About Compress PDF
This free online PDF compressor reduces PDF file size the smart way - it works inside your PDF instead of turning pages into screenshots. Text, vectors and layout stay perfectly sharp, while the heavy part of most PDFs (embedded images) is intelligently re-compressed.
That is the same approach used by popular premium compressors: your scanned documents, photo-heavy reports and ebooks come out dramatically smaller, and everything runs privately in your browser - your file is never uploaded anywhere.
How This PDF Compressor Works
Most basic tools simply convert every PDF page into a flat JPG, which makes text blurry. This tool is different: it opens the PDF structure, finds each embedded image, downscales oversized images and re-encodes them with tuned JPEG quality, then rebuilds the PDF. Text remains selectable and crisp because it is never touched.
Compression Levels
- Low - highest quality, images keep their original resolution with light re-compression. Best for printing.
- Medium (recommended) - great balance; slightly reduced resolution and strong image compression. Best for email and web sharing.
- High - maximum size reduction with visible quality loss on photos. Best when you just need the file to fit an upload limit.
Features of Compress PDF
- Real internal PDF compression - no page-to-image conversion
- Text stays sharp and selectable
- Low, Medium and High compression settings
- Optional metadata removal (title, author, creation dates)
- Shows original size, compressed size and percentage saved
- An image is only replaced when it actually makes the file smaller
- Drag & drop, free, no signup, 100% private
How to Compress a PDF
- Select your PDF or drag & drop it into the upload area.
- Pick a compression level - Low, Medium or High.
- Click Compress PDF.
- Check how much size you saved, then click Download Compressed PDF.
Compress PDF FAQ
Will the text in my PDF become blurry?
No. Unlike tools that screenshot each page, this compressor only touches embedded images. Text and vector graphics stay razor sharp and remain selectable.
Which compression level should I choose?
Start with Medium - it suits most files. Choose Low for print-quality documents and High when you need the smallest possible size, such as for an email attachment limit.
Is my PDF uploaded to a server?
Never. Compression happens entirely inside your browser, so confidential documents stay on your device.
Why did my file barely shrink?
If a PDF has almost no images (pure text), there is little to save - the tool will tell you the file is already optimized. Scanned and photo-heavy PDFs shrink the most.
Does it work with password-protected PDFs?
Password-protected (encrypted) PDFs are not supported. Remove the protection first, then compress.
Is the tool free?
Yes - completely free, with no signup, no watermark and no file limit.