Redact PDF

How to Redact PDF Online Free

1. Upload your PDF. Click the drop zone or drag your file onto it. The document opens in a page preview right inside your browser — nothing is sent to a server.
2. Draw black boxes. Drag a rectangle over every name, number, signature, photo, or paragraph you want gone. Add as many boxes as you need, on any page of the document.
3. Review your marks. Flip through the pages with the Prev/Next buttons. The sidebar lists every redaction box on the current page, and you can delete any box before finalizing.
4. Pick a quality. Choose 150 DPI for a smaller file that looks perfect on screen, or 300 DPI if the redacted document will be printed.
5. Apply and download. Hit Apply Redactions & Download PDF. Each marked page is rebuilt with the sensitive content physically destroyed; unmarked pages are copied untouched at full quality.

Redaction is a one-way process, so keep your original file. The download is saved as yourfile-redacted.pdf, ready to share with confidence. For maximum security, you can also add a password to the finished file with our Protect PDF tool before sending it.

Redact vs Black Out: Why the Difference Matters

Most people assume that drawing a black rectangle over text removes it. In a PDF, it usually does not. A PDF is a structured file: the visible page is only one layer, and the actual text lives in a separate content stream underneath. A simple black box is just another layer of paint on top — the words remain in the file, and anyone with a free PDF reader can select, copy, or extract them in seconds.

High-profile leaks have happened exactly this way, when supposedly redacted documents were published with the hidden text still intact. The redaction article on Wikipedia explains the distinction: true redaction removes information so the document can be safely distributed, while fake cover-ups leave it recoverable.

True redaction destroys the underlying data. Professional tools do this by deleting the marked content from the PDF’s content streams and then flattening the page. This tool takes an even more thorough route: it re-renders each marked page from scratch as a flat image with the black areas baked in, then builds a new PDF from those images.

After that process there is no text layer, no hidden content stream, and no metadata left to recover on those pages — only pixels. That is why rasterization is the safest guarantee a browser-based redactor can offer. For the classic paper-document guidance on the same principle, the UK National Archives redaction toolkit (PDF) describes flattening as the reliable way to make redacted material unreadable.

One honest limitation: pages you do not mark keep their original text layer, which is exactly what you want for the rest of the document. If a page contains sensitive text, mark it. And always review the downloaded file — zoom in, try selecting text on the redacted pages, and confirm nothing is recoverable — before you send it anywhere.

Redact PDF Features That Protect You

• Guaranteed permanent removal. This redact pdf tool rasterizes every marked page — rendering it to an image and burning the black boxes in — so the original text layer is destroyed. The redacted words cannot be selected, copied, searched, or extracted by any PDF tool.
• Draw anywhere, on any page. Mark text, scanned handwriting, photos, charts, or signatures. A full page navigator and a per-page redaction list keep large documents organized.
• Unmarked pages stay perfect. Pages without redactions are copied as-is, preserving vector text, fonts, and image quality. Only the pages you mark are converted to images.
• Selectable output quality. 150 DPI keeps files lean for email and web; 300 DPI keeps printed pages crisp. You choose the trade-off.
• Metadata dropped. The rebuild creates a fresh document, so title, author, and other document properties from the original are not carried over.
• Private by design. The entire redact pdf process runs in your browser with JavaScript. Your sensitive documents are never uploaded, stored, or seen by anyone else.
• Free with no watermark. No signup, no account, no daily limits, and no watermark stamped on your output.

How Burn-In Redaction Works in Your Browser

When you press Apply, the tool walks through your document page by page. For each page with redaction boxes, it renders the page to an image at your chosen DPI, draws the black rectangles directly onto those pixels, and then writes that image — and only that image — into the new PDF. The original text, fonts, annotations, and form fields from that page never make it into the output.

For pages without boxes, the original page content is copied over unchanged, keeping vector quality and selectable text. This selective approach means the file stays as small and sharp as possible while every marked page gets true burn-in redaction. If your source document is a flat scan with no text layer, this same visual redaction still works: draw boxes over the sensitive areas and the page is rebuilt as a flattened image. And if you need to add a text layer to a scan first, our OCR PDF tool does that in your browser too.

Tips for Safe PDF Redaction

• Redact generously. Cover the full word or number plus a small margin around it. Partially covered text can sometimes be guessed from context.
• Check headers, footers, and watermarks. Names and case numbers often repeat on every page. Use the page navigator and do not stop after page one.
• Do not forget images. Faces, signatures, license plates, and screenshots of documents all carry sensitive data — draw boxes over them too.
• Search for duplicates. If a phone number appears five times, all five instances need boxes. One missed occurrence defeats the whole exercise.
• Keep the original. Redaction is permanent. Save the unredacted file somewhere safe before you download the redacted copy.
• Verify before sharing. Open the downloaded file in a fresh viewer, try selecting and copying text on redacted pages, and confirm nothing is selectable.
• Choose the right DPI. 150 DPI for screen sharing and email; 300 DPI for print. Security is identical either way.

Redact PDF: Frequently Asked Questions

What does it mean to redact a PDF?

To redact a PDF is to permanently remove sensitive information from it — names, ID numbers, signatures, account details, faces in photos — so the document can be shared safely. Real redaction destroys the underlying data, leaving nothing to recover. That is different from simply blacking out text: many free editors draw a black rectangle over the words while the text stays hidden underneath, where anyone can copy or extract it. This tool performs true redaction, not visual cover-up.

Can redacted text in a PDF be recovered?

Not from a properly redacted file. Every page you mark in this tool is rebuilt as a flat image with the black boxes burned in, destroying the original text layer completely — there is simply nothing left to recover. Recovery is only possible with fake redaction, where a black box sits on top of text that remains in the file. Always verify your output: try selecting and copying text from a redacted area before you share the document.

How do I redact a PDF without uploading it?

Use a redact pdf tool that runs entirely in your browser — like this one. Upload the file to the tool on this page, draw black boxes over every sensitive detail, choose your render quality, and download the redacted PDF. Because all rendering and rebuilding happens locally with JavaScript, your document never travels over the internet. That matters: uploading a sensitive file to an online redaction service means trusting a stranger’s server with the very data you want protected.

Can I redact a scanned PDF?

Yes, but there is a catch: on a scanned PDF, the text is baked into the page image, so marking words for removal has no text layer to work with. The simplest approach is to redact the scan visually — draw boxes over the sensitive areas and let the page be rebuilt as a flattened image, which this tool does automatically. For searchable results, run the original through our OCR PDF tool first, then redact that copy.

Should I redact at 150 DPI or 300 DPI?

Choose 150 DPI when the redacted PDF will be read on screen or emailed — the file stays small and text remains perfectly readable. Choose 300 DPI when the document will be printed, since the higher resolution keeps edges sharp on paper. Both settings destroy the underlying content equally well: DPI only affects the sharpness and file size of the rebuilt pages, not the security of the redaction itself. When in doubt, 150 DPI is the right default for sharing.

Related Free Tools

• Protect PDF — password-protect the redacted file before sending.
• OCR PDF — add a text layer to scans before redacting.
• Compare PDF — verify nothing else changed between drafts.
• Sign PDF — sign the finished document without printing.
• PDF Form Filler — fill forms privately in your browser.