PDF tools / Redact PDF
Redact PDF: black out sensitive text and images
This tool redacts a PDF by turning every page into an image and filling each area you mark with solid black pixels. The new PDF keeps no text, fonts, links or metadata from the original, so there is nothing under a box to copy or reveal. It runs in your browser.
Page preview
Choose a PDF to preview its pages.
1 Choose PDF
No PDF selected.
2 Marked areas
0 marked areas across the document.
Drag on the page or enter coordinates below. Click an area's page button to visit it. Remove any mark before export.
3 Add area by coordinates
Percent of the displayed page, measured from its top-left corner. Areas apply to the current page only.
4 Create your redacted PDF
150 DPI is the default. Higher values retain more detail and use more memory. Lower values reduce detail. All pages use this resolution.
Every page becomes an image. Searchable text, forms, links, attachments, layers and original metadata are removed. Digital signatures lose validity. Only the visible page appearance remains; marks become black pixels.
Choose a PDF to begin.
Your redacted PDF
Your redacted PDF will appear here.
How to redact a PDF
To redact a PDF, open it, mark each area to hide, then create a new file. A mark is only a preview until you export.
- Select Choose PDF and pick one file. If it asks for a password, type it in PDF password and select Unlock PDF.
- Drag across the page preview to draw a box over each name, number or signature. Use Previous, Next or the Page box to move between pages.
- For an exact box, type Left, Top, Width and Height in percent of the page, measured from its top-left corner, then select Add area. Black out entire page covers the whole current page.
- Check the Marked areas list. Select a Page button to visit that mark, or Remove to delete it.
- Set Output resolution (DPI), then select Create redacted PDF.
- The preview switches to the exported PDF. Check every page, then select Download PDF.
What the redacted PDF contains
The download, redacted.pdf, is a new PDF with the same pages in the same order and at the same page size. Each page is a single image, and pages without marks are converted too.
At the default 150 DPI, a US Letter page becomes an image of 1275 by 1650 pixels. At 300 DPI it is 2550 by 3300. In a test with a short two-page PDF, the file grew from 1.15 KB to 17.81 KB at 150 DPI and to 54.85 KB at 300 DPI, because page images take more room than text.
The new file carries no searchable text, fonts, form fields, links, attachments, layers or document properties such as title and author. A digital signature is no longer valid. Each box rounds outward to whole pixels, so it covers every pixel it touches. The summary under Your redacted PDF lists the page count, the marked pages, the DPI and the new file size.
Limits
This tool covers only the areas you mark. It does not search the text for words or patterns, so check every page yourself, including headers, footers and small print. Anything outside a box stays visible, such as the edge of a letter that sticks out. The width of a box can also hint at the length of what it hides.
Marks are solid black boxes. There is no white or colored fill and no blur, and no part of the text stays searchable. Because each page becomes a picture, the result has no text to select or for a screen reader to read, and small text can look soft at a low DPI.
A PDF that uses XFA forms must be saved as a static PDF first, and a damaged file shows an error. The tool sets no page or file-size limit. A long document at a high DPI can run out of browser memory, and Cancel stops an export.
Questions
Can I redact a PDF so text cannot be uncovered?
Yes, for the areas you mark. The tool draws each page as an image, fills your boxes with black pixels and saves only those images in a new PDF. The original text, fonts and page objects are not copied, so there is no hidden layer to lift. Text that you did not mark stays readable.
What does it mean to redact a PDF?
To redact a PDF is to remove sensitive content, such as names, account numbers or signatures, before you share it. A black shape drawn on top is not enough if the text is still underneath. This tool rebuilds each page as an image with the covered pixels replaced, so that content is gone from the file.
How do I black out text in a PDF?
Open the PDF on this page and drag a box across the text in the page preview, or type its position in percent and select Add area. Repeat on each page that needs it, then select Create redacted PDF. Every box becomes solid black pixels in the file you download.
Can I redact just one page?
Yes. Add marks only on that page and leave the others unmarked. The export still includes every page and turns each one into an image, so unmarked pages also lose their searchable text. The summary tells you how many pages carried marks, and the exported preview lets you check each page.
Can I redact a PDF for free?
Yes. There is no account, no sign-in and no price on this page, and the tool sets no page or file-size limit of its own. The memory of your browser tab is the practical limit, so a long PDF at a high DPI may need a lower resolution to finish.
Can I redact a password-protected PDF?
Yes, if you know the password. When a PDF needs one, a PDF password field appears; type the password and select Unlock PDF. The redacted file is a new PDF saved without a password, so anyone who receives it can open it. Keep that in mind before you share it.
Are my files uploaded?
No. The PDF is opened, redacted and rebuilt by Web Workers in your browser. The file, its password and your marks are not sent to a server or saved in browser storage. Reset clears the file, password, marks and output from the page, and leaving the page clears them too.