NimboLight compression rewrites the file more efficiently without touching its content. Recommended and Strong go further by redrawing each page as an image, which works wonders on scans and photos but makes text no longer selectable: the result always tells you which method was used. Target size tries stronger settings until the file fits under 1, 2, 5 or 10 MB.
How it works
- Drop the PDF.
- Choose Light, Recommended, Strong or a target size.
- Select Compress PDF, compare the sizes and download.
Supported files
Input: one PDF. Output: one PDF.
Up to 400 MB per PDF on a computer, 150 MB on iPhone and iPad. Larger files depend on your device's memory.
When to use it
- Get a scanned document under an email attachment limit.
- Meet the 5 MB limit of an online application form.
- Make a photo-heavy PDF faster to send and open.
Quality and limitations
- Recommended, Strong and Target size turn pages into images: text can no longer be selected or searched, and links stop working.
- Text-only PDFs are already compact and rarely get much smaller.
Common issues
- “Already well optimized.”
- Light compression found nothing to save. Try Recommended if the PDF contains scans or photos.
- The target size was not reached.
- Some documents can't get that small and stay readable. Split the PDF and send it in parts.
Private by design
This tool runs entirely in your browser with JavaScript. Your file is read and processed on your device and is never uploaded to a server. Closing the tab discards everything.
Frequently asked questions
Which level should I choose?
Light for documents created on a computer; Recommended for scans and photos; Target size when a form imposes a limit.
Will the text stay sharp?
With Light, yes, exactly. With the other levels, pages become images at 60–150 dpi: readable, but no longer selectable.
Is my PDF uploaded?
No. Compression runs in your browser, even for confidential files.