Protect PDF with a password
Choose a PDF and type the password it should ask for. The download opens only with that password. You can also ask PDF apps to block printing, copying and editing.
- AES-256, in this tab
- Free, no sign-up
Nobody can open the download without this password, and it cannot be recovered if you forget it.
Runs in your browser. Nothing you type or open is uploaded. Free to use, no account. More pdf tools
How to use it
- Choose the PDF.
- Type the password twice. Use a long one: a short sentence is easier to remember than random letters.
- Tick the box if apps should also block printing, copying and editing.
- Press Protect PDF and keep the download. Open it once to check the password.
How strong it is
The download is encrypted with AES-256, the strongest standard PDF encryption. It is made with qpdf running in this tab, and the page checks the copy refuses to open without the password before it offers the download. The strength depends on the password: a long, unusual one is far harder to guess than a word or a date.
The block on printing, copying and editing is a request written into the file. Adobe Acrobat, Preview and most PDF apps follow it, but some apps ignore it, so do not rely on it to stop someone who already has the password. There is no way to recover a forgotten password, from this page or anywhere else.
Protect PDF, Unlock PDF or a watermark? Protect adds an open password to a file you are about to send, so only people you give the password to can read it. Unlock PDF does the opposite with a password you already know. If the file can be read by anyone but should show who it belongs to, Watermark PDF stamps your text on every page instead. For a strong password, the Password generator on this site makes one in your browser.
Private by design
Privacy
The PDF and the password stay in this tab. They are not uploaded, saved or put in the address bar.
This page also shows Google ads, which can use cookies. Privacy and cookies explains how.
Questions
Is the password sent anywhere?
No. The file is encrypted by qpdf compiled to WebAssembly, running in this tab.
Which encryption does it use?
AES-256, which current versions of Acrobat, Preview, Chrome, Edge and most PDF apps open.
What if the PDF already has a password?
Unlock it first with the password you know, then protect the copy with the new password.
Can I remove the password later?
Yes, with Unlock PDF and the same password.
Can I protect several PDFs with one password?
Protect them one at a time with the same password. Each download is checked to need it before it is offered.