Make a PDF smaller
Open Compress PDF and drop the file. Light runs in your browser straight away; click Try balanced or Try strong to compress on our servers. Compare the measured sizes and click Download on the one you want.
Updated 1 min read Counts toward office & advanced conversions
Step 1: Upload the PDF
Open Compress PDF and drop the file. Its original size and page count are shown.
Step 2: Check Light first
Light starts on its own, in your browser. It re-encodes oversized images at high quality (150 DPI) and tidies the file structure. Nothing is uploaded and it's free.
Step 3: Try a server level if needed
Click Try balanced (images down to about 110 DPI, still clear on screen and in print) or Try strong (about 72 DPI with stronger JPEG compression; photos look soft when zoomed or printed).
Step 4: Download the best result
Each level shows the measured size and the saving. Click Download on the one you want.
| Level | Where it runs | Counts toward |
|---|---|---|
| Light | In your browser | Nothing |
| Balanced | On our servers | One Office & advanced conversion |
| Strong | On our servers | One Office & advanced conversion |
| Feature | No account | Free | Pro | Business |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Office & advanced conversions | 2 | 10 | 500 | 2,000 |
Text stays sharp at every level; scanned pages shrink the most. If none of the levels makes a real difference, the tool says the PDF is already well optimized, and you should keep your original.
My PDF barely got smaller.
Files that are mostly text, or already compressed, have little left to remove. Splitting the file is the other option: see Split a PDF or extract pages.
My PDF is password-protected.
You're asked for the password before compressing. The compressed copy is saved without it; password-protect it again afterwards if you need to.
Can I compress without an account?
Yes. Light is always free; the server levels include 2 tries without an account.
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