Redact PDF

How do I redact a PDF?

Press Choose a PDF. Drag a box over each thing to hide, or type a word and press Mark all to box every match. Check each page, then press Redact and save. The tool burns the boxes into the page, scrubs the rest of the file, and checks the result before you download it.

1. Press Choose a PDF.
2. Drag on the page to draw a box, or type a word and press Mark all.
3. Or pick Mark emails, phones to box every email address, phone number or long number.
4. Go through every page; click or tap a box to remove it.
5. Press Redact and save, read the check result, then Download.

Is a black box over text the same as redaction?

No. A box drawn in a PDF editor only covers the text on screen. The words are still in the file, so anyone can select them, copy them or delete the box. We tested both on the same file with a Social Security number in five places. This table shows what was left afterward.

Our guide Why Black Boxes Don't Redact a PDF hides one number six ways and shows where it can still be found, with real court and agency cases.

Measured with this tool's own code on a one-page test file. Redaction took 22 ms; the file grew from 3.3 KB to 23.5 KB because the marked page became an image.

What happens to the pages I redact?

Each page with at least one box is drawn at 200 dpi with the boxes painted in, then saved as an image that replaces the original page. Text on that page can no longer be selected or searched. Pages without boxes keep their real text, links and quality, so only the pages you mark change.

Which information should I redact?

It depends on where the file is going. In US federal court filings, Rule 5.2 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure allows only the last four digits of a Social Security or account number, the year of a birth date and a minor's initials. Check the rules that apply to your own document.