Compress PDF
Shrink PDFs to fit email and upload limits — with an honest lossless mode and a strong mode for big scans.
Two ways to shrink a PDF, chosen honestly. Lossless mode restructures the file with object streams — everything stays exactly as it was, and savings are usually modest (a few percent on well-made files, more on bloated ones). Strong mode re-renders each page as a compressed JPEG at the DPI you pick, which routinely cuts scanned documents by 70–90% — the trade-off is that text becomes an image and is no longer selectable.
Both modes run completely in your browser, so bank statements, contracts, and scans are never uploaded. You see the before and after sizes with the percentage saved before downloading, so there are no surprises.
How to compress a PDF
- 1
Drop your PDF onto the tool and pick Lossless or Strong mode.
- 2
For Strong mode, set the DPI and JPEG quality — lower values mean smaller files.
- 3
Click "Compress PDF", review the before/after sizes, and download the result.
Why use Nofolo’s compress pdf?
No upload — documents stay local
Compression runs in your browser with pdf-lib and pdf.js. Nothing is transmitted to any server.
Lossless mode
Rebuilds the file with object streams. Text, images, and links are untouched — a safe first try.
Strong mode for scans
Re-encodes each page as a JPEG at your chosen DPI and quality — typically 70–90% smaller for scanned documents.
Quality and DPI you control
Pick the resolution and JPEG quality so you decide the balance between size and sharpness.
Before/after with % saved
Both sizes and the exact saving are shown before you download anything.
Honest about trade-offs
The tool tells you when savings will be modest and warns that strong mode makes text non-selectable.
Frequently asked questions
Is my PDF uploaded to compress it?
No. Both modes run entirely in your browser — lossless with pdf-lib, strong with pdf.js rendering. The file never leaves your device.
How much smaller will my PDF get?
It depends on the file. Lossless mode typically saves a few percent (more on inefficiently built files). Strong mode usually cuts scans and image-heavy PDFs by 70–90% at 100–150 DPI.
What’s the catch with Strong mode?
Each page is re-rendered as a JPEG image, so text is no longer selectable or searchable and very fine print may soften. Use Lossless mode when you need the text layer intact.
How do I compress a PDF to under 1 MB for an upload form?
Use Strong mode and start at 100 DPI with quality around 60, then check the after size. Dropping to 72 DPI shrinks it further — the preview numbers update every run, so you can dial it in.
Why did Lossless mode barely change my file size?
Because it never touches your content, it can only remove structural overhead. If the PDF was already efficiently built, there is little to remove — that’s the honest limit of lossless compression.
Related tools
Image Compressor
Shrink JPG, PNG, and WebP file sizes right in your browser — photos never leave your device.
Merge PDF
Combine multiple PDFs into one file, in the order you choose — nothing leaves your browser.
Split PDF
Pull out a page range or break a PDF into single pages — processed privately in your browser.
PDF to JPG
Turn every PDF page into a high-quality JPG — preview first, download one or all as a ZIP.