Is my file uploaded to a server?

No. Everything happens locally in your browser. Your file never leaves your device.

Can I redact multiple pages?

Yes. Navigate between pages using the left/right arrows and draw redaction boxes on any page.

Will the redacted PDF be text-searchable?

The output is image-based, so it is not text-searchable. This is by design — it ensures redacted text is truly gone, not merely hidden.

Is there a file size limit?

SmilingPDF imposes no limits. Processing happens in your browser, so it depends on your device memory.

Redact PDF Online Free — Black Out Sensitive Text

Redact PDF permanently removes sensitive text from a document — a name, an account number, a signature — by drawing black boxes over it and rebuilding the page as an image underneath. Unlike drawing a black rectangle in a normal PDF editor, the original text isn't just hidden; the page is re-rendered so there's nothing left to select or extract. A built-in scanner can also suggest boxes over emails, phone numbers, and similar patterns for you to review before applying.

What you can do

Draw boxes over anything to remove, page by page.
Find sensitive data suggests boxes over emails, phone numbers or your own custom terms — nothing is applied until you click Apply.
Pages are rebuilt as images, so the blacked-out text can't be recovered.
Undo, Clear Page and page arrows for fixing a box.

How it works

1Drop your PDF onto the page — every page renders for you to review.
2Click and drag on the page to draw a redaction box over anything to remove.
3Optionally click Find sensitive data to auto-suggest boxes over emails, phone numbers, or your own custom terms.
4Use Undo or Clear Page to fix a box, and the ◀ ▶ arrows to move between pages.
5Click Apply [N] Redaction(s) to permanently black them out and download the result.

Why use SmilingPDF for this

Redaction is real: the page is rebuilt as an image, so the blacked-out text can't be recovered by anyone who opens the file.
Everything — drawing, detection, and rebuilding the PDF — happens in your browser; the document never reaches a server.
Automatic pattern detection only ever suggests boxes; nothing is redacted until you click Apply.

Private by design

Your file stays on your device.

No upload
No server storage
No account required
Browser-based processing
No watermark

This tool runs inside your browser tab. Your file is read from your device, processed there, and handed back as a download — it is never sent to a SmilingPDF server, so there is nothing for us to store, read, or lose. You can check for yourself: open your browser's developer tools, switch to the Network tab and run the tool. Like most sites, SmilingPDF uses Google Analytics to count visits and which tools are used; that never includes the contents of your files. The privacy policy lists everything the site does collect.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Got questions? We've got answers.

Yes. The original text under each redaction rectangle is permanently destroyed. The page is re-rendered as an image with the black boxes burned in — there is no way to recover the original content.