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How to make a contact sheet from Lightroom on an iPad or phone

By Blink Brief · Updated  · How pages are made

Lightroom on a phone or an iPad can't make a contact sheet: unlike Lightroom Classic, it has no Print module. Export your picks as JPEGs instead (Share › Export as › JPG), then lay them out with a contact sheet maker that puts the file name under each photo and saves a PDF. Only Lightroom Classic, on a Mac or PC, makes one built in.

Short answer

  • Lightroom (not Classic): no contact sheet, no printing.
  • On the iPad or phone: select the picks › Share › Export as › JPG › Done. Then make the sheet in a browser tool and download the PDF.
  • Lightroom Classic: Print module › a contact sheet template in the Template Browser.

Does Lightroom (not Classic) make contact sheets?

No. Adobe sells two apps under the Lightroom name. Lightroom Classic is the desktop app with modules, Print among them. Lightroom, the app that keeps your photos in Lightroom cloud storage, on phones, iPads and computers, has no Print module:

  • Adobe's Lightroom for mobile help (read on November 4, 2026) has a Share, save, and export section with exporting, watermarks, shared albums and sending to apps, and no topic on printing or contact sheets.
  • Adobe's Lightroom desktop help on exporting and sharing doesn't mention printing either.
  • In Adobe's own forum, a Community Expert answered the question "How do I create a contact sheet in lightroom" in February 2025: "Lightroom does not have a Print module - so no ability to make a contact sheet."

We read Adobe's help and forum for this guide; we didn't test a Lightroom subscription. The route that works is the one Adobe's forum suggests: export the images, then make the sheet with another app.

Export the picks as JPEG, with file names

Adobe's steps for Lightroom on an iPhone, iPad or Android device (help page updated June 5, 2026):

  1. Choose where the photos are: the Lightroom tab for photos in your Lightroom cloud storage, or the Gallery tab for photos on the device.
  2. To export several, select and hold a photo, then select the checkbox on each photo you want.
  3. Select Share › Export as.
  4. Set File Type to JPG.
  5. Under Dimensions, Small (2048 px) is plenty: Contact Sheet, below, keeps each photo at no more than 1000 pixels anyway.
  6. Set Quality (10% to 100%), then select Done.

The file names matter, because the client will reply with them. In the Lightroom desktop app, Adobe lists File Naming under More Options in the export screen, with the original name, a custom name, or a date and file name. Adobe's mobile export page doesn't describe naming, so after exporting, look at a few names in the Files app. If they are no longer the camera's names, label the sheet with frame numbers instead, or with both number and name.

Make the sheet on the iPad or phone

Any contact sheet maker that takes JPEGs works; our comparison of contact sheet makers lists prices, free limits and watermarks. Ours, Contact Sheet, runs in Safari, is free with no watermark and no sign-up, and never uploads your photos. It loads its PDF library from a public code server (cdnjs); the photos stay in the tab.

  1. Open Contact Sheet in Safari and tap Choose photos. Pick the exported JPEGs from Photos or Files.
  2. Choose Paper (US Letter or A4) and Orientation.
  3. Set Photos across the page: 4 to 6 across suits a proof sheet; 2 across gives large photos.
  4. Under Label under each photo, choose File name, or Number and file name.
  5. Tap Download PDF, then send the PDF from the Share sheet.

We tested these steps in WebKit, Safari's engine, at an iPad's screen size: 6 photos at 4 across with file names made a one-page Letter PDF with the name under each photo. The tool doesn't open RAW files, which is one more reason to export JPEGs from Lightroom first.

If you also have Lightroom Classic

If Lightroom Classic is on your computer, it makes the sheet itself. Adobe's steps:

  1. In the Library module, select the photos for the contact sheet.
  2. In the Print module, choose a contact sheet template from the Template Browser.
  3. If necessary, choose a paper size and printer.
  4. In the Page panel, select the text options you want printed, such as the filename.
  5. Click Print.

Adobe calls these layouts Single Image/Contact Sheet: every photo at the same size, with Lightroom Classic adding pages when there are more photos than fit. Our guide to making a printable photo contact sheet PDF with file names covers Classic's Print module in more detail, with Adobe Bridge and the free routes on a Mac and Windows.

We didn't check whether every Lightroom plan includes Classic; look at your plan in your Adobe account before counting on it.

Questions

Can you make a contact sheet in Lightroom mobile?

No. Lightroom on a phone or iPad has no print module and no contact sheet. Adobe's Lightroom for mobile help lists sharing and exporting but no printing, and an Adobe Community Expert answered in February 2025: "Lightroom does not have a Print module - so no ability to make a contact sheet." Export your picks as JPEGs and lay them out with a contact sheet maker.

How do I make a contact sheet on an iPad?

Export the photos from Lightroom or Photos as JPEGs, open a contact sheet maker in Safari, such as our free Contact Sheet, choose the photos, the number across and a file-name label, and tap Download PDF.

Sources

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