Redact a PDF permanently
Choose Redact (in the Cover group), drag over everything to remove, then click Apply redactions and confirm. Text, images and drawings under each mark are removed from the file, not just covered, and the affected pages become images.
Updated 2 min read Available on without an account, Free, Pro and Business Counts toward office & advanced conversions, edited-document downloads
Redaction is a two-step job on purpose: you mark first, then apply. Nothing is removed until you apply, so you can review every mark. Until then, the document can't be downloaded, so nothing private ships by accident.
Step 1: Choose Redact
In Edit & fill mode, open the Cover group in the toolbar (it shares a button with Blackout) and choose Redact.
Step 2: Mark each area
Drag over the text, image or region to remove. Add an optional Redaction label (optional) such as
(b)(6)in the properties bar. A counter at the top shows how many redactions are marked.Step 3: Review
Check every page. Delete a mark that's wrong; Undo works while marks are unapplied.
Step 4: Apply
Click Apply redactions. Read the summary, tick I understand the marked content will be permanently removed and affected pages rasterized, then click Apply redactions again.
What applying does
- Text, images and drawings under each mark are removed from the PDF and can't be recovered from the new file.
- Pages with redactions are converted to images so nothing underneath survives. Text on those pages is no longer selectable or searchable; run OCR afterwards if you need that.
- Annotations, form fields and links on redacted pages are removed; fields on other pages stay fillable.
- Document metadata, attachments and scripts are stripped from the redacted file.
- PDFBetter reopens the result and checks that no text can be extracted from the redacted pages. If that check fails, nothing is changed.
- The result is saved as a new version. The version from before still exists in Version history.
| Tool | Removes the content? | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Erase (whiteout) | No, covers it visually | Tidying a form, hiding a stray mark |
| Blackout | No, visual only | A black box where removal isn't needed |
| Edit PDF / Find & replace | No, the old characters stay under a patch | Correcting wording |
| Redact | Yes, permanently | Anything private or legally protected |
Redaction is available on every plan, including without an account. Each time you click Apply redactions, the work runs on our servers and uses one Office & advanced conversion (10 a month on Free). Downloading the redacted PDF afterwards is an ordinary edited-document download, counted like any other. To find what to redact, AI redaction suggestions proposes sensitive items for you to review; it uses AI credits. Hidden layers, external links and comments on pages you didn't redact stay in the file; remove hidden data before you share it. Why a black box alone isn't enough: redaction vs. black boxes.
I applied a redaction by mistake. Can I get it back?
Open More → Version history and restore the version from before you applied. The redacted version is kept too.
Why won't the download start?
The document still has marked but unapplied redactions. The download dialog shows Review and apply redactions; apply them or delete the marks first.
Is redaction undoable with Ctrl+Z?
Marks are, until you apply. Applying replaces the file's pages, so use Version history instead.
Tools in this article
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Related articles
- Why black boxes and whiteout aren't redactionErase (whiteout) and Blackout only cover content visually, and the text underneath stays in the file where anyone can copy it out. Redact removes it: after you apply redactions, each affected page is rebuilt without the marked content.
- Remove hidden data from a PDF before you share itUse Sanitize PDF. It shows what your PDF carries besides its pages, such as metadata, attachments, scripts and hidden layers, removes what you tick, and gives you a report. It runs in your browser.
- Edit the existing text in a PDFSwitch the editor from Fill out to Edit PDF (or press E), click a line of the document's text and type. The new text is drawn over a cover patch in the closest standard font; the old characters stay in the file unless you redact them.
- Undo changes and restore an earlier versionPress ⌘/Ctrl Z to undo and ⇧ ⌘/Ctrl Z (or Ctrl Y) to redo. Your work saves automatically; to go further back, open More (⋯) → Version history and click Restore on any version. Restoring never erases the current state.