Compress a PDF
Bring the file size down for email or an upload limit — without turning the text into a picture.
Processed in your browser — the file is not uploaded.
What happens to the file
What stays intact
- Text is never rasterised: it stays selectable, searchable and crisp at any zoom.
- Only the pictures are re-encoded, and only when the new version is genuinely smaller.
- Fonts, links and page structure are carried over untouched.
- The whole thing runs in this browser — the file is not uploaded to be squeezed.
Three steps
Drop the PDF. It opens in the editor with the export dialog ready.
Pick how hard to compress. Keep “Compress images” on and choose light, balanced or strong.
Export. The dialog shows what the file weighs now, so you can try another level.
What it will not do
- Text is never rasterised to save space, so a text-only document has little left to squeeze.
- Scans stay scans: there is no text recognition, only smaller images.
- Fax-encoded (CCITT, JBIG2) and PNG-style images are skipped — re-encoding them safely needs work we have not done yet.
Questions about this tool
How much smaller will my file get?
It depends on what is inside. A scan or a photo brochure can lose most of its weight; a text-only contract is already small and will barely change. The dialog shows the result, so you can try a stronger level and export again.
Will the pictures look worse?
A little, by design — that is where the bytes go. “Light” keeps them close to the original, “strong” trades visible quality for size. Nothing is replaced unless the new version is actually smaller.
Which images are recompressed?
JPEG images, which is what cameras and most scanners produce. PNG-style, fax (CCITT, JBIG2) and masked images are left exactly as they are rather than risked.
Can I compress and edit at once?
Yes. Fix the text, sign the page, drop what you do not need, then export with compression — one file at the end.