Compress PDF
Shrink a PDF to a size you name, such as 200 KB, or pick a quality level.
Drag & drop your file anywhere in this box.
Encrypted upload, deleted right after processingFree · No sign-up · No watermarks
Compress PDF to a size your email or portal will accept
The usual reason to compress a PDF is a hard limit somewhere else: a 25 MB email attachment ceiling, a government portal that refuses anything over 2 MB, a university upload form, a tender site. So the useful question is not how small a PDF can get but how small it needs to be, and what you are willing to give up to get there.
Where the size actually comes from decides the answer. A scanned document is a stack of photographs, often captured at 600 DPI when 150 DPI would read identically on screen, and those files routinely lose 70 to 90 percent of their weight. A PDF exported from Word is mostly vector text that is already compact, so the same settings might only save a few percent. If your file barely shrinks, that is usually a sign it was efficient to begin with rather than a sign the tool failed.
If a form has given you a number, type it into the size box. The tool works down its own ladder of settings and stops at the gentlest one that comes in under what you asked for, so you lose only as much quality as the limit forces. If the file simply cannot get that small, you still get the smallest version it can produce rather than an error.
Without a number to hit, start at Balanced and look at the result before trying anything harsher. Maximum compression is there for the times a portal will not budge, and it earns its name: photographs go soft and small scanned text can blur. For a document that has to be printed or signed, High Quality is the safer trade.
Simple, practical guidance
How to use Compress PDF
Almost all of the weight in a large PDF is image data. Compression re-encodes those images at a sensible resolution and quality while leaving the text layer alone. Either pick a quality level, or name the size you need and let the tool work down to it.
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Upload the PDF and wait for its page preview.
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Pick Balanced, High Quality or Maximum, or type the size you need.
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Check the estimated size and selected quality.
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Select Compress PDF and download the optimized file.
Get a better result
If a form or portal has given you a number, use the size box and let the tool find the gentlest setting that fits. If nothing is forcing your hand, Balanced is the right first attempt, High Quality suits image-heavy documents you still need to print, and Maximum is for the times a limit matters more than how photographs look.
Know how your file is handled
This job needs image codecs a browser does not expose, so the file is processed on our server and deleted once your download has been produced. Avoid sending documents you are not permitted to process off your own machine.
Check before you share
A PDF that is already optimised, or one that is mostly vector text, may shrink only slightly because there is little image data to recover. Where that happens a size you ask for can be out of reach, and you get the smallest file the tool can make instead. Aggressive settings soften photographs and fine scanned detail.
Questions people ask
Compress PDF FAQ
How to hit a size limit, how much you can expect to lose, and why some PDFs barely shrink at all.
How much smaller will my PDF get?
It depends almost entirely on what is inside. Scanned or photo heavy documents commonly drop by 70 to 90 percent because their images were captured at a far higher resolution than screen reading needs. A text PDF exported from Word or LaTeX may only lose a few percent, since there is very little image data to re-encode.
Which compression setting should I choose?
Balanced suits most documents and is the right first attempt. Pick High Quality when the PDF contains photographs or artwork you still need to print. Pick Maximum only when you have to get under a specific limit and you have checked that the softer images are acceptable.
Why did my PDF barely shrink?
It was probably already optimised, or it is mostly vector text and line art rather than images. There is no redundant data left to remove in that case. Running it through again will not help and may cost quality for nothing.
Can I compress a PDF to a specific size like 100 KB?
Yes. Type the number into the size box, or use one of the shortcuts for 100 KB, 200 KB, 500 KB, 1 MB and 2 MB. The tool tries its settings from the gentlest down and stops at the first one that fits, so the result is the best looking file that still meets your limit rather than the smallest one it could make.
What if my PDF cannot reach the size I asked for?
You still get a file, and it is the smallest the tool can produce. This usually means the weight is not in images: a document that is mostly vector text has little to recover, so no setting will take it much further. Removing pages you do not need often does more at that point than compressing harder.
Does compressing make the text blurry?
Text that is real text in the PDF is left alone, so it stays sharp at any zoom. Text that is part of a scanned image is a picture, and that can soften at the Maximum setting. If your document is a scan, compare the result at 100 percent zoom before you send it.
Is my file uploaded to a server?
Yes, for this tool it has to be. The image codecs required for recompression are not available inside a browser. Your PDF is sent over an encrypted connection, processed, and removed once the download has been produced.
Will compression remove the password on my PDF?
An encrypted PDF cannot be read for recompression while it is locked. Unlock it first with the password you hold, compress it, then protect it again if you still need a password on the result. Unlock PDF
Should I compress before or after merging?
After. Merge everything into one document first, then compress once. Compressing each part separately and then merging gives a worse result for the same amount of quality loss. Merge PDF
Can I compress the same PDF twice?
You can, but it rarely helps. The second pass re-encodes images that have already been re-encoded, which loses more detail without recovering much size. Go back to the original and choose a stronger setting instead.
Does compressing change the page count or layout?
No. Page count, page dimensions, text positions and the reading order are untouched. Only the stored image data and internal structure are rewritten more efficiently.