Add or remove password protection from your PDF documents.
Drop your PDF here
or
Maximum file size: 20MB
Two tabs on one page. Lock writes a passworded locked.pdf (password at least four characters). Unlock needs the current password and returns unlocked.pdf. The picker shows 20 MB. If the file is already openable without a password, unlock refuses it. Forgotten passwords cannot be guessed here.
What lock actually sets
The open password is required to view the file. Extra permission flags (print allowed, copy/edit restricted) depend on the reader honouring them—they are not a cryptographic wall. The password itself is sent to our server with the file because encryption happens there.
Unlock failures
- Wrong password.
- File was never encrypted.
- 300-page cap on the rewrite path.
- Server cannot complete the rewrite—error, not a half-open file.
Why unlock exists on this site
Merge, split, and compress generally cannot read a locked PDF. Unlock first, then use those tools.
Password questions
Can you remove a password I have forgotten?
No. Unlocking requires the correct existing password because the file must be decrypted before it can be rewritten. No legitimate tool can bypass this. If you no longer know the password, ask whoever created the document for an unprotected copy.
What does the password actually restrict?
The protected file requires the password to open, and is set to allow printing while restricting editing, copying and annotation.
How secure is PDF password protection?
The open password genuinely protects the contents. The permission settings, however, are enforced by the reader application rather than by the file itself, so they deter casual copying rather than providing a hard guarantee.
What are the password requirements?
A password you set must be at least four characters and may be up to 128. When unlocking, you simply enter the existing password.
Can I lock a PDF that is already protected?
No. Unlock it first, then apply the new password.
Is my password sent to the server?
Yes. Both operations run on our server, so the file and the password are transmitted in order to process the request. The file is used only for that operation and is not kept as part of a permanent user file library. For highly sensitive material, consider desktop software instead.
After the file opens
Then merge, compress, or split: Merge PDF, Compress PDF, Split PDF. Browse the full PDF & File set or the all tools hub.