Redact PDF on a Mac
Works in Safari, Chrome or Firefox on macOS. Mark what to remove, redact, and read the check report before you share the file.
Free · runs in your browser · nothing is uploaded
You can redact a PDF on a Mac with this free PDF redaction tool. It runs in Safari, Chrome or Firefox, so there is no app to install and no account to create. You draw boxes over the content you want to remove, or list words and patterns to find, and the tool deletes that content from the file itself rather than covering it. Each result is checked before you download it.
The tool handles one PDF or a batch of several. Nothing is uploaded: the file stays in your browser tab, and the tool keeps working with the network switched off after the first load.
How to use the PDF Redaction Tool
- Open this page in Safari, Chrome or Firefox on your Mac.
- Drop one PDF into the tool. To work on several files, add them all, and the same words and patterns will apply to each.
- Use the page arrows and zoom to find the content. Drag on the page to draw a box over anything you want removed. To delete a box, click it.
- In the Find box, type words or phrases, one per line. Tick Match case, Whole words only or Regular expression if you need them.
- Tick any pattern you want found, such as email addresses, phone numbers, card numbers or dates.
- Review the match list. Each match shows a checkbox, its kind, its text and a page link. Untick any match you want to keep, or use Select all or Select none.
- Set Method, Box colour (black or white), Image resolution and Keep web links.
- Click Redact. Check the result card: green means “redacted and checked”, and red lists the lines that failed.
- Download the file. If it is not verified, you can choose “Download anyway (not verified)” or “Redact again with all pages as images”.
Auto is the recommended Method. It keeps text searchable and only turns a page into an image when a drawing sticks out from under a box.
What does Redact remove from a PDF?
Redact removes the text under each box from the page content, so the words are gone rather than hidden. Images and drawings under a box are handled too, and the output is then rebuilt as a new file.
| Item | What happens |
|---|---|
| Text under a box | Removed from the page content |
| Images under a box | Pixels rewritten in the area; a JPEG is re-stored losslessly with that area blanked |
| Lines and shapes lying completely inside a box | Deleted |
| Form fields and comment appearances | Flattened onto the page first, so visible form text can be found |
| Annotations, bookmarks, attachments, JavaScript, accessibility tags, thumbnails, document properties, XMP | Dropped |
| Older saved versions and unused objects | Not carried over |
The boxes themselves are drawn as solid shapes on top of the page.
How does the after-check confirm a redaction?
The after-check runs automatically on every output before you see the result card. It looks for each removed string in several ways, and a file only shows as “redacted and checked” when all five tests pass.
- PDFium, a PDF reader, opens the new file and looks for each removed string.
- pdf.js, a second and independent reader, does the same.
- A raw scan covers every object, including compressed streams and hex-encoded strings.
- A render test looks for text sitting under a flat black or page-coloured area.
- A structure test confirms no comments, attachments, properties, XMP, older versions or unused objects remain.
Why does a scanned page need a box drawn over it?
A scanned page is a picture, so it contains no text for the Find list or the checks to read. The after-check reads text only, not words inside pictures. Draw a box over the scanned content by hand, and the picture under it is rewritten in that area.
Vector art that only partly lies under a box cannot be cut cleanly. In that case Auto turns the whole page into an image, and that page then has no selectable text.
Frequently asked questions
Can you redact a PDF on a Mac?
Yes. Open this page in Safari, Chrome or Firefox, and the tool runs in the browser tab with no app to install. Draw boxes or use the Find list, then click Redact and check the result card before you download.
How can I black out text on a PDF?
Draw a box over the text while Box colour is set to black, then click Redact. The box is solid, and the text under it is removed from the page, not just covered. You can also type the words into Find so the tool marks every instance.
Why is my PDF not allowing me to redact?
If the file is password-protected, the tool asks for the password first, and the password stays in your browser tab. If the content is a scan, there is no text to find, so draw a box over the picture instead.
Does the tool upload my PDF?
No. Nothing is uploaded, and there are no accounts, ads, analytics or cookies. The PDF engine, about 2 MB, downloads the first time you open a file.
Does a redacted PDF guarantee the information is gone?
No tool can promise that for every file, so you decide what to remove and look at the result yourself. A safe habit is to open the output in a different PDF program and try to select and search for the removed words.
Related tools
- PDF redaction tool to redact a PDF in your browser.
- Redact PDF to find and delete text in one PDF.
- PDF redaction software to redact many files at once.
- Redact an image to black out part of a photo or screenshot.
- Redaction check to find text hidden under black boxes.
- Bates numbering to number pages across files.
- Bates stamp to add CONFIDENTIAL or DRAFT.
- Bates numbering software to number a whole production.
- Compare PDF to see what changed between two versions.
- PDF comparison to compare layout as a picture.