Compress PDF
Reduce PDF file size
Strong compress re-encodes every page as a JPEG — best size reduction (often 60–90% smaller) but removes selectable text. Safe optimize rebuilds with object streams and strips metadata — small wins, text preserved.
Related tools
More browser-based tools for this workflow.
What this tool does
Shrink PDF file size with Safe mode (strip metadata, optimize structure) or Raster mode (re-encode pages as JPEG). Runs locally with an honest before/after size readout.
Compress PDF is a free PDF utility that gets the job done without installing software or creating an account. The whole process runs inside this browser tab, so your input never leaves your device. Common searches that land here include pdf tool, edit pdf.
Key features
- Safe mode strips XMP metadata and rewrites the file with pdf-lib — text stays selectable
- Raster mode renders each page to JPEG at your chosen quality for dramatic size cuts
- Honest before/after size comparison with a per-page progress indicator
- Files never leave the browser — even Raster mode runs through canvas locally
Common use cases
- Shrinking image-heavy scans to fit a 5–10 MB email attachment limit
- Reducing portfolio PDFs before publishing to a website or job application
- Trimming bloated PDFs exported from Word or Pages
Things to know
- Already-optimized PDFs may show little to no reduction in Safe mode
- Raster mode flattens text into images — selectable text and bookmarks are lost
- Encrypted PDFs cannot be re-saved; unlock them first
How to use Compress PDF
- 01
Upload the PDF you want to shrink.
- 02
Pick Safe mode (lossless — keeps selectable text) or Raster mode (rasterizes pages to JPEG at the chosen quality and scale).
- 03
Review the before/after size, then download the optimized PDF.