PDF Compress
Shrink a PDF without losing quality with our PDF Compress tool. It packs objects into compressed object streams, compresses every uncompressed stream and recompresses existing Deflate data at the highest level, all losslessly with qpdf. Upload a PDF up to 10 MB and 200 pages and get the smaller file back, or the original when it cannot get smaller. Handy for email attachments, uploads and archives.
Frequently asked questions
How does the PDF compression work?
The tool rewrites the PDF with qpdf. It gathers the small objects into compressed object streams, compresses every stream that was stored without compression and recompresses existing Deflate streams at level 9, the strongest setting.
Does compression lower the quality of my PDF?
No. Every step is lossless, so text, vector graphics and images look exactly as before. Images are not downsampled and JPEG photos are not encoded again.
How much smaller will my PDF get?
PDFs written by simple generators, reports and exports with uncompressed streams often shrink by half or more. Scans and photo-heavy PDFs consist mostly of JPEG data that is compressed already, so they usually change by a few percent at most.
What happens when the PDF cannot get smaller?
The tool compares the size before and after. When the recompressed file is not smaller, you get the original file back unchanged, and the result says so instead of handing you a larger download.
Can I compress a password protected PDF?
Yes. Enter the password in the Password field and the PDF is compressed with its protection intact, so the result opens with the same password. Without the password the tool cannot read the file and asks for it.
What are the size and page limits?
You can upload one PDF of up to 10 MB with at most 200 pages. Larger files and longer documents are refused with a message, and processing stops after 20 seconds.
Will links, bookmarks and forms survive?
Yes. The tool changes how objects are stored, not what they contain, so links, bookmarks, form fields, annotations and metadata stay in the document.
Does the compressed PDF work in every viewer?
Object streams are part of PDF 1.5 and newer, which every current viewer, browser and mobile app reads. Very old software from before 2003 may fail to open files that rely on them.
What is the compressed file called?
The download keeps the original name with -compressed added, so report.pdf becomes report-compressed.pdf. When the original is returned, it carries the same name.
Is my PDF stored on the server?
No. The file is processed in memory for this one request and discarded afterwards. Passwords are only used to open the file and never appear in the result.