Can't view or insert PDFs into OneNote MacBook

Use Insert > Insert file as PDF Printout rather than the general Insert > File command—the chooser shown is filtering out PDFs because it appears to be the attachment/file chooser, not the PDF-printout chooser.

Insert the PDF as an annotatable printout

1. Open the required OneNote page and click where the first PDF page should appear.
2. From the macOS menu bar, select Insert > Insert file as PDF Printout.
   • Depending on the OneNote interface, this may appear on the Insert tab as Printout.
3. In Choose a file to Insert, open Downloads and select the PDF.
4. Click Insert.

OneNote should convert each PDF page into a separate image placed sequentially on the note, allowing you to write over it. This is the documented workflow for OneNote for Microsoft 365, 2024, and 2021 for Mac.^1^

The distinction matters:

• Insert > File opens the attachment workflow and may apply a different file filter.
• Insert > Printout / Insert file as PDF Printout opens the PDF-printout workflow.^2^

If the PDF-specific chooser also hides every PDF

Since force-quitting OneNote, restarting macOS, and changing folders made no difference, do not repeat those steps. Instead:

1. Confirm that the menu command used is specifically Insert file as PDF Printout, not File.
2. Try it on a new blank page in a notebook section you can edit. Printout insertion requires edit permission.^3^
3. Check Microsoft’s OneNote for Mac known-issues page. The published list currently does not document this exact “all PDFs hidden in the chooser” symptom, so it cannot presently be identified as an acknowledged outage or regression.^4^
4. If PDFs remain absent from the PDF Printout chooser, submit feedback from OneNote and contact Microsoft Support from that known-issues page. Include:
   • OneNote version/build from OneNote > About OneNote
   • macOS version
   • The two screenshots
   • Whether the problem occurs in every notebook
   • Confirmation that the PDF-specific command also filters out all PDFs

Avoid the Windows/Class Notebook fixes involving Adobe Reader defaults or “Send to OneNote 2016”; those instructions do not apply to OneNote on macOS.

References

1. Insert PDF printouts into notes in OneNote for Mac | Microsoft Support
2. Basic tasks in OneNote for Mac | Microsoft Support
3. Insert or attach files to notes | Microsoft Support
4. Fixes or workarounds for recent issues in OneNote for Mac, iPhone, and iPad | Microsoft Support