Redact PDF text and scanned areas
Redact text or scanned areas in a PDF. Create an image-only copy, then check every masked area before sharing. Try a fictional sample first.
Prepare your files
PDF · Up to 32 MB per file.
Try the sample or choose your own files. We remove your uploads after each preview or tool run. File privacy.
Using Redact PDF
Redact text or scanned areas in a PDF. Create an image-only copy, then check every masked area before sharing. Try a fictional sample first.
Three steps
- For selectable text, enter a phrase. For a scan, clear the phrase field, open the page preview, draw a box and choose Add mask.
- Check every page and repeated occurrence before running Redact PDF. Masks affect only the areas you selected or the phrase matches found.
- Download the copy, reopen it in a PDF reader and inspect every masked area at high zoom before sharing.
Worked example
Load the fictional sample: CONFIDENTIAL is visible on all three pages. Keep that phrase in the search field and run Redact PDF. In the exported copy, check all three masks and the surrounding text. All pages become images, including any page without a mask.
Why can I no longer select text in the redacted PDF?
Every page is rebuilt as an image, including pages without masks. This discards underlying text, links, forms, metadata and attachments. A text search cannot find words inside a photograph: use rectangles there.
Will a search phrase find words inside a scanned image?
No. Phrase search uses selectable text and ignores ASCII letter case. Use rectangles for scanned words, handwritten notes and images. A document can contain both text and scanned areas.
Is drawing a black box or cropping the page enough?
A normal drawing can leave the original text underneath, and cropping only changes what is visible. This tool rebuilds every page as an image after applying the masks, discarding the source text layer and document objects.
Files and processing
Previews and PDF tools process your uploads on our server. We remove the original files after each operation. Save the result before leaving the tool. File privacy.