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Compress PDF Online Free — PrivaTools

Compress PDF online for free — reduce PDF file size by up to 90% without losing quality. Choose from light, balanced, or extreme compression levels. Preview estimated savings before downloading. No file limits, no sign-up.

Compress PDF is one of 105 free file tools on PrivaTools. All processing happens on our servers with zero-knowledge architecture — your files are never stored, never read, and never shared with third parties. No account required.

How to Compress PDF with PrivaTools

  1. Upload the PDF — Select a PDF up to 500 MB. Large scanned documents benefit the most from compression.
  2. Pick a compression level — Choose Low (best quality, modest reduction), Medium (balanced), or High (smallest file, some quality loss on images).
  3. Download the compressed file — Click Compress. The result shows the new file size and the percentage saved compared to the original.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much can a PDF be compressed?

Results vary by content. Scanned PDFs with large images often shrink 50-80%. Text-heavy PDFs with no images may only shrink 5-15%.

Does compression reduce the quality of text?

No. Text and vector graphics remain lossless. Only embedded raster images are recompressed, and only at Medium or High compression levels.

Can I compress a password-protected PDF?

You need to unlock the PDF first using the Unlock PDF tool, then compress the unlocked version.

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