Reduce the size of your PDF files by up to 85% in one click, 100% locally. Before/after comparison, target size (10 MB…500 KB), smart modes, preview and optimisation score — nothing leaves your device, no sign-up.
Add your PDF, choose a mode or a target size, compress. Nothing is sent to a server.
The free version is enough to get started. Premium unlocks the whole Volade ecosystem.
The algorithm analyses your PDF, detects whether it is mostly textual, image-rich or scanned, then automatically picks the best strategy. Result: you save time and get the best size/quality ratio.
Try the compressionComparison table, optimisation score, slider preview of original vs compressed, page-by-page analysis. You know exactly what you gain before downloading.
See the comparisonYour documents are processed directly in your browser. No file is transmitted, stored or analysed by our servers. GDPR-compliant, encrypted, ideal for sensitive documents.
Privacy policyDrag and drop your file into the tool or click to browse. Your PDF stays on your device, nothing is sent to a server.
Select the “Recommended” mode for automatic processing, or set a target size (2 MB, 1 MB, 500 KB…). Preset profiles (email, print, web) simplify the choice.
The before/after comparison shows the real gain, the optimisation score and the slider preview. You only download the result if the gain suits you.
The Volade PDF compressor reduces the size of your files without going through a server: the whole process runs entirely in your browser. As a result, your documents stay 100% private, processing is instant and you can compress as many PDFs as you want — no page limit, with or without an account. The tool automatically analyses your PDF to pick the optimal strategy, shows a transparent before/after comparison and offers a precise target size to match the limits of sending platforms.
A large PDF almost always contains high-resolution images, embedded fonts or an unoptimised internal structure. The tool analyses your document and identifies the main cause of the weight to recommend the best compression strategy.
Images often take up 70 to 90% of a PDF's weight. A 300 DPI scan, a presentation with photos or a product catalogue contain hundreds of kilobytes of unoptimised JPEG or PNG images. Compression targets these images by reducing their resolution and JPEG quality, with minimal visual impact on most screens.
Embedded fonts (especially full fonts with all glyphs) and metadata (author, title, bookmarks) add several hundred kilobytes. Structural compression removes unused resources, merges redundant objects and rewrites the document with a more compact structure, without altering the visual rendering.
Most email services set size limits for attachments: Gmail (25 MB), Outlook (20 MB), Yahoo Mail (25 MB), iCloud Mail (20 MB). The “Email” profile automatically compresses your PDF under 3 MB, enough for almost all professional and personal sends.
French administrative portals set strict limits: impots.gouv.fr (5 MB per attachment), ANTS (1 to 4 MB depending on the procedure), URSSAF (10 MB), MDPH (4 MB). The target size lets you aim for the exact limit of the submission portal.
PDFs hosted for download on a website load faster when compressed. An 8 MB file drops under 2 MB with no visible loss of readability, improving user experience and loading performance on mobile.
Real-estate platforms, online applications, school portals, HR services: each platform has its size limits. The adaptive target size solves the problem by compressing to exactly the required weight.
The “Maximum quality” mode applies a light structural compression that preserves selectable text and print details. The “Recommended” mode automatically detects the best compromise. The “Strong compression” mode suits email sends and submissions where on-screen readability is enough.
Rather than juggling settings, pick the size you want (2 MB, 1 MB, 500 KB…). The engine iterates over the compression settings until it reaches the target, with a safeguard that prevents any excessive degradation.
The before/after comparison shows the real gain in percentage, the optimisation score (0-100), a slider preview of original vs compressed and a page-by-page analysis showing the potential of each sheet. You only download the result if it suits you.
Unlike cloud services that upload your files to remote servers (and store them temporarily), the Volade compressor processes everything in your browser. Your contracts, pay slips, medical files or client documents never pass through a third party. That is GDPR compliance by design: no transfer, no retention, no possible leak.
For image-heavy PDFs, the tool re-encodes each image at a target resolution and JPEG quality. Vector text and graphics are preserved when the compression allows it, or rendered as a high-definition image for the most aggressive modes.
Structural compression rewrites the PDF document by removing redundant objects, compacting the content streams and using object streams (PDF 1.5+). The text stays selectable, the images keep their original resolution and the file size drops by 15 to 30% with no visible loss.
If the compressed result is not lighter than the original — for example for a PDF that is already optimised or made only of vector text — the safeguard returns the original file with a note saying there is no further compression margin.
To complete your document workflow, combine the PDF compressor with our other 100% local tools:
Your Volade subscription unlocks all our web tools, plus the browser, the CMS, the desktop and the scripts — on all your devices.
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