Drop files here, or click to browse
One or more PDFs · up to 200 MB each
How to use
Add one or more PDFs
Drop PDFs of up to 200 MB each onto the upload area. Each file is listed with its size, and you can add more or remove any before you start.
Pick a level or a target size
Choose Lossless, Light, Medium, Strong or Custom, or tick Aim for a target size and pick a limit such as 200 KB. Add grayscale, Scanned document mode or the cleanup boxes if you need them.
Compress, check and download
Press Compress. Each file shows its new size and saving, and the preview shows the compressed pages. Download files one by one, or all together as a ZIP.
Why Compress PDF
- Lossless, Light, Medium, Strong or Custom settings, plus a target-size mode.
- Compress several PDFs at once and download them singly or as a ZIP.
- Remove metadata, page thumbnails, attached files and JavaScript.
- Runs in your browser, so the PDF is never uploaded.
What shrinks when you compress a PDF
The saving depends on what the PDF is made of. Images are the only part this tool makes much smaller, which is why scans and photo-heavy files respond well and text documents do not.
Every level also deletes objects that nothing in the file points to any more, such as old image versions left behind by editors. The cleanup boxes add more: metadata, embedded page thumbnails, attached files and document JavaScript.
| Part of the PDF | What the tool does | Expected change |
|---|---|---|
| Scanned pages | Re-encodes page images, or redraws each page as a JPEG in Scanned document mode | Large |
| Photos in reports and brochures | Re-encodes as JPEG and limits the long side, for example to 1800 px at Medium | Moderate to large |
| Unused objects | Deleted at every level | Small to large, depending on how the file was edited |
| Page thumbnails and attached files | Removed when you tick those boxes | Small to large |
| Metadata and JavaScript | Removed when you tick those boxes | Small |
| Text, vector drawings and fonts | Left as they are | Little |
| CMYK, indexed colour and 16-bit images | Skipped to avoid colour errors | None |
Target size mode for upload limits
Online forms often cap uploads at 100 KB, 200 KB or 500 KB. Target size mode saves you from guessing: it runs the steps below in order on the original file and stops at the first result under your limit, so you never lose more quality than the limit demands.
Scanned document mode steps are only tried when the Allow scanned document mode box is ticked. Untick it when the text must stay selectable, for example for a CV that will be searched by an applicant tracking system.
| Step | What it does |
|---|---|
| 1 | Lossless cleanup only |
| 2 to 5 | Image compression from JPEG 80 percent at 2500 px down to JPEG 40 percent at 1000 px |
| 6 to 9 | Scanned document mode at 150, 120, 96 and 72 DPI |
| 10 | Scanned document mode at 72 DPI in grayscale |