How to Compress a PDF — Free & Private
Reduce your PDF file size directly in your browser without uploading it to any server. Three compression levels let you balance file size against quality. Uses pdf-lib with canvas re-sampling — text remains selectable at the lossless level. Fully offline-capable after first load.
Open the Compress tool
Navigate to the PDF Compress tool. No login or account needed.
Drop your PDF
Drag a PDF onto the file tray or click to select. The file is read into browser memory only.
Choose a compression level
Select Low (lossless re-save), Medium (JPEG 82% quality), or High (JPEG 60% quality). The tool shows the estimated size reduction before you download.
Download the compressed PDF
Click 'Compress & Download'. If the result would be larger than the original — for example, already-compressed PDFs — the tool discards the result and tells you the file is already optimal.
FAQ
- How much can I reduce a PDF file size?
- Results vary by content. Image-heavy PDFs can shrink by 30–60% at the Medium or High levels. Text-only PDFs typically see 5–10% reduction at the lossless level.
- Does compression reduce text quality?
- At the Low (lossless) level, text remains fully selectable and vector-sharp. Medium and High levels rasterize pages to images, so text becomes non-selectable but still readable.
- Is my file uploaded during compression?
- No. Compression runs entirely in your browser. Your file never leaves your device.
- What if the compressed file is larger than the original?
- The tool detects this automatically and discards the compressed version, notifying you that the file is already at its optimal size.