Compress PDF
Compress PDF files by re-packing and de-duplicating their internal objects with object streams. See the original size, compressed size and percentage change, then download the smaller file.
Shrink PDF size without wrecking quality.
How to use Compress PDF
- Upload any PDF from your device
- Let it re-pack and de-duplicate the internal objects locally
- Review the original size, new size, and percent change
- Download the smaller PDF
About Compress PDF
Compress PDF shrinks a file by re-rendering every page to a bitmap and re-encoding it as a JPEG at the quality you pick, then rebuilding the document from those images — the same idea behind Adobe Acrobat's Reduce File Size, but running free in your browser with nothing to install. Three presets cover the usual trade-offs: Small for the tightest file, Balanced as the default for sharing and email, and High when you want the reduction with the least visible change. When it finishes you see the original size, the new size and the percentage saved, then download a copy named after the original with -compressed added.
The gains are largest on scanned documents and image-heavy PDFs, where a phone-scanned 18 MB contract can drop under 3 MB on Balanced. A file that is already compressed close to its floor — or a text-only export from Word or Google Docs — has little left to remove and will shrink only slightly. Because each page is reconstructed from the rendered result, the tool never hands you a bigger file: if the rebuilt version would not be smaller, it keeps your original and says so.
The trade-off is worth knowing. After compression each page is a picture, so text is no longer selectable or searchable and any links, bookmarks or form fields are gone — fine for an email attachment or a portal upload with a size cap, but keep the original if you need to copy from it. Password-protected PDFs are refused with a note on saving an unlocked copy. Everything happens on your device, so a confidential contract or a passport scan never leaves it.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I compress a PDF?
- Drop or select your PDF, pick a preset — Small, Balanced or High — and the tool re-renders each page and rebuilds a smaller file. You then see the size saved and download the -compressed copy. No account, email or upload is needed.
- Do I need Adobe Acrobat or a paid app to compress a PDF?
- No. This tool does the job in a browser tab for free, including on a phone or a computer with no PDF software installed. It is a straightforward alternative when you just need a smaller file to send.
- How is this different from compressing a PDF in Adobe Acrobat?
- Acrobat's Reduce File Size and this tool both re-encode page images to shrink a PDF, and at aggressive settings both turn text into part of the image. The difference is that this runs free in your browser with no install and no file leaving your device, while Acrobat is a paid desktop app.
- Can I compress a PDF that has already been compressed?
- You can, but a second pass usually gains little. Once a file is near its floor there is not much left to remove, and re-encoding already-lossy pages can soften the image without cutting much size. If the rebuild would not be smaller, the tool keeps your original.
- Why is my PDF still big after compressing?
- Try the Small preset first. If it is still large, the pages probably contain very large images at high resolution, or the file was already compressed close to its floor. Text-only PDFs have little to remove, so a 300 KB report may only lose a few percent.
- Which preset should I choose?
- Balanced is the default and is good for email and portal uploads. Use Small when you must get under a hard limit such as 2 MB. Use High when the document will be printed or read closely and you only need a moderate reduction.
- Will text stay selectable?
- No. Each page is re-rendered to a JPEG, so text becomes part of the image and can no longer be highlighted, copied or searched. Keep the original if you need that, or use the PDF to Text tool on it before compressing.
- Does it work on scanned documents?
- Yes, and that is where it works best. Scans are already page-sized images, often saved at high quality, so re-encoding them as JPEG at a lower quality removes most of the size.
- Can the tool make my file larger?
- No. It compares the rebuilt PDF against your original, and if the result would not be smaller it keeps the original and tells you, rather than handing you a bigger file.
- Will links, bookmarks and form fields survive?
- No. Because pages are rebuilt from rendered images, clickable links, the bookmark outline and fillable form fields are not carried over. The page count and page sizes are preserved.
- How small can I get a PDF for email?
- Most email services cap attachments at 20 to 25 MB. Balanced typically brings a scanned document under that with room to spare; Small pushes further at the cost of visible softness in fine print.
- Is there a file-size limit?
- There is no limit set by the tool. Rendering happens in your device's memory, so a 500-page scan may be slow or fail on a phone where a desktop browser copes fine.
- Can I compress a password-protected PDF?
- No. Encrypted files are detected and refused. Open the file with its password in a PDF viewer, choose Print then Save as PDF to create an unprotected copy, and compress that.
- Is the PDF uploaded to a compression server?
- No. Rendering, re-encoding and rebuilding all happen in this page, so a confidential contract or a scan of your passport never leaves your device.