Compress a PDF and reduce its file size
Make PDFs small enough to email, upload to a portal or share in a chat. PDFHeron shrinks the images inside your document and keeps text crisp and selectable.
- No upload: 100% in your browser
- No sign-up
- Free to use
PDF, JPG or PNG · processed on your device, never uploaded
How to compress PDF
It takes less than a minute with PDFHeron.
Open your PDF
Drop the file onto this page. It opens in your browser in a second.
Choose a level
Light keeps the best quality, Recommended balances quality and size, Strong makes the smallest file.
Compress & save
Your compressed PDF downloads straight away, with the before and after size shown.
How PDF compression works
In most large PDFs, images take up almost all of the space: scanned pages, photos and screenshots. PDFHeron downscales oversized images and re-encodes them as efficient JPEGs at the quality level you choose.
Text, fonts and vector graphics such as charts and lines are left exactly as they are, so they stay razor sharp at any zoom and remain searchable. That is why a 20 MB scan can drop to 2 MB while a text-only report barely changes: there is little to compress in pure text.
Private compression, no upload limits
Most online compressors upload your file to a server and cap its size. PDFHeron compresses on your own device, so confidential documents never leave your computer and there is no upload wait.
You can also edit before compressing: delete pages you don’t need, remove unwanted images, then compress the result.
Why use PDFHeron to compress PDF?
Private by design
PDFHeron processes files on your device. No uploads, no cloud copies, no one else ever sees your documents.
Real editing
Change existing text and delete content from the file itself, not just paint boxes on top of it.
Instant & offline-ready
No queues or upload waits. Big documents open in seconds, and editing keeps working without a connection.
True redaction
Redacted areas are permanently removed from saved PDFs, so hidden text can’t be copied back out.
Standard PDF output
Saved files are regular PDFs with selectable text that open in Acrobat, Preview, Chrome and every other reader.
Free, or $2 once
Use every tool for free. Remove the footer forever with a one-time Pro license, with no subscription.
Compress PDF: FAQ
How much smaller will my PDF get?
It depends on what is inside. Scanned and photo-heavy PDFs often shrink by 70–90%. PDFs that are mostly text are usually already small and change little.
Will compression make my text blurry?
No. Only images are re-encoded. Text and vector graphics are not touched.
Which level should I choose?
Recommended suits email and most uploads. Choose Light for documents you will print, and Strong when you need the smallest possible file, for example for a portal with a strict size limit.
Is my file uploaded?
No. Compression runs in your browser and your PDF stays on your device.
Edit your PDF now. It’s free
No sign-up, no upload, no waiting. Open a file and start editing in seconds.
Open the PDF editor