Redact PDF Online
Draw over sensitive information and create a flattened PDF with the selected areas permanently covered.
Permanent redaction through flattening
The output PDF is rebuilt from rendered page images after the black redaction areas are applied. This removes the original selectable text and page objects from the output, preventing hidden text from remaining underneath the redaction boxes.
Flattening changes the PDF
Because every output page is rasterized, selectable text, hyperlinks, forms, annotations, vector graphics, and other interactive PDF features are not preserved. Review the downloaded file carefully before sharing it.
Processed in your browser
The PDF pages and redaction areas are processed locally on your device for supported files.
How to redact a PDF
Choose your PDF
Open the PDF containing information that must be permanently hidden.
Mark sensitive areas
Drag black boxes over names, addresses, account numbers, or any other information that should not remain visible.
Download the flattened PDF
The pages are rasterized with the redactions applied and rebuilt into a new PDF.
Why drawing a black rectangle is not enough
Simply placing a black shape on top of PDF text can be unsafe because the original text may still exist underneath the rectangle and remain searchable, selectable, extractable, or removable in another PDF editor.
This tool takes a different approach. After you mark the sensitive areas, each page is rendered visually, the redactions are painted into those rendered pixels, and a new flattened PDF is created from the resulting page images.
The tradeoff is that the new PDF no longer preserves the original selectable text, links, forms, annotations, or vector objects. Always open and inspect the downloaded PDF before sharing sensitive material.
Frequently asked questions
Is the hidden text removed from the output PDF?
The output pages are rebuilt from rendered images after the redaction boxes are applied. The original PDF text and page objects are therefore not copied into the new document.
Will the redacted PDF still have selectable text?
No. This safety-focused browser version rasterizes the pages, so the output behaves like scanned page images rather than a selectable-text PDF.
Can I redact multiple pages?
Yes. Navigate through the PDF and add one or more redaction areas to any required pages before creating the final file.
Is my PDF uploaded?
For this tool, supported PDFs are rendered, redacted, and rebuilt directly in your browser.