Unlock PDF
Remove the password from a PDF you own when you already know it, and get a clean, unlocked copy. Done entirely in your browser — your file and password are never uploaded.
Your PDF is unlocked in your browser — nothing is uploaded.
Click to choose a protected PDF or drag and drop it here
Then enter the password it is locked with
For PDFs you own — not a password cracker
This tool is for the everyday case where a PDF you are entitled to open keeps asking for a password you already have — a bank statement locked with your date of birth, a payslip secured by your employer, a report you encrypted yourself. You supply that password and the tool gives you back an unlocked copy so you stop re-typing it every time. It deliberately does not guess, brute-force or bypass a password you do not know: if the password you enter is not the right one, nothing is unlocked. Please only use it on documents you have the right to access.
How it works
When you choose a file and enter its password, the tool loads it in your browser and uses qpdf — a mature open-source PDF engine compiled to WebAssembly — to verify the password and re-write the document with the encryption removed. Because qpdf rewrites the file rather than rasterising it, the unlocked copy is lossless: the pages, text, fonts and images are byte-for-byte the same, only without the lock. The whole process runs on your device, so neither the file nor the password is ever uploaded, logged or stored.
How to remove a password from a PDF
- Click the box above or drag the protected PDF onto it.
- Type the password the file is currently locked with.
- Click Remove password.
- Your browser downloads
<name>-unlocked.pdfwith no password. - Your original protected file is left untouched, so you keep both versions.
Why unlock in your browser
The documents people most often need to unlock are also the most private — statements, payslips, medical letters, contracts. Sending one to an online unlocking service means uploading a confidential file, and handing over its password, to a stranger’s server just to take a lock off. This tool keeps everything local: the PDF is read, decrypted and saved on your own machine, with no account, no upload and no copy left behind. Once the page has loaded it works offline too, so you can unlock a sensitive document even with no connection.
Related tools
New here? Read how to merge pdfs without losing quality or browse all our PDF guides.
Frequently asked questions
Does this crack or guess PDF passwords?
No. This tool only removes a password you already know. It is for unlocking your own documents — files you have the right to open. It does not guess, brute-force or bypass a password you do not have.
Is the unlock lossless?
Yes. The tool uses qpdf, a mature PDF engine, to decrypt and re-write the file without re-encoding its pages, text or images. The unlocked copy is identical to the original in everything but the password.
Is my PDF or password uploaded anywhere?
No. The decryption runs entirely in your browser using qpdf compiled to WebAssembly. The file and the password you enter never leave your device and are never sent to a server.
What happens to the original file?
Nothing. Your original stays untouched. The tool produces a separate, unlocked copy and downloads it, so you keep both the protected and the open version.
It says my password did not work — why?
The password is checked by qpdf against the file’s own encryption, so a mismatch means the entered password is not the one the PDF was locked with. Check for typos, capitalisation and stray spaces, and remember some PDFs use a different owner and user password.