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A 300-page course pack, while your exam only covers chapters 3 to 6. A lease you want to forward, but without the page with your national ID or Social Security number. A report where only the summary is meant for the client. Each time you want the same thing: keep some pages, drop others.
There are two tools for this. They look alike, but you pick one or the other depending on what’s shorter to type.
Extract or delete?
- Extract pages: you type the pages you want to keep. Handy when you only need a small part, like chapters 3 to 6.
- Delete pages: you type the pages that have to go. Handy when it’s only a few pages, like one page with personal data.
Either way, the original stays unchanged. You get a new file.
Extracting pages, step by step
- Open Extract pages.
- Drag your PDF into the tool or click to choose it.
- Type the pages you want to keep. Under Pages to keep, type for example 45-112 or 1, 3-5.
- Choose One PDF or Separate files. One PDF puts everything in one file; Separate files gives you one PDF per page (together in a zip).
- Click Extract pages and download the result.
Deleting pages, step by step
- Open Delete pages and choose your PDF.
- Type the pages to remove. Under Pages to remove, type for example 2 or 5-7.
- Click Delete pages and download the new file.
Have several PDFs with the same structure, like ten certificates that each need page 2 removed? Choose them together: the same pages disappear from every file, and you download everything together in one zip.
Real-life examples
Your course pack has 300 pages, and your exam covers four chapters. Extract those chapters, and you have a file that opens faster, is easier to search and is cheaper to print. Want to save even more paper? Put several pages on each sheet with Pages per sheet.
You’re forwarding a contract, certificate or report, but one page has details the recipient doesn’t need: your national ID or Social Security number, your bank account number or your signature. Delete that page before you share. That way you only send what’s needed. Not sure whether a page can go, for example with an official certificate? Then ask the recipient what they really need.
Watch the page number
The numbers you type are the pages of the PDF file itself, not the numbers printed at the bottom of the page. If your course pack has a cover and a four-page table of contents, “page 45” in the course is often page 49 in the PDF. Check which number your PDF reader shows before you type.
Why not upload?
If you’re dropping a page because it has personal data on it, it’s a bit odd to send the whole document to an unknown server first. Many online tools upload your file to their server. PDFCommunity doesn’t: the pages are copied with JavaScript in your own browser. Your files are processed on your own device and not uploaded.
Check it yourself in your browser’s network tab, as explained in Verify that no PDF is uploaded. More about the GDPR side is in PDF tools and the GDPR.
Good to know
- At least one page stays. You can’t delete all pages; the PDF would be empty.
- Gone is gone, but only on that page. A deleted page is no longer in the new file. If the same data is also on another page, in the file name or in the PDF’s properties, it stays there. The title and author in the document properties, for example, carry over to the new file; bookmarks to pages that are removed do disappear.
- Large files: up to 50 MB works well on most devices. For larger files, a computer is more reliable than a smartphone.
- Free, without an account and without a daily limit.
Frequently asked questions
Is my original PDF changed?
No. You get a new file; the original stays as it was.
Can I save single pages separately?
Yes. In Extract pages, choose Separate files and you get one PDF per page in a zip.
Does it work on my phone?
Yes, in the browser of your phone or tablet. For very large files, a computer is more reliable.
Can I rotate pages too?
You do that with Rotate PDF.