Redact a PDF
Black out names, numbers and other private details so they are removed from the file, not just hidden.
How it works
- Add your PDF.
- Find what to hide by words or kind, or drag boxes over it on the page.
- Look through the pages and remove any box that should not be there.
- Press Redact and download.
Why a black box is not enough
Drawing a black rectangle over text in a PDF editor only hides it. The words are still in the file and can be selected, copied or found by search. This has caused real leaks of documents that were thought to be redacted.
This tool turns each page you mark into a picture with the boxes painted solid black. A picture has no text in it, so what you covered is gone from the file. After redacting, the tool checks that those pages hold no text and tells you the result.
What changes and what does not
- Pages with a box become pictures: they can no longer be searched or selected, and links and form fields on them are lost.
- Pages with no box are copied across untouched.
- The new file does not carry over the original's metadata, bookmarks or attachments.
- Always look at the result before you share it. A search can miss a spelling, or a number written another way.
To also add a password to the result, use Password protect a PDF.
Good to know
- Each page with a box is turned into a picture, so that page can no longer be searched or selected, and links and form fields on it are lost. Pages with no box are kept as they are.
- Finding text by words or kind (emails, phone numbers, long numbers) works on text inside the PDF. A scanned page has no text to search, so draw a box over it.
- Always look at the result before sharing it. A search can miss a spelling or a number written in another way.
- The new file does not carry over the original's metadata, bookmarks or attachments.
Frequently asked questions
- Is it free to redact a PDF here?
- Yes. Files up to 25 MB and 50 pages are free, and GetFormatted Pro raises this to 250 MB and 2,000 pages.
- Is the text really removed, or just hidden?
- Removed. A marked page is rebuilt as a picture with solid black boxes, so the covered words are not in the file. The tool checks this after redacting.
- Is my PDF uploaded?
- No. Everything happens in your browser.
- Can it find all the email addresses or phone numbers for me?
- It can find them from the text in the PDF and mark them for you. Check each page afterwards, because a search can miss unusual formats.
- Does it work on scanned pages?
- Yes, by drawing a box over what to hide. A scan has no text to search, so finding by words will not work on it.