---
title: "Can I use PDFBetter offline?"
description: "PDFBetter needs an internet connection on the web and the desktop apps. What happens when you lose the connection, and what the iPhone app keeps on the device."
url: https://help.pdfbetter.com/apps/what-works-offline/
collection: "Desktop & mobile apps"
section: "Every device"
updated: 2026-10-18
publisher: "PDFBetter (AI Generated Inc.)"
---

# Can I use PDFBetter offline?

> Mostly no. Your documents live in your account, so pdfbetter.com and the Mac and Windows apps need an internet connection. When you're offline, the desktop app shows a reconnect screen. The iPhone app keeps edits on the device until it can sync.

| Where | Offline? |
| --- | --- |
| pdfbetter.com in a browser | No. Pages and documents load from your account. |
| Mac and Windows apps | No. The app shows the live PDFBetter, so it needs a connection just like the website. |
| iPhone and iPad app | Partly. Edits you make while offline are kept on the device and sync when the app can reach PDFBetter again. |

## If the desktop app loses its connection

1. **Read the message**: The app shows **Can't reach PDFBetter** and asks you to check your internet connection.
2. **Reconnect**: Fix the connection. PDFBetter reconnects as soon as you're back online.
3. **Retry if needed**: Click **Try Again** to reload right away.

Work you saved before the connection dropped is in your account. [Browser tools](https://help.pdfbetter.com/convert-organize/browser-vs-server-tools/), such as merge, split and rotate, process files on your device, but the page itself still has to load from pdfbetter.com first.

## On iPhone and iPad

- The app tells you when you're offline and that edits are kept on the device.
- AI results you've already opened can still be shown from the device.
- Scanning and text recognition run on the iPhone itself.
- Anything that needs the server, such as sending for signature, downloading an edited copy or new AI answers, waits for a connection.

> **Tip:** Going somewhere without signal? Download the files you'll need first. A downloaded PDF opens in any PDF reader, with no PDFBetter account needed.

### Does the desktop app keep copies of my files on my computer?

No. The desktop app opens your documents from your account, the same as the website. To keep a copy on your computer, download it.

## Related articles

- [Use one PDFBetter account on several devices](https://help.pdfbetter.com/apps/use-pdfbetter-on-several-devices.md): Sign in with the same account everywhere: pdfbetter.com, the Mac and Windows apps and the iPhone app. Your documents, saved signatures and plan are the same on every device. There's no device limit.
- [Install PDFBetter on your Mac](https://help.pdfbetter.com/apps/install-mac-app.md): Download the Mac app from pdfbetter.com/download/mac, open the .dmg and drag PDFBetter into Applications. It's signed and notarized by Apple, needs macOS 12 or later, and signs you in through your browser.
- [PDFBetter on iPhone and iPad](https://help.pdfbetter.com/apps/iphone-ipad-app.md): The PDFBetter iPhone and iPad app is coming to the App Store. Until it's out, pdfbetter.com works in Safari on any iPhone or iPad, including filling, signing and sending documents. The app uses the same account and documents as the web.
- [Supported browsers and fixing saving or loading problems](https://help.pdfbetter.com/troubleshooting/browser-support-saving-problems.md): Use a current version of Chrome, Safari, Edge or Firefox with JavaScript on. If the editor shows Offline — will retry, keep the tab open; it saves when you reconnect. Changed elsewhere means another tab edited the document: choose Reload latest or Keep my version.
- [Which tools run in your browser and which use our servers](https://help.pdfbetter.com/convert-organize/browser-vs-server-tools.md): Merge, split, rotate, organize, images ↔ PDF, protect, unlock, sanitize and compare run in your browser: nothing is uploaded and they download free without an account. Office conversions, compression beyond Light, OCR and PDF/A run on our servers and count toward a monthly allowance.

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Source: https://help.pdfbetter.com/apps/what-works-offline/ · PDFBetter Help Center · Last checked against the product 2026-10-18. Questions: support@pdfbetter.com