Redact PDF
Permanently black out sensitive text and images in a PDF — the hidden content is removed, not just covered.
Drop a PDF here
or click to choose a file
True redaction
Black out sensitive details for good
Black out text in a PDF and have it genuinely removed — not just hidden under a rectangle. This free PDF redaction tool lets you censor a PDF online and permanently remove text from the file: on export the marked areas are flattened away, so you can redact a PDF online free knowing the buried content can't be selected, copied or fished back out later.
- Draw redaction boxes over any text or image
- Redacted content is removed from the file, not just hidden
- Redact across multiple pages in one pass
- 100% client-side — your document never leaves your device
Four steps to a clean copy
Hide confidential text before you share
Sanitising a document is a matter of drawing over what should disappear and letting the export do the rest.
- 1
Open the file that holds the sensitive information.
- 2
Draw boxes over any text or images you need to take out.
- 3
Work through every page that needs attention.
- 4
Export — the covered content is permanently stripped out, then download the sanitised file.
Where it helps
Documents that need details removed
Any time a file has to go wider than the people who can see everything in it, redaction keeps the private parts private.
Stripping names, addresses or account numbers before forwarding a document.
Hiding confidential figures from a report that's heading to a broader audience.
Preparing legal, financial or medical paperwork for safe disclosure.
Why it's different
Real redaction vs a black highlighter
See how permanently removing content here differs from desktop apps and the quick 'draw a black box' tricks that leave the text recoverable.
| Feature | InkyTools | Desktop software | Upload-based sites |
|---|---|---|---|
| Completely free | |||
| Files stay on your device | |||
| No sign-up or account | |||
| Nothing to install | |||
| Works on any device | |||
| No watermarks or limits |
Worth checking
Redaction questions, cleared up
- Does redaction permanently remove the text?
- Yes. On export the redacted areas are flattened to an image, so the underlying text and images are physically removed from the file — not just hidden behind a black box.
- Can redacted content be recovered or copied?
- No. Because the original content is removed during export, redacted text cannot be selected, copied or recovered from the downloaded PDF.
- Is it free to redact a PDF?
- Yes. Redacting PDFs with InkyTools is completely free and runs entirely in your browser, so confidential documents are never uploaded.
Nothing leaves
Sensitive files never get uploaded
The whole redaction process happens inside your browser, so the confidential document you're cleaning up is never sent to a server — the private version and the redacted version both stay with you.
- Nothing uploaded
- Works offline
- No sign-up, any device
Redact PDF: free, private and browser-based
InkyTools provides free PDF redaction in your browser, letting you black out text in PDF documents and permanently remove text from PDF files — not just hide it. Draw over anything sensitive to censor PDF online or hide information in PDF pages, then export a clean copy with the content gone for good.
As a blackout PDF tool it flattens the marked areas so nothing can be selected, copied or recovered, and you can remove text from PDF free of charge. Use it to redact PDF online free across every page — a redact PDF free workflow with nothing uploaded to a server, so legal, financial and medical documents stay private.