How to unlock a PDF
- Add pdf files from your device, by drag and drop, or from a link.
- Enter the password for each PDF that asks for one. If they share a password, enter it once for all of them.
- Press Unlock and download PDFs that open without a password and have no restrictions.
Two kinds of PDF protection
Open password
The PDF asks for a password before it shows anything. Enter it once and the unlocked copy opens straight away from then on. Without the password a PDF like this can't be unlocked by us or anyone else.
Restrictions only
The PDF opens normally but stops you from printing, copying text or editing. These restrictions can be removed without a password.
Unlock PDFs in your browser or on our server
Browser mode
Your PDFs are decrypted on your own device and never uploaded so this is the safest option.
Server mode
Your PDFs are uploaded over an encrypted connection and unlocked on our servers.
- Without an account: files up to 50 MB, 20 files an hour (shared with Lock PDF).
- With a free account: files up to 100 MB, 60 files an hour (shared with Lock PDF).
- Files that fail to unlock don't count toward your limits.
Your password and your privacy
- Each password is first checked on your device, so a typo is caught before anything is sent.
- We never store passwords. In server mode they are used once to unlock the files and then discarded.
- Uploaded and unlocked files are deleted automatically after 24 hours, and you can delete them right away from the result page.
Frequently asked questions
Can you unlock PDF without password?
No. To remove PDF password you must know the pdf password.
Is my PDF or password saved?
Not in browser mode. If you select server mode then we upload your pdf in our server for processing but you can delete file instantly. Your password is never saved.
What exactly gets removed?
All encryption like the password needed to open the file, and any limits on printing, copying, editing or filling in forms. The content of the PDF is not changed.