What PDF Redact does
Black out names, numbers and areas in a PDF in your browser. Pages are rewritten as images so the covered content is gone, and the new file is checked.
Drawing a black rectangle on a PDF in a viewer or a word processor hides the text; it does not remove it. The words are still in the file, selectable and searchable under the box, which is a well-known way redactions fail. PDF Redact takes the other route: it draws every page in your browser, paints the black boxes onto the pixels, and writes a brand-new PDF that contains only those page pictures.
That makes the result easy to reason about. There is no text under a box because there is no text at all. Comments, form fields, attachments, scripts, bookmarks, document properties and the earlier saved versions inside the file are not copied either, because nothing of the original file is copied. The price is stated before you export: the whole output stops being selectable and searchable, links and form fields stop working, and the file is usually larger.
You mark what to remove by dragging boxes, or by finding it: exact terms, regular expressions, and patterns for emails, phone numbers, SSN-like numbers, card numbers and dates. After export the tool checks its own output by re-opening it, and shows you the result, pass or fail. It cannot tell whether you marked everything that is sensitive, so it asks you to read the result before you share it. It is a tool, not a legal or compliance certificate.
Free covers a PDF of up to 10 pages with the full workflow. Pro is $29 once: PDFs of up to about 200 pages, saved rule sets, batches into a .zip, and higher resolution.
Popular uses
Each opens PDF Redact already set up for that job, with steps and answers for that case.
Free vs Pro
| Feature | Free $0 · no account |
Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Open a PDF of up to 10 pages in your browser: it is not uploaded | Included | Included |
| Draw redaction boxes by dragging on the page, then move, resize, delete and undo them | Included | Included |
| Find text in the PDF text layer: exact terms (case and whole-word options), regular expressions, and built-in patterns for emails, phone numbers, SSN-like numbers, card numbers (Luhn check), IBAN-like numbers and dates, listed with page numbers; mark all or one at a time | Included | Included |
| A warning for pages without a text layer (scans), where search cannot work and boxes must be drawn by hand | Included | Included |
| A review step that shows each page as it will be written, with the boxes burned in | Included | Included |
| Export to a new image-only PDF at 100, 150 or 200 DPI (JPEG or lossless), the same page sizes and orientation, no watermark | Included | Included |
| A check after export that re-opens the file it just wrote: page count and sizes, no extractable text, every box solid black, and nothing in the file but page images (no metadata, attachments, scripts, annotations or old versions) | Included | Included |
| Rejects encrypted PDFs and pages that are too large, with a plain message | Included | Included |
| PDFs of up to about 200 pages (every page is held in memory while the file is written, so a large file may not fit on a phone or an older computer) | — | Pro |
| Saved rule sets: term lists, regular expressions and built-in patterns, kept in this browser | — | Pro |
| Batch redaction: the same rules on several PDFs at once, delivered as one .zip with a report of counts | — | Pro |
| Higher resolution for small print: 300 and 400 DPI | — | Pro |
Pro is $29, paid once. Checkout and the licence key are handled by Dodo Payments (merchant of record). By buying you agree to the Terms and Privacy Policy.
Questions
Is PDF Redact free?
Yes, with no account and no install. The free plan includes: Open a PDF of up to 10 pages in your browser: it is not uploaded; Draw redaction boxes by dragging on the page, then move, resize, delete and undo them; Find text in the PDF text layer: exact terms (case and whole-word options), regular expressions, and built-in patterns for emails, phone numbers, SSN-like numbers, card numbers (Luhn check), IBAN-like numbers and dates, listed with page numbers; mark all or one at a time; A warning for pages without a text layer (scans), where search cannot work and boxes must be drawn by hand; and 4 more. Pro ($29, paid once) adds: PDFs of up to about 200 pages (every page is held in memory while the file is written, so a large file may not fit on a phone or an older computer); Saved rule sets: term lists, regular expressions and built-in patterns, kept in this browser; Batch redaction: the same rules on several PDFs at once, delivered as one .zip with a report of counts; Higher resolution for small print: 300 and 400 DPI.
Does PDF Redact upload my data?
No. The PDF is processed in your browser tab: pages are drawn, redacted and written there, and the file is never sent to us. We only measure which buttons are used, never the content of a file. The PDF engine (PDF.js) is loaded from this site the first time you open a file. See the Privacy Policy for retention and deletion.
Do I need to install anything?
No. Open the page and start working. It works on desktop and mobile browsers.
How does the Pro licence work?
You pay once and receive a licence key by email from Dodo Payments (our merchant of record). Paste it under "Have a key?" inside the tool. One key works on up to 3 browsers; you can release a browser at any time to use the key elsewhere.
Does a black rectangle in a PDF viewer really remove the text?
Usually not. A rectangle drawn on top of text in a viewer or word processor is a shape above the text, which normally stays in the file and can be selected or searched. PDF Redact rewrites each page as a picture with the black boxes painted in, so there is nothing underneath.
What do I lose when the output is made of images?
Text selection, search and copy for the whole file (also outside the boxes), links, form fields, bookmarks and accessibility tags. The file is usually larger. The tool states this before you export.
How is the result checked?
After export the tool re-opens the file it wrote: it compares page count and sizes, tries to extract text, re-renders the pages to confirm the pixels inside every box are black, and scans the bytes to confirm the file holds only page images. It shows each result, including a failure. It cannot tell whether you covered everything that is sensitive, so read the result before you share it.
Can it redact a scanned PDF?
Yes, by drawing boxes: a scan has no text layer, so the search cannot find words on those pages and the tool warns you. Text inside any picture is not searchable either; cover it by hand.
Is it a legal or compliance certificate?
No. Whether this meets a rule, a court order or a regulator's requirement is your decision. The tool does a specific technical thing and checks it; review the file before you share it.
