How to Use Draggable Ruler Guides to Check PDF Alignment and Margins
When you need to know whether elements line up, or how far a block sits from the page edge, a guide line is faster than placing points everywhere. In PdfRuler you can drag guides straight out of the rulers, like in a design app.
How to add a guide
- Open your PDF and choose your unit.
- Press on a ruler and drag onto the page. Dragging from the horizontal ruler gives a horizontal guide; dragging from the vertical ruler gives a vertical one.
- Let go where you want it. The guide stays on the page and shows its distance from the origin edge, for example 25.4 mm.
Move and remove guides
- Move: hover a guide (it highlights) and drag it. The reading updates live.
- Remove: click a guide and confirm the delete alert, or drag it back onto a ruler or off the page. The eraser icon in the toolbar clears all guides and points at once.
- Add as many guides as you need; they clear when you change page or close the PDF.
Guides follow your origin
Pick the corner you measure from in the Origin menu and guide readings count from that corner. A guide read from the bottom-right shows the distance to the bottom and right edges, which is handy for checking margins and bleed.
Stays accurate when you zoom
Guides are stored in PDF points, not screen pixels, so they stay on the same spot of the page and report the same distance at any zoom. Use Ctrl + scroll zoom to place one precisely, then combine guides with two-point measurements for full layout checks.
Frequently asked questions
How do I add a guide line to a PDF?
Press on a ruler in PdfRuler and drag onto the page. The guide shows its exact distance from the origin edge in your chosen unit.
How do I delete a guide?
Click the guide and confirm the delete alert, or drag it back onto a ruler or off the page.
Do guides stay in place when I zoom?
Yes. Guides are stored in PDF points, so they stay on the same spot and report the same distance at any zoom.
