Redact a PDF
Draw boxes over sensitive content and permanently remove it — not just cover it up.
Drop a PDF here, or click to browse
How real PDF redaction works
A common mistake with PDF redaction is drawing a black box that only sits visually on top of the content — the underlying text is still there in the file and can be recovered by selecting and copying it, or by reprocessing the PDF with basic tools. This tool avoids that entirely: any page you mark gets converted into a flat image with the redaction boxes painted directly into the pixels, so the covered content is gone from the file itself, not just hidden from view. There's no text layer left on a redacted page for anything to extract.
Draw a box by dragging over the area you want gone, then adjust it before committing — drag the box to reposition it or a corner to resize it, zoom in for pixel-level precision on dense text, and undo any change you didn't mean to make. If the same sensitive detail repeats across a document (an account number in a running header, for instance), one box can be copied to every page instead of redrawing it each time. An optional metadata-clearing step removes the title, author, and similar fields stored in the file's properties, since those can carry identifying information a redacted page wouldn't. The trade-off for all of this is that a redacted page is no longer text-selectable or searchable, since it's now an image rather than text — pages you don't mark are left completely unchanged. Everything happens locally in your browser, on desktop or mobile, so the sensitive document never leaves your device.
Common use cases
- Removing personal information before sharing a document publicly
- Blacking out account numbers, IDs, or signatures before submitting a form
- Preparing a document for FOIA or public-records release
- Hiding confidential figures or clauses before sharing a report or contract externally
- Redacting resumes or applications for blind or anonymized review
- Removing a repeating case number or header detail across every page of a filing
Related tools
Redact PDF — frequently asked questions
It's a real redaction. Any page you draw a box on is converted into a flat image with the box painted directly into the pixels — the underlying text is gone from the file, not just visually covered, so it can't be recovered by selecting, copying, or reprocessing the PDF.
No — once a page has a redaction box, that entire page becomes a flat image, so its text is no longer selectable or searchable. Pages with no boxes are left completely untouched, including their original text.
Yes — select a box (click it, or pick it from the list) and drag it to reposition, or drag any corner to resize. Nothing is finalized until you click "Redact and download," so you can freely adjust every box first, and undo (Ctrl+Z) any change you didn't mean to make.
There's a checkbox for it, on by default. Metadata (title, author, subject, and similar fields stored in the file's properties) can sometimes carry identifying information a redacted page wouldn't — clearing it at the same time closes that gap without an extra step.
Yes — each box has a small copy icon that applies its exact position and size to every other page in the document, useful when the same sensitive detail (an ID, a case number, a footer) repeats across a multi-page file.
Yes — drawing, moving, and resizing boxes all work with touch, and the page automatically fits to your screen width so you're not fighting horizontal scrolling. A Pan mode lets you scroll around a page you've zoomed into without accidentally drawing a new box.
Redacted pages become images rather than text, which can be larger than the original text-based page — this is expected and not a sign of an error. Pages you didn't mark stay as regular text and aren't affected.
No. Redaction happens entirely in your browser, from opening the file to generating the download — nothing is sent to a server.