Compress PDF for free —
no upload, fits any size limit
An insurance claim, a government form or an HR portal says “maximum file size 8 MB” and your PDF is bigger. Shrink it here. The PDF is never sent to a server or anywhere else — it never leaves your browser. If it is still too big, it is split by pages to fit, and every result is compared page by page with the original before you can download it.
Works in current Chrome, Edge, Safari and Samsung Internet. Keep this tab open while it works.
How to use it
- Drop a PDF in, or click to choose one.
- Pick a method. Usually Keep text · recompress images. For scans or photo receipts that must shrink a lot, use turn pages into images (text will not be selectable).
- If the upload form has a cap, choose a Size limit (for example 8 MB).
- Click Compress PDF. When the check finishes, download — one button per file if it was split.
How much smaller — measured
Four PDFs with the default method (keep text · recompress images) at ‘Medium’ (2026-10-06, Chrome):
| Before | After | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Four phone photos in one PDF | 2.18 MB | 0.18 MB | −92% |
| 4-page scan (300 dpi) | 5.12 MB | 0.93 MB | −82% |
| 16-page paper with figures | 7.70 MB | 4.58 MB | −40% |
| 68-page text-only document | 0.51 MB | 0.51 MB | −0.3% |
The more photos and scans, the bigger the saving; text-only PDFs barely change, because most of a PDF's size is its images. Every result was reopened and compared page by page with the original, and also opened correctly in Chrome's built-in PDF viewer.
Fit a size limit — compress, then split if needed
- If the chosen strength leaves it over the limit, it compresses once more at the next level and tells you.
- If it is still over, it splits by pages from the front, putting as many pages in each file as fit.
- A single page that is larger than the limit on its own is marked red — use ‘turn pages into images’ for that one.
- The limit counts 1 MB = 1,000,000 bytes. Some sites count 1,048,576; staying under the smaller number passes both.
Learn more
📖 Why PDFs get large and other ways to shrink them on Windows, Mac and in Word: How to reduce PDF file size · Shrink a single image with the image converter
FAQ
Is my PDF uploaded or sent anywhere?
No. It is never sent to a server or anywhere else; it is read and rewritten inside your browser only. While a PDF was loaded, compressed and checked, Chrome DevTools showed zero network requests (2026-10-06). Medical receipts, ID copies and contracts never leave your device. Open F12 → Network while compressing to check it yourself.
The form only accepts files up to 8 MB. What do I do?
Choose 8 MB under 'Size limit' and compress. If the chosen strength is not enough it compresses once more at a stronger level, and if it is still over, it splits the PDF by pages so every file is 8 MB or less. The limit uses 1 MB = 1,000,000 bytes, so it also passes sites that count 1 MB as 1,048,576 bytes.
Can the compressed PDF come out broken?
Each result is reopened, its page count compared with the original, and every page rendered small and compared with the original page. If any page looks very different, the result is discarded and the original kept. Split files get the same check.
Why doesn't my text-only PDF get smaller?
Most of a PDF's size is its images. Text is already stored very compactly, so there is little to remove. A 68-page text document shrank by 0.3% in the test.
When should I use 'Strong · turn pages into images'?
For scans, or when recompressing images alone does not get under the limit. It shrinks a lot, but the text can no longer be selected or searched.
Does it work with password-protected PDFs?
No. Remove the password first, then try again.
Open source
A single HTML file. PDF handling uses pdf-lib (MIT) and pdf.js (Apache-2.0). Source: GitHub — Tool_web_pdf-compressor
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