Redact PDF
Black out an account number, address or signature in a PDF before you send it, so the hidden text is removed and not just covered. Your file stays in your browser.
Choose a PDF
One PDF up to 20 MB and 100 pages. The PDF engine (about 5 MB) downloads on first use.
Choose one PDF to start.
Mark what to remove
Drag across the page to mark an area (this works with a finger on phones), or add an area and move it with the arrow keys. Shift with the arrow keys resizes it; Delete removes it.
0 marked areas
Redacted PDF
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Try an example
Download sample PDFSearch for 148.50 to mark both totals, then drag an area over the signature image. In the downloaded PDF, 148.50 cannot be found or copied, the image area is black, and the heading and the Keep this line text remain.
What to expect
Redaction removes the text under each marked area, erases the pixels of images inside it and fills the area with black. Text only partly inside an area is cut at the character level: check the edges in the preview. Before a download is offered, the saved file is checked: no text can be extracted from any marked area.
Annotations and form fields on pages with marks are flattened into the page first, so they are no longer editable there. Document properties, bookmarks, attachments and text on unmarked pages are not changed; remove sensitive document properties separately. Search finds text only; scanned pages need drawn areas.
Password-protected PDFs must be unlocked first. Up to 500 marked areas. Opening allows 45 seconds; redaction stops after two minutes. Rewriting a PDF invalidates digital signatures.
Engine licenses and source code
A practical guide
Redact personal details before you share a PDF
- Choose the PDF, such as a bank statement or a lease.
- Search for the number or drag a box over each detail to hide.
- Redact, check the black boxes in the preview and download the copy.
Try this example
Redact the account number and the signature on a two-page statement; in the copy, the account number cannot be found or copied and the signature is black.
Before you start: Only the marked areas are removed and they cannot be recovered from the copy; scanned pages need drawn boxes because search finds text only.