PROCESSED LOCALLY
⬡ zero uploads

Every PDF tool you need,
running inside your browser.

Compress, convert, merge, sign, redact and read scans. Choose a tool and open a file — it is processed on this device and never uploaded.

Why this is different

No document is uploaded. This can be independently verified.

Comparable services transmit your file to a server and undertake to delete it subsequently. PaperJET has no server to which a document could be sent: the tools are compiled to WebAssembly and execute within this browser tab, on your own device. Nothing is queued, nothing is capped, and the work continues if you go offline after the page has loaded.

To verify Load this page, disconnect from the network, and then compress a document. The operation completes as normal. No server-dependent service could do so.
No uploadThe file is read from local storage by the browser and does not leave it. No copy exists anywhere other than on your own device.
No account requiredNo registration, no email address and no consent banner. An account is optional and serves only to retain your preferences.
No limitsNo file size cap, no daily quota, no queue and no watermark applied to output. The only constraint is the memory of your device.
Established componentsBuilt on pdf-lib, pdf.js and Tesseract, the same libraries used across the industry, executed locally.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

Are documents uploaded to a server?

No. Every tool executes within your own browser using WebAssembly. The file is read from local storage by the browser and is not transmitted, so no server holds a copy of it. This may be verified by disconnecting from the network once the page has loaded; the tools continue to function normally.

Is PaperJET free to use?

Yes. All tools are provided free of charge, with no account required, no watermark applied and no file size limit.

Can a scanned PDF be processed?

Yes. The OCR tool reads the text from a scan and can return the same scan with an invisible text layer applied, so that the document appears unchanged while becoming searchable and available for copying.

Can a PDF be converted to Word or Excel?

Yes, where the PDF already contains text. Where the file is a scan, the OCR tool should be used instead; the interface will indicate which case applies.

Is there a file size limit?

No. As processing is performed on your own device rather than on a server, the constraint is the available memory of that device rather than an upload cap.

Compress
Drop a PDF here, or click to choose
It stays on this computer

Redact a PDF

Removes text permanently, so that it cannot be recovered. This is worth being precise about, because most tools that advertise redaction do not do it: a black rectangle drawn over a word conceals nothing, and the text sits beneath it and can be copied straight out. That is the mechanism by which documents described as redacted keep appearing in the press in fully readable form.

How to redact a PDF

  1. Open the PDF.
  2. Mark the areas to be removed on the page itself, as it actually appears.
  3. Apply. Marked pages are flattened to pixels, so the covered content ceases to exist.
  4. Save, and check the result by trying to select the text that was covered.
Why a black box is not redaction

Drawing a rectangle adds an object on top of the page. The original text is still in the file underneath it, and can be recovered by selecting it, copying it, or opening the file in an editor. The rectangle changes what is displayed, not what is stored.

What is done instead

Any page you mark is flattened to an image, so the underlying text no longer exists in the file at all. The consequence is a trade you should know about: flattened pages are no longer selectable or searchable, and are larger. Pages you did not mark are copied across unaltered and keep their text.

Verify it yourself

Open the saved file and try to select or search for the redacted words. If a tool's redaction is only cosmetic, this is where it shows — and it is worth doing on any document before you release it.

Questions about redaction

Is the redacted text really removed, or just hidden?

Really removed. Marked pages are flattened to pixels, so the text that was covered no longer exists in the file. It cannot be selected, copied, searched or recovered with an editor.

Why is a black rectangle not enough?

Because it is an object drawn on top of the page, not a change to the page. The text remains in the file beneath it and can be copied straight out. This is a recurring cause of accidental disclosure in published documents.

Is my document uploaded to redact it?

No. Redaction runs in this browser tab. A document sensitive enough to need redacting is not one to send to a server, which is why this tool has none.

Why did the redacted pages become larger and unsearchable?

Because they were converted to images in order to destroy the underlying text. That is the cost of genuine redaction. Pages you did not mark are untouched and keep their text.