Compress PDF to a Target Size – Free & Private

Shrink a PDF to a target size (100KB, 200KB, 500KB or 1MB) for email, web forms and applications. Runs in your browser; no upload. Free, no sign-up.

Compress PDF

Upload Your PDF

PDF · max ⁦500 MB⁩

Files are processed locally in your browser and never uploaded

Some situations do not care how good your PDF looks; they care about the number on the file size label. An email server rejects anything over its attachment cap, a government portal caps uploads at 1MB, a job application form wants a resume under 500KB. This tool lets you type in the exact ceiling and get a PDF at or under it, instead of guessing which quality slider gets you there.

Pick a preset (100KB, 200KB, 500KB, or 1MB) or enter any custom value down to 10KB, and the compressor works backward from that number. It downsamples and re-encodes embedded images, iterating automatically until the output fits your target or it runs out of room to shrink further. Everything happens in your browser; the file is never uploaded to a server.

No exact limit needed? The standard Compress PDF tool keeps text selectable.

Good to know

  • Rasterizes every page into a JPEG image, so text can no longer be selected or searched afterwards.
  • JPEG quality is searched between 35% and 85%, together with page resolution, until the file fits your target.
  • The minimum target is 10KB, and a very small target may be missed; you are told when that happens.
  • If your file is already under the target, it is returned unchanged.

How it works

01

Upload your PDF

Drop in the file you need to shrink. Works with scanned documents, image-heavy reports, and standard text PDFs up to 500MB.

02

Pick a target size

Choose 100KB, 200KB, 500KB, or 1MB, or type a custom size. The compressor automatically re-encodes images to land at or under that number.

03

Download the result

Get your resized PDF in seconds. If the exact target isn't reachable, you'll see the closest size it could achieve and why.

Common use cases

Email attachments under 100KB or 200KB

Many mail servers and webmail clients silently strip or bounce large attachments. Compressing a scanned form or signed contract to 100KB or 200KB keeps it well inside typical limits.

Government and application portals near 500KB

Visa applications, tax portals, and job application systems often cap document uploads at 500KB. Hit that ceiling reliably instead of resubmitting a rejected upload.

Web forms and CMS uploads capped at 1MB

Contact forms, university admissions systems, and content management tools frequently enforce a 1MB file limit. Compress your PDF once instead of trimming pages to fit.

Frequently asked questions

Why might my PDF not reach the exact target size?

A target size is a ceiling the compressor tries to reach, not a guarantee. Text-only PDFs are already compact and can't shrink much further; extremely image-heavy files sometimes can't be pushed all the way down without becoming unreadable. When the exact target isn't reachable, the tool returns the smallest size it safely could and shows you the actual result.

Will compressing to a small target size hurt image quality?

Yes, to some degree. Hitting an aggressive target like 100KB usually means re-encoding images at a lower quality and resolution than the medium or high presets on the main compressor. For a short scanned document this is normally still legible; for photo-heavy files, expect visible quality loss at very small targets.

Will the text in my compressed PDF still be selectable and searchable?

It depends on the source file. If your PDF has real text (not a scan), that text usually stays selectable. If reaching your target size requires rasterizing pages into images, the page becomes a picture of the text and is no longer selectable or searchable. The tool tells you when this happens.

What's the difference between this and the regular compressor's quality levels?

The homepage compressor's low/medium/high levels optimize for a quality tier and let the resulting file size land wherever it lands. This page works the other direction: you set the exact file size you need, and the compressor adjusts image quality automatically to hit it.

Is there a minimum target size I can set?

Yes. Custom targets must be at least 10KB. Below that, most real-world PDFs can't be represented reliably even after aggressive compression.

Is my file uploaded to a server to compress it?

No. Compression runs entirely in your browser using a background Web Worker. Your PDF never leaves your device, and nothing is stored once you close the tab.

Related tools

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PDF to JPG

Convert PDF pages into smaller JPG images that are easy to share by email and social media.

Merge PDF

Combine multiple PDF files into one document. Drag and drop to reorder pages before merging.

Other target sizes

Each page below presets one limit and works the same way. Pick the one your form asks for, or use the general tool to enter any size.