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Compress PDF
Make a PDF smaller by lowering its image quality.
Free tools that run in your browser. Nothing you type, open or create is uploaded to NerdBible or anyone else.
Choose a PDF to start.
The image methods turn every page into a picture. Text will no longer be selectable or searchable, and links, bookmarks and form fields are removed. Keep your original.
Most of a large PDF's size is usually scanned pages or photos. The image methods redraw each page at a lower resolution as a JPG, which shrinks scans a lot, but a PDF that is mostly text can get bigger, because sharp text takes more space as a picture than as text. When that happens the tool says so and you can keep the original.
How to use it
- Choose or drop a PDF.
- Try Lossless rebuild first if the PDF is mostly text; choose one of the image methods for scans and photo heavy files.
- Press Compress, compare the sizes, and download the result, or keep your original if it was already smaller.
Questions
Is my PDF uploaded?
No. pdf.js draws the pages and pdf-lib builds the new file, both inside your browser on your device.
Why can I no longer select the text?
The image methods save each page as a picture of itself. That is what makes scans small, but it removes the text layer. Use Lossless rebuild if you need selectable text.
Why is my compressed file bigger?
Some PDFs are already efficient, for example ones exported from a word processor with no photos. Turning their pages into images adds size. The tool shows the change and offers the original when it is smaller.
Which method should I pick?
Balanced suits most scans for email and reading on screen. Pick light if it will be printed, or strong if it only needs to be legible and as small as possible.
Can it compress a password protected PDF?
No. Open it with the password in a PDF reader, save a copy without protection, and compress that copy.
About this tool
How does PDF compression work?
When a PDF is too big to email or upload, the culprit is nearly always images: scanned pages, phone photos and high resolution graphics. Text takes up very little space. This tool offers two approaches: a lossless rebuild that repacks the file without changing anything on the page, and image methods that redraw every page as a lower resolution JPG, which is where the big savings on scans are.
How to use it
- Choose or drop a PDF.
- Pick a method. Lossless rebuild keeps the text selectable; the light, balanced and strong image methods give smaller files with softer pages.
- Compare the new size with the original, check the result looks right, and download it.
What to expect
A scanned document or a PDF full of photos often shrinks a great deal. A PDF that is mostly text, such as an exported report, may shrink very little because there is little image data to work on. The image methods turn each page into a picture, so text can no longer be selected or searched, and links, bookmarks and form fields are dropped. If the result comes out bigger, the tool says so and offers your original. Very heavy compression can make small print hard to read, so zoom in on a page before you send it.
Tips
Many upload forms cap files at a few megabytes. If one strong pass is still too big, try splitting the document instead. For a PDF you are building from photos, compressing the photos first with the image compressor gives you more control.
The PDF is compressed by your browser on your device and never sent to NerdBible or anyone else.
Related tools
- Merge PDFCombine PDFs into one file.
- Split PDFPull pages or ranges out of a PDF.
- Image Compressor & ConverterMake JPG, PNG and WebP files smaller, or convert between PNG, JPG and WebP, one image or a whole batch.
- PDF to ImagesTurn every page of a PDF into a PNG or JPG.
- Organise PDF PagesReorder, rotate and delete pages.