Compress PDF — Reduce File Size in Your Browser

StayPDF's Compress PDF tool shrinks heavy PDFs so they fit email size limits, upload caps, and storage budgets. Image-heavy PDFs can drop by up to 80% in strong-compression mode while still looking acceptable on screen.

All processing happens inside your browser. Your files are never uploaded to any server. Compress sensitive contracts and internal reports without exposing them to a third-party service. No account, no install, completely free.

What this tool can do

  • Two modes: Light (preserve quality) and Strong (maximum reduction)
  • Shows the resulting file size and compression ratio
  • Fully local processing — files never leave your browser
  • Same workflow on desktop and mobile
  • No account, no installation required

How to compress a PDF

  1. Choose a PDF: Drag and drop your PDF, or use the file picker.
  2. Pick a compression level: Light keeps quality nearly intact while trimming metadata. Strong re-encodes images at lower resolution for much smaller files.
  3. Compress and download: Click "Compress and Save". The result and the savings are shown after processing.

Frequently asked questions

How much smaller will my PDF get?

It depends on the contents. Image-heavy PDFs can shrink by 50-80% in strong mode. Pure-text PDFs may barely change.

What's the difference between Light and Strong?

Light is a near-lossless cleanup (metadata, redundant objects). Strong re-encodes images to lower-resolution JPEGs — file size drops sharply but image quality is reduced. Use Light for print, Strong for email or web viewing.

My file size barely changed

Already-optimized or pure-text PDFs have little room to compress. Try Strong mode if Light doesn't help.

Are my files uploaded to a server?

No. Everything runs locally; this is the main difference between StayPDF and services like iLovePDF or SmallPDF.

I need to compress a scanned PDF aggressively

Strong mode works well on scans. See our guide on compressing scanned PDFs for tips.

Related tools

  • Merge PDF — Combine multiple PDFs
  • Grayscale PDF — Convert to black & white for further savings
  • PDF to Image — Save pages as separate images