Updated
To make a PDF smaller, drop it here, keep the ebook level and press Compress. Usually a few seconds later you can compare both sizes and save the lighter copy. Our servers shrink the images inside and leave the text alone, so every word stays as sharp as before.
How to make a PDF smaller
- Drag one PDF, several, or a whole folder into the drop zone.
- Pick a level, or leave the preselected ebook setting.
- Press Compress.
- Look at the size before and after.
- Download each file, or everything in one ZIP.
Where the savings come from
Images make up most of the bytes in a heavy PDF. Think of scans, product photos, or a large chart pasted in as a picture. We rewrite those images with fewer pixels and heavier compression. Text and vector drawings are not touched, and at every level the fonts are trimmed to the characters the document uses.
That explains why results vary. A scanned lease or a photo-heavy catalog often drops a lot. A text-only report saved from a word processor is already compact and may hardly change. If the rewritten file would end up bigger than yours, we hand back your original unchanged, so compressing can never leave you with a larger file.
Screen, ebook or printer
Each level is a standard profile that sets how far images are downsampled.
Screen targets roughly 72 dpi and produces the smallest result. It looks fine on a laptop or phone, though photos go soft under zoom or on paper.
Ebook is the preset choice, at roughly 150 dpi. Use it for email attachments, file sharing and the office printer.
Printer holds images near 300 dpi. Savings are smaller, but printouts look right.
For work going to a commercial printer, none of these levels fits. Supply the original instead.
Compressing many PDFs at once
Drop a whole folder and download the results one by one or as a single ZIP. Without an account, each batch takes up to 5 PDFs of up to 50 MB each, and you can run 20 server jobs a day. A free account allows batches of 10 and 50 jobs a day. Pro lifts the file size to 500 MB and the batch to 500 files, with no daily allowance. Credits suit one big job without a subscription: one credit covers 25 files, and credits never expire.
Compression is also a natural opening step in a pipeline. The Scan cleanup preset shrinks every PDF first, then runs OCR over it to extract the text. Pipelines can be tried free on up to 3 files, and Pro runs them on up to 500.
Where your PDF is processed
On our servers in Germany, not in your browser. Your PDF reaches us over an encrypted connection, and we delete it automatically within two hours. For a document that must not be uploaded at all, use desktop software on your own computer instead.
FAQ
Does compression touch the text at all?
No. Text and vector drawings are left as they are, which keeps them crisp at any zoom. Only images get downsampled.
My PDF asks for a password. Can it still be compressed?
Yes, in three steps. Open it with Unlock PDF, compress the unprotected copy, and lock it again with Protect PDF if it needs a password.
Will signed forms still work afterward?
Digital signatures and interactive form fields may break in the rewrite, while links carry over. Compress first, then fill in and sign.
Which level makes the smallest file?
Screen, since it downsamples images the furthest. Pick it when every kilobyte counts and the file will only be read on a display.
Is compression quick?
Yes, most files finish in a few seconds. Long scans with lots of big images need more time.