--- title: "Move or rearrange PDF page server-side | Nutrient SDK" canonical_url: "https://www.nutrient.io/guides/document-engine/editor/page-manipulation/move-or-rearrange/" md_url: "https://www.nutrient.io/guides/document-engine/editor/page-manipulation/move-or-rearrange.md" last_updated: "2026-05-25T07:44:41.316Z" description: "Learn how to move and reorder PDF pages using the Document Engine API. Follow our guide for simple instructions and examples." --- # Move or rearrange PDF pages Document Engine can move existing pages of a document. You can achieve this by sending a multipart request to the `/api/build` endpoint and attaching the input file(s) and the `instructions` JSON. This guide shows examples of moving or rearranging PDF pages. - Ensure [Document Engine is up and running](https://www.nutrient.io/sdk/document-engine/getting-started.md). - Send a [multipart POST request](https://www.baeldung.com/postman-form-data-raw-x-www-form-urlencoded) with [instructions](https://www.nutrient.io/api/reference/document-engine/upstream/#tag/Build-API) to Document Engine’s `/api/build` endpoint. For more information, refer to the [API reference](https://www.nutrient.io/api/reference/document-engine/upstream/#tag/Build-API) to learn about the `/api/build` endpoint and all the actions you can perform on PDFs with Document Engine. For an overview of multipart requests, refer to the [brief tour of multipart requests](https://www.nutrient.io/blog/a-brief-tour-of-multipart-requests/) blog post. ## Reordering pages of a file on disk You can rearrange pages of the same file, as well as pages from different files. ### Reordering pages of the same file To switch places of the third page with the sixth page, send a multipart request with these inputs to the [`/api/build` endpoint](https://www.nutrient.io/api/reference/document-engine/upstream/#tag/Document-Editing/operation/build-document): ### SHELL ```shell curl -X POST http://localhost:5000/api/build \ -H "Authorization: Token token=" \ -F document=@/path/to/document.pdf \ -F instructions='{ "parts": [ { "file": "document", "pages": { "start": 0, "end": 1 } }, { "file": "document", "pages": { "start": 5, "end": 5 } }, { "file": "document", "pages": { "start": 3, "end": 4 } }, { "file": "document", "pages": { "start": 2, "end": 2 } }, { "file": "document", "pages": { "start": 6, "end": 7 } } ] }' \ -o result.pdf ``` ### HTTP ```http POST /api/build HTTP/1.1 Content-Type: multipart/form-data; boundary=customboundary Authorization: Token token= --customboundary Content-Disposition: form-data; name="document"; filename="document.pdf" Content-Type: application/pdf --customboundary Content-Disposition: form-data; name="instructions" Content-Type: application/json { "parts": [ { "file": "document", "pages": { "start": 0, "end": 1 } }, { "file": "document", "pages": { "start": 5, "end": 5 } }, { "file": "document", "pages": { "start": 3, "end": 4 } }, { "file": "document", "pages": { "start": 2, "end": 2 } }, { "file": "document", "pages": { "start": 6, "end": 7 } } ] } --customboundary-- ``` ### Reordering pages of different files Use the code example below to create a new PDF document with the following content from two other documents, each with eight pages: - First four pages of the first document - Last four pages of the second document - First four pages of the second document ### SHELL ```shell curl -X POST http://localhost:5000/api/build \ -H "Authorization: Token token=" \ -F document1=@/path/to/document1.pdf \ -F document2=@/path/to/document2.pdf \ -F instructions='{ "parts": [ { "file": "document1", "pages": { "start": 0, "end": 3 } }, { "file": "document2", "pages": { "start": 4, "end": 7 } }, { "file": "document2", "pages": { "start": 0, "end": 3 } } ] }' \ -o result.pdf ``` ### HTTP ```http POST /api/build HTTP/1.1 Content-Type: multipart/form-data; boundary=customboundary Authorization: Token token= --customboundary Content-Disposition: form-data; name="document1"; filename="document1.pdf" Content-Type: application/pdf --customboundary Content-Disposition: form-data; name="document2"; filename="document2.pdf" Content-Type: application/pdf --customboundary Content-Disposition: form-data; name="instructions" Content-Type: application/json { "parts": [ { "file": "document1", "pages": { "start": 0, "end": 3 } }, { "file": "document2", "pages": { "start": 4, "end": 7 } }, { "file": "document2", "pages": { "start": 0, "end": 3 } } ] } --customboundary-- ``` ## Reordering pages of a file from a URL To specify the file input with a URL, use the following code: ### SHELL ```shell curl -X POST http://localhost:5000/api/build \ -H "Authorization: Token token=" \ -F instructions='{ "parts": [ { "file": { "url": "http://pspdfkit.com/guides/processor/files/8-page-example-document.pdf" }, "pages": { "start": 0, "end": 1 } }, { "file": { "url": "http://pspdfkit.com/guides/processor/files/8-page-example-document.pdf" }, "pages": { "start": 5, "end": 5 } }, { "file": { "url": "http://pspdfkit.com/guides/processor/files/8-page-example-document.pdf" }, "pages": { "start": 3, "end": 4 } }, { "file": { "url": "http://pspdfkit.com/guides/processor/files/8-page-example-document.pdf" }, "pages": { "start": 2, "end": 2 } }, { "file": { "url": "http://pspdfkit.com/guides/processor/files/8-page-example-document.pdf" }, "pages": { "start": 6, "end": 7 } } ] }' \ -o result.pdf ``` ### HTTP ```http POST /api/build HTTP/1.1 Content-Type: multipart/form-data; boundary=customboundary Authorization: Token token= --customboundary Content-Disposition: form-data; name="instructions" Content-Type: application/json { "parts": [ { "file": { "url": "http://pspdfkit.com/guides/processor/files/8-page-example-document.pdf" }, "pages": { "start": 0, "end": 1 } }, { "file": { "url": "http://pspdfkit.com/guides/processor/files/8-page-example-document.pdf" }, "pages": { "start": 5, "end": 5 } }, { "file": { "url": "http://pspdfkit.com/guides/processor/files/8-page-example-document.pdf" }, "pages": { "start": 3, "end": 4 } }, { "file": { "url": "http://pspdfkit.com/guides/processor/files/8-page-example-document.pdf" }, "pages": { "start": 2, "end": 2 } }, { "file": { "url": "http://pspdfkit.com/guides/processor/files/8-page-example-document.pdf" }, "pages": { "start": 6, "end": 7 } } ] } --customboundary-- ``` --- ## Related pages - [Rotate PDF pages](/guides/document-engine/editor/page-manipulation/rotate.md) - [Remove pages from PDFs](/guides/document-engine/editor/page-manipulation/remove.md) - [Duplicate PDF pages](/guides/document-engine/editor/page-manipulation/duplicate.md)