Redact PDF
Permanently remove sensitive content, privately in your browser. Optionally scan the document on your device to find sensitive info for you.
How to redact a PDF
- 1
Open your PDF
Drop or select the PDF with content to redact. Nothing is uploaded.
- 2
Cover or scan
Draw boxes over what to remove, or use Scan for sensitive info to have emails, IDs, phones and dates found and suggested for you.
- 3
Review and download
Adjust or delete any box, then apply. The covered areas are flattened so the underlying data is removed.
Why redact PDFs in your browser?
Redaction is about removing sensitive information for good. Doing it locally means the original, unredacted document never leaves your device on the way to being cleaned up.
Frequently asked questions
Is the content really removed?+
Yes. On export the redacted pages are flattened to images, so the text and objects under the boxes are gone, not just hidden or covered with a black rectangle that can be deleted later.
Is my file uploaded?+
No. Redaction, and the optional scanning below, happen entirely in your browser, so your document never leaves your device. A live network meter shows zero bytes sent.
Can it find sensitive information for me?+
Yes. "Scan for sensitive info" reads the document on your device and suggests redaction boxes over structured personal data: email addresses, card numbers (checksum-validated), ID and SSN numbers, IBANs, phone numbers and dates. It is pattern-based, so it works on every device including phones. The boxes are suggestions you review, adjust or delete before anything is applied.
Can it find names and addresses too?+
On a desktop or laptop with on-device AI (a WebGPU browser, or one with a built-in Prompt API), an optional "find names and addresses" scan runs a small AI model in your browser to suggest boxes over people’s names and postal addresses, which no fixed pattern can catch. It only ever suggests boxes over text that actually appears in your document, and you review each one. Nothing is uploaded, and where on-device AI is not available this option is simply hidden.
Do the suggestions redact anything automatically?+
No. Both scans only propose boxes, shown with a dashed amber outline. Nothing is removed until you review the suggestions and click apply, so you stay in control of exactly what gets redacted.
Will redacted pages still have selectable text?+
Redacted pages become images, so their text is no longer selectable. That is what guarantees the removal.
Can a redacted PDF be un-redacted?+
No, not when the redaction truly removes the content, which is how this tool works. On export the redacted pages are flattened to images, so the text and objects under the black boxes are gone from the file, not just hidden behind a rectangle that could be deleted or copied out later. That is the difference between real redaction and drawing a black box over text, which can be undone.
Is it free?+
Yes, with no sign-up. The sensitive-info scan and the on-device AI scan are free too.
Common uses
Task-specific guides for the situations people reach for this tool for.