Chrome Will Soon Let You Save PDFs Directly to Google Drive From Its Built-in PDF Viewer

Update – July 23, 2025:
Chrome’s “Save to Google Drive” button for PDFs is now live in Canary. This article has been updated to reflect the current status.

Google is adding the ability to save PDF documents directly to Google Drive from the built-in PDF viewer in Chrome. A new “Save to Drive” button now appears in the top toolbar when viewing PDF files in Canary version, making it easier to store documents in the cloud with a single click.

Currently, Google Chrome allows users to save PDFs to their devices using the Print option. Additionally, the latest iOS version of the browser now supports saving PDFs directly to Google Drive. Now, Chrome is introducing this capability within the PDF Viewer on Windows, Mac, and Linux.

The Chromium Gerrit commit we spotted states that the new option will work the same as the Download button.

“Create a new save to drive button in the PDF viewer. This button is largely the same as the existing download button, which is why it is also extending ViewerSaveControlsMixin. This new button has a component of circular progress indicator that represents the current upload percentage.” the commit message reads.

Also see: Google Pushes Chrome as Default PDF Viewer on Windows 11

Google has already added a flag to enable this feature in Chrome Canary. The “Save PDF to Drive” flag “enables the ability to save PDFs to Google Drive” on Mac, Windows, and Linux.

Currently, the flag is working and displays the “Save to Drive” option for PDFs in Chrome, but the button is not working yet, as Google is still developing the feature.

Also see: Chrome’s PDF Viewer getting a Material 3 Design Refresh

In case you don’t know, Google’s “Save to Drive” extension allows users to save files—including PDFs—to Google Drive. However, once this new feature rolls out, users who rely on the extension for PDFs may no longer need it.