Compress a PDF to fit any upload limit

How to compress a PDF

1. Add your PDF. Drag it onto the box above or click to browse. It is read locally in your browser.
2. Choose how hard to compress. Use Recommended for a balanced result, or pick Target size and type the limit you need to hit.
3. Click Compress PDF. The tool re-renders each page at a lower resolution and image quality.
4. Download. Check the new size, then download. If it is still too big, try Smaller file or enable grayscale.

Common upload size limits

• 1 MB — many government and bursary portals, some scholarship forms.
• 2 MB — HELB, KUCCPS and several university student portals.
• 5 MB — university and college application uploads, job application forms, visa portals.
• 10 MB — email attachments on most providers.

Tips for getting under a tight limit

• Turn on grayscale if the document is a scanned text page — colour information roughly doubles the size for no benefit.
• If you only need a few pages, split the PDF first and compress just those.
• Scans made at 600 DPI are overkill for screen review; 150 DPI is plenty and much smaller.

Frequently asked questions

Is it really free with no watermark?

Yes. No sign-up, no email, and nothing is stamped onto your document.

Do you see my documents?

No. This tool does the work in your browser with JavaScript. The PDF is never sent to us.

Why did the file barely shrink?

Text-only PDFs are already compact. Big savings come from scanned pages and photos, where lowering the image resolution removes a lot of data you do not need for a screen.

The output looks soft — what do I do?

Pick Higher quality, or use Target size with a slightly larger number so the tool keeps more detail.