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Sheafy PDF

Compress a PDF to the size you need

Type the size you need, for example 2 MB or 500 KB, and the compressor works towards it, keeping as much quality as that size allows. Or pick a preset and let it choose.

  • No login or account
  • No uploads to any server
  • No documents stored

How to use Compress PDF

  1. 1Add your PDF. The tool shows its size, page count and what it contains.
  2. 2Choose Target size and enter the size you need in KB or MB, or choose an automatic preset.
  3. 3Optionally open Advanced options to cap resolution, convert to grayscale or strip metadata.
  4. 4Select Compress PDF, check the result summary, and download.

How target-size compression works

The compressor first analyzes the document: page count, how much of the file is image data, whether pages have selectable text, vector graphics, forms or annotations. That decides the strategy.

Most of a large PDF is usually images. The compressor re-encodes those images at a lower resolution and JPEG quality while leaving text, fonts and vector drawings untouched, so text stays sharp and searchable. Resolution is judged by how large each image is actually drawn on the page. The file structure is also rewritten more compactly and unused objects are dropped.

For a target size it runs several real passes: it produces a complete PDF, measures its true size, compares that with your target and adjusts, using a binary search over quality levels and then refining between the two closest ones. It keeps the highest-quality result that fits.

If image recompression alone cannot reach the target and you allow it, pages are converted to images as a last resort. That can go much smaller, but text, links and form fields on those pages stop being interactive.

Not every target is possible. A PDF that is already optimized, or one that is mostly text, may have very little left to remove. When the target cannot be reached you get the smallest result that could be produced, and the tool says so plainly.

Frequently asked questions

Can I compress a PDF to exactly 2 MB, 500 KB or 200 KB?

Enter the size as a maximum. The compressor aims for the best quality at or below that size. Whether it is reachable depends on the file: image-heavy and scanned PDFs usually have a lot of room, text-only PDFs have little.

What if my target cannot be reached?

You are told the best achievable size next to the size you asked for, and you can still download that best result. The tool never reports a target as met when it was not.

Will my text stay selectable?

Yes, by default. Only embedded images are re-encoded. Text is only turned into an image if you choose image-only output or switch off Preserve searchable text to allow it as a last resort.

Why did my file not get smaller?

It was probably optimized already, or it consists mostly of text and fonts, which are compact to begin with. In that case the original is kept rather than handing you a larger file.

Which images cannot be recompressed?

A few special encodings are left untouched for safety: CMYK, indexed-colour, 1-bit (fax-style), JPEG 2000 and JBIG2 images. If these make up most of your file, image-only output is the way to shrink it.

How large a file can I compress?

It depends on your device memory, since the work happens in the browser tab. Files up to roughly 100 MB are usually fine on a computer; phones have less headroom. A warning appears for large files.