Mark pages and save the rest
In this tool, a mark always means one thing: remove. That sounds obvious, but it is easy to mix up. When extracting, you specify the pages you want. Here you specify the pages that should disappear. If you only want to keep two or three pages of a long file, it's usually easier to save only selected pages instead.
- Use “Choose PDF” to load the file you want to remove pages from. The tool always works with exactly one PDF.
- In the “Pages to delete” field, enter the pages to be removed, for example 2, 4-6. The field is empty at the start, so you must specify at least one page.
- Alternatively, select the numbered buttons under “Click to select pages”. The preview shows the currently active page, so you can see what content is behind a number. “Select all” and “Clear selection” help with larger changes.
- Click “Remove pages”. The result shows how many pages the new PDF has, how large it is and how many files were created. Here that is always exactly one PDF, so you don't need a ZIP archive.
- Download the new PDF, open it and page through it once before you pass it on.
How the tool reads your input
- Counting starts at 1 in the order of the file. The first page of the PDF is page 1, no matter what number is printed on it.
- Separate individual pages with a comma. Write ranges with a hyphen and from low to high, so 4-6 stands for pages 4, 5 and 6.
- A descending range such as 6-4, a page listed twice or a number beyond the last page is rejected. The field does not recognize semicolons as separators.
- The order of your input doesn't change the result. The remaining pages appear in the new PDF in exactly the same sequence as in the original. This tool is not intended for reordering pages.
- The tool does not detect blank pages on its own. Look at them in the preview and enter their numbers as you would for any other page.
An example: your PDF has eight pages, and you enter 2, 4-6. That marks four pages, namely 2, 4, 5 and 6. Pages 1, 3, 7 and 8 remain, and they appear in the new PDF as pages 1 to 4.
Do a quick calculation before you start. The pages in the original minus the marked pages equals the page count of the new PDF, which here is 8 − 4 = 4. If the result shows a different number than you expected, your selection doesn't match what you intended.
At least one page remains
You can't delete all pages at once. A PDF without pages would not be a usable file, so the tool rejects any selection that covers every page. This also applies if you used “Select all” to make the selection. In that case, take at least one page you need out of the selection and start again. For an eight-page PDF, 1-8 is therefore rejected, while 1-7 produces a new PDF that contains only the former page 8. The tool never deletes your original file.
Keep the original, check the selection
The file you load is not modified. The tool builds a new PDF from the kept pages and gives it its own name. For example, beispiel.pdf becomes beispiel-seiten-entfernt.pdf, with problematic characters and very long names adjusted. Because the original stays on your device, you can start over at any time.
Until you click “Remove pages”, you can change the selection as often as you like. You can correct numbers in the field, click a marked button again to unmark it, or start fresh with “Clear selection”. If you reset the tool completely, the default settings apply again and the loaded file is removed from the tool. The file itself remains unchanged on your device.
If you change the selection after a run, the previous result disappears along with its download. That way, you can't accidentally save a version that no longer matches your current selection. Here is an example of such a correction:
- You remove 2, 4-6 from an eight-page PDF and get a new PDF with 4 pages.
- While reviewing it, you notice that you need the former page 5 after all.
- You change the input to 2, 4, 6. The first result is discarded.
- After you click “Remove pages” again, the new PDF has 5 pages, namely the former pages 1, 3, 5, 7 and 8.
The preview in the tool is no substitute for looking at the saved file. Open the downloaded PDF and check that exactly the pages that should be missing are missing. The tool also points out that not all document-wide components are guaranteed to be carried over when the pages are copied. What that means in practice is explained further down in the questions about supported documents.
Page numbers after deleting
Three different numbers matter when you delete pages: a page's position in the original, its position in the new PDF and the page number printed on the page. The tool works exclusively with positions. The printed number is part of the page's content and stays exactly as it is.
A made-up example: your PDF is an excerpt from a longer report. At the bottom of the page in position 3, it says “Page 12”. You delete position 1. In the new PDF, this page moves up to position 2, but it still shows the printed text “Page 12”.
The same applies the other way round. If you delete the first two pages, the former page printed with 3 is at position 1 in the new PDF. In documents with a cover page or separately numbered front matter, the printed number often differs from the position even in the original. So always select by position and, if in doubt, count in the preview. If you continue editing the file afterwards, for example to orient the remaining pages, the new positions apply.
Check references and links
A table of contents that says “see page 14”, cross-references in the text or a clickable link to a page that no longer exists: the tool adjusts none of this. It does not renumber pages and does not repair links, and bookmarks are not guaranteed to be preserved either. So open the new PDF, try out the links and bookmarks, and check whether references still point to existing pages. If a table of contents has to be correct, it's best to adjust it in the source document the PDF was created from, if you have it.
Fewer pages don't mean a fixed saving
People often delete pages because a file is too large to send. That can help, just not in proportion to the page count. A PDF often stores fonts, logos and other components only once and uses them on several pages. So keeping four of eight pages doesn't mean the file will be half the size. Conversely, a single page with a large scan can take up more space than many text-only pages.
Here are two hypothetical cases with eight pages each, without measured values:
- A text report in which all pages use the same logo and the same fonts: these components are still needed for the four remaining pages. The new PDF can therefore keep well over half of its original size.
- An application in which the deleted pages were large scanned supporting documents: here the file can shrink more than the share of deleted pages would suggest.
Only the actual size shown in the result and visible on the saved file is reliable. If that isn't enough, first decide for good which pages you need, then compress the shortened PDF. In this order, you won't compress pages you'll delete afterwards anyway. If a portal sets limits, you can check the file size and remaining page count before uploading.
Removing pages is not a redaction feature
The tool works with whole pages: a page is either part of the new PDF or it isn't. A kept page comes along with its entire content, including text, images and that one paragraph nobody is supposed to see. You can't remove individual words, lines or image areas here, and the tool can't edit text.
It is also not a tool for secure redaction, and it does not clean metadata. Document-wide information is not specifically checked or removed, and there is no assurance that no traces of deleted pages remain in the file.
An example: you are putting together a job application package, and one page with salary records shouldn't be included. If it's a separate page that the recipient doesn't need, you mark it. In the saved PDF, it is then no longer a page. However, the tool does not guarantee that no traces of it remain in the file. If you need to rule that out with certainty, it's better to recreate the package from your source files without that page. Alternatively, use a tool that is explicitly designed for removing confidential content. If, on the other hand, the salary figure appears in the cover letter you have to send, deleting pages won't help. For confidential passages within a page, you need a feature that is explicitly designed for redaction. A black rectangle placed over the text is not the same, because the text underneath can remain in the file.
Frequently asked questions about supported documents
Which PDFs can I load?
You can load an ordinary PDF of up to 50 MiB and 250 pages. The new PDF can be at most 100 MiB. As a precaution, the tool rejects certain kinds of files: PDFs with form fields, digital signatures or certifications, encrypted or password-protected PDFs, PDF portfolios, PDFs with embedded files and PDFs with optional layers. These features are tied to the document as a whole. The tool therefore does not create a new file in which they are silently missing or no longer valid. Instead, you get a clear notice. The tool does not remove password protection.
What happens to bookmarks, links and comments?
The visible content of the kept pages is copied into the new PDF. There is no guarantee for document-wide components such as bookmarks, title and author information, or PDF/A and PDF/UA properties. If the pages contain simple annotations or links, the tool points this out. The best way to find out whether they work as usual in the new PDF is to check them directly in the saved file.
Is my PDF uploaded for this?
No. The file is processed directly in your browser, and the tool does not send it to any server. The new PDF is created on your device and saved from there.
Does this also work on Mac, iPhone or Android?
The tool runs in your browser, so you don't need a separate program. It was tested locally in Chromium-based browsers, in Firefox and in the WebKit engine on Windows. Each test used desktop and smartphone window widths and specially created test files. The saved results were then reopened. WebKit on Windows is not the same as Safari. Safari itself and real iPhones, Android smartphones and tablets were not tested. So open the downloaded file and check it before you share it.