Redact PDF
Cover up anything you want to hide, then download a flattened PDF where the hidden content is gone for good. Everything runs in your browser — your file never leaves your device.
How to redact a PDF
- Choose a PDF file — every page appears below.
- Drag across each page to draw a black box over anything you want to hide.
- Press "Apply redactions & download" — the pages are flattened to images so the covered content cannot be recovered.
A black rectangle is not redaction
This is the mistake that leaks documents. Drawing a filled box over a name in a PDF editor leaves the text sitting underneath it: anyone can select it, copy it, or delete the box. Court filings and government reports have been published that way and read within hours.
What this tool does instead
When you apply the redaction, each page is turned into an image with the boxes burned into it, and the PDF is rebuilt from those images. What was under a box is not hidden, it is gone, because the text and the graphics that carried it no longer exist in the file.
What that costs, and the limits
The pages become pictures: the text can no longer be selected or searched, and the file is usually larger. Run it through OCR PDF afterwards if the reader needs to search it. Redaction covers what is on the page, so check the document properties too with Edit PDF metadata: an author name or an original file name can say more than the paragraph you blacked out.
Is the hidden text really gone?
Yes. Instead of drawing a box on top of the text (which can still be copied out), robinpdf rasterizes each page to an image with the black boxes burned in, then rebuilds the PDF from those images. The original text and pixels underneath are discarded, so there is nothing left to select, search or extract. As a result the output PDF is no longer text-searchable.
Is it private?
Yes. Everything runs inside your web browser, using your own device. Nothing is uploaded to any server, so your documents stay completely private. How does this work without uploading?
Frequently asked questions
Does the redacted text stay in the file?
No. Each page is flattened to an image with the boxes burned in, so the covered text and images are permanently removed — not just hidden.
Is it free and private?
Yes. It runs entirely in your browser — your PDF is never uploaded.
Will the PDF still be searchable?
No. Because the pages become images, text under and around the boxes is no longer selectable. This is the trade-off that makes the redaction secure.