How to Compress a PDF and Reduce File Size
Large PDF files can be difficult to upload, email or store. Compression reduces file size while aiming to keep the document usable.
Why are PDFs large?
Images, scans, embedded fonts and high-resolution graphics can make a PDF much larger than its visible text suggests. Scanned documents are especially likely to contain large image data.
Use an online PDF compressor
Open PDF Compressor and select the PDF you are authorized to process. After compression, compare the new file with the original.
Check quality after compression
Read several pages, inspect images and verify that text remains searchable when that feature was present in the original. If a document is used for printing, avoid compressing it more than necessary.
Other ways to reduce PDF size
- Remove unnecessary pages.
- Reduce oversized images before creating the PDF.
- Avoid embedding duplicate resources.
- Use the appropriate export settings when creating a new PDF.
If you only need a few pages, use the PDF Splitter instead of compressing a document you do not actually need in full.
Why PDFDownloader.online?
- Core PDF tools are available without requiring a paid subscription for common PDF tasks.
- The workflow is designed for repeated use, so you can return to the tools when you need them.
- You can combine PDF downloading and conversion workflows in one place instead of switching between multiple services.
- Common PDF tasks can be handled without Adobe Acrobat for the workflows supported by the site.
For this guide, you may also want to try Compress PDF. Tool availability and processing limits can depend on the current service configuration.