Compress PDF
To reduce a PDF file size, choose the document, select a visual quality level, and rebuild it locally. The final size depends on the source, so an exact target such as 10 MB cannot be guaranteed.
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How Compress PDF works
To reduce a PDF file size, choose the document, select a visual quality level, and rebuild it locally. The final size depends on the source, so an exact target such as 10 MB cannot be guaranteed.
Reduce PDF size by rendering and rebuilding each page at a selected visual-quality level.
Compress PDF is built for the common problem of a file that is too big to email or upload. You choose a quality level, and PDF Eye re-renders each page at that level in your browser to produce a smaller copy. Scans and image-heavy documents usually shrink the most. Because compression works on page images, it is a visual compression: text in the result is no longer selectable, so keep your original if you need searchable text.
Step by step
- 1Choose a PDF.
- 2Select high, balanced, or smaller-file quality.
- 3Process and download the rebuilt PDF.
Common uses
- Make an attachment easier to email
- Reduce a scanned PDF before uploading it
- Create a smaller visual copy for sharing
Related guides
Need more help with PDFs? Browse our step-by-step PDF guides or read practical articles on the PDF Eye blog.
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Details and common questions
Which files are supported?
One PDF.
What result will I receive?
One visually compressed PDF.
What should I know before using it?
- Compression flattens searchable text, links, forms, and existing interactive annotations.
- Results depend on the source; already optimized PDFs may not become much smaller.
- This is visual compression, not lossless object optimization.
Will text remain selectable?
No. The current compression method rebuilds pages as images and therefore flattens selectable content.
Which quality should I choose?
Balanced is a practical starting point; use High for small text and Smallest when file size matters most.
How do I compress a PDF to under 1 MB or 10 MB?
Start with Balanced quality, check the resulting size in the preview, and try Smallest if needed. PDF Eye cannot guarantee an exact target, because the final size depends on the source document.
Does compressing a PDF reduce its quality?
Yes, slightly by design. Pages are rebuilt as images, so very small text can soften at lower quality settings. Use High when readability matters more than size.
Why did my PDF barely get smaller?
Documents that are already optimised, or that are mostly plain text, have little to gain from image-based compression and may change very little.