adobe PDF files preserve the visually rich content of original files and print cleanly and quickly. In order to view and print PDF files online, you will need Adobe Reader, a free downloadable software program.

If Adobe Reader is not installed on your computer, you can download a copy from the Adobe website. This is a one time process which will allow you to view and print PDF publications on the Internet.

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What To Do

1. Visit Adobe's website by clicking the “Get Adobe Reader” button.
   
2. At Adobe's download page, fill out steps 1 and 2, making sure to enter your operating system, country, which language version of the Adobe Reader you want to download, and your name and e-mail address.
3. Click the “Download” button. A “file download” window will appear. Choose the “save to disk” option, select the location you would like to save the program to, then click the “Save” button. The program will automatically begin downloading to your computer. Depending on your operating system and the speed of your Internet connection, it may take between 20-30 minutes to download the file.
4. After the program has downloaded, close your web browser. Locate the folder you downloaded Adobe Acrobat to, then open the folder and double-click the file. This will begin the Adobe Reader setup process, which will guide you through the rest of the installation.

Additional Information

The Adobe Reader should install itself within your browser (as a plug-in) and as a stand-alone application so that you can view PDF documents without having to open your web browser. Once you've installed Adobe Reader, the program will automatically start whenever you attempt to download a PDF file from a website. The program will also start up anytime you double-click a PDF file located on your hard drive.

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