Email attachments bounce, upload forms reject oversized files, and phone storage fills up — usually because of bloated PDFs. Our free Compress PDF tool shrinks your file to a fraction of its size, entirely in your browser, with no signup and no watermark.
It re-renders each page at a balanced 150 DPI as an optimized JPEG and rebuilds the document, which typically cuts image-heavy and scanned PDFs dramatically while keeping text perfectly readable. You will see the before-and-after sizes, so you know exactly what you gained.
This “balanced” preset is the sweet spot for everyday use: job applications, scanned forms, ebooks, and reports that need to be small but legible. If you need an exact target size instead, try our sized compressors (e.g. Compress PDF to 200KB).
Compress PDF
Reduce PDF file size while keeping readable quality.
Drop your file(s) here or click to browse
Your files never leave this browser — everything is processed locally on your device.
Balanced compression: pages are re-rendered at 150 DPI as JPEGs. Best for scanned or image-heavy PDFs.
How to compress a PDF
- Drop your PDF into the box above.
- Click “Compress PDF”.
- Wait while pages are re-rendered and the file is rebuilt.
- Compare the before/after sizes and download the smaller file.
FAQs
How much smaller will my PDF get?
It depends on the source: scanned and image-heavy PDFs often shrink 50–80%, while already-optimized text PDFs shrink less. The tool shows exact numbers.
Will the text still be readable?
Yes at normal zoom. The 150 DPI balanced preset keeps pages crisp on screen; very fine print may soften slightly.
Is there a maximum file size?
Only what your browser can handle in memory. Files up to a few dozen megabytes work fine on a typical laptop.