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Pick a mode
Quality presets (extreme / recommended / low) trade clarity for size. Target KB mode binary-searches quality until the file approaches your cap.
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Compress PDF online for email portals and form caps. Use quality presets or a target size in KB (for example compress PDF to 100KB or 200KB) when a university or government site rejects large scans. Compression re-renders pages as images, so text may become non-selectable — keep the original if you need a searchable layer.
PDFProcessed privately in your browser — files are not uploaded.
Compress runs locally. We do not store compressed or original PDFs.
Quality presets (extreme / recommended / low) trade clarity for size. Target KB mode binary-searches quality until the file approaches your cap.
pdf.js renders pages; jpeg embedding shrinks the PDF. Very large scans need enough RAM.
Open the download and verify readability before submitting to a portal.
Government and university portals often reject scans over 100–200KB. Use target-KB mode instead of guessing quality presets, then spot-check readability before you submit.
Compress PDF is built for private, in-browser work. Upload-based PDF sites often store temporary copies on someone else’s disk; SortMyFile’s default is the opposite — processing stays on your device for this utility. Compress runs locally. We do not store compressed or original PDFs. If a step needs a one-time language pack or WASM library from a CDN, that is asset delivery — not your document contents being sent to SortMyFile for server-side processing. Close the tab when you are done if you want memory cleared.
Shrink PDF size with quality presets or a target KB. Before you run Compress PDF, keep an original copy of every source file. Spot-check the download on the same device you will use for the portal or email. Large scans and phone photos are limited by browser RAM — if a run stalls, shrink the input first or split the job. SortMyFile browser tools stay free forever with no daily caps.
Government and university portals often reject scans over 100–200KB. Use target-KB mode instead of guessing quality presets, then spot-check readability before you submit. People reach for Compress PDF when a form, HR desk, or messaging app rejects the current file shape, size, or format and installing desktop software is overkill. Pair it with merge-pdf, ocr-pdf, jpg-to-pdf when you need a short pipeline (for example compress then OCR, or HEIC to JPG then JPG to PDF). Results are not a substitute for official portal rules — always re-read the receiving site’s instructions before a deadline.
Compress PDF trades convenience for honesty about browser limits. Extremely large files, corrupted inputs, or DRM-protected media can fail. Password-protected PDFs need a password you already know — SortMyFile does not crack encryption. Free use does not require an account; Pro (when checkout ships) is planned to raise limits and reduce ads. Until then, the free tier is enough for most one-off private jobs.
Common questions
Use Target size (KB) mode. Extremely image-heavy scans may not hit tiny caps without looking blurry.
Browser compress often rasterizes pages. Use OCR PDF afterward if you need search again.
Yes on the free tier, subject to daily run limits shown in the tool.
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