How to merge or combine pdf files into one on mac?

cpdf - I found something that fits your request perfectly: Coherent PDF (also called cpdf). It's a completely free, open-source command-line tool that runs natively on Mac.

How to combine PDF files Mac:

Step 1: Download/Install cpdf

Step 2: Authorize the App (One-Time Only)

Since cpdf isn't from the Mac App Store, Apple will block it at first. Here's how to authorize it:

• Double-click the cpdf file in your Applications folder. You'll see a warning popup
• Click Done, then open System Settings > Privacy & Security
• Scroll down to the Security section - you'll see a message about cpdf being blocked
• Click Open Anyway
• Terminal will open briefly with some text - you can ignore it and quit Termina

You only need to do this once per Mac. After this, cpdf is ready to use.

Open Terminal and use this command:

bash

/Applications/cpdf /path/to/first,pdf /path/to/second,pdf -o /path/to/merged,pdf

That's it. The merged PDF will appear on your Desktop with all pages combined in the order you specified.

If you have many PDFs in a folder, how to combine PDF files Mac:

bash

/Applications/cpdf ~/Desktop/myPDFs/*,pdf -o ~/Desktop/combined,pdf

This merges every PDF in the myPDFs folder into one file called combined,pdf.