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Unlock PDF and Remove Its Password

Free No Limits Batch Unlock Private and Works Offline!

Choose PDFs or drag them in

PDF only · nothing is uploaded
Password

Only needed for PDFs that ask for a password to open. Every PDF you add is tried with this one password.

Can’t recover a forgotten password. This tool only removes a password you already know. It cannot guess, crack or recover one. Use it only on files you own or are allowed to open.

Restrictions (Optional)
.pdf
Total for all files
Files Unlocked: —
Original Size: —
After Unlocking: —
Pages: —
Safety Checks Passed: —
About this tool

Free No Limits Batch Unlock Private and Works Offline!

100% client-side processing, so zero server uploads ever. Add one or more locked PDFs, type the password, and download copies that open without one.

  1. 00

    What’s great about our PDF password unlock tool

    • Free
    • Super fast
    • No PDF uploads
    • No PDF downloads from the server
    • Your password never leaves your device
    • Works offline
    • No daily limit
    • No ads
    • No watermarks
    • Removes the password that asks for opening a PDF
    • Also removes print, copy and edit restrictions
    • Works with AES-256, AES-128 and RC4 protected PDFs
    • Live preview of every page
    • Batch unlock with ZIP download
    • Every file is test-opened before you download it
  2. 01

    Choose your PDFs

    Pick one or more locked PDFs from your device, or drag them in. They load straight into your browser's memory — they are never sent anywhere.

  3. 02

    Type the password

    Type the password that opens the PDFs. Cards marked “Password needed” are waiting for it. PDFs that already open without a password need none, so you can leave the box empty and just tick the restrictions box.

  4. 03

    Unlock and download

    As soon as the right password is typed, the PDF unlocks by itself. You can also press Enter or click Unlock PDF. Then click Download Unlocked PDF to save a copy that opens without a password. Your original file is never changed.

  5. 04

    Unlock many PDFs at once

    Choose several PDFs together, or tap ‘+ Add More’ to add others later. Type the password once and every PDF it opens is unlocked. Then click Download to save them all together as a ZIP. It’s super fast, simple, and private.

  6. 05

    Loved it?

    • If you're on computer, bookmark this page to your browser.
    • If you're on mobile, add it to your home screen for one-tap access and offline use.
      • Android: Visit this page in Google Chrome > tap three-dot icon (⋮) at top > Install and create shortcut. See screenshots for help.
      • iPhone and iPad: Visit this page in Safari > tap menu icon in address bar > Share > Add to Home Screen. See screenshots for help.

How it works

  • Choose one or more PDFs and type the password that opens them. Leave it empty for PDFs that already open without one.
  • Your password is checked right in your browser as soon as you stop typing, and the PDFs it opens unlock by themselves. A wrong password shows nothing while you type. Press Enter or click Unlock PDF to see which files it does not open. This tool never tries to guess a password.
  • PDFs that already open without a password are processed when you click Unlock PDF, so ticking the restrictions box never starts work on its own.
  • Every page, image, font and piece of text is decrypted in your browser and saved again without any password.
  • Each result is opened again and compared with the original before you can download it: it must open without a password and keep its pages, sizes, rotation, text, links and annotations. If any check fails, no file is offered.
  • A PDF that is still locked shows a padlock instead of its pages. Once it is unlocked, its pages appear in the preview.
  • See All Pages is ticked by default, so every page of each PDF shows as a grid of small thumbnails. Use the two icons beside it to switch to a vertical list of large pages, which opens at 150% zoom on a computer and fits the screen on a phone. Change the zoom with the + and − buttons.
  • Untick See All Pages to show each PDF as one small thumbnail with page arrows instead.
  • With two or more PDFs added, the Jump to PDF menu above the files shows which PDF you are on and scrolls straight to the one you pick.
  • Download one PDF on its own, or all of them together as a ZIP.
  • Nothing is uploaded. Once the page has loaded, it keeps working offline.

Frequently asked questions

  • Is my PDF uploaded anywhere? No. Unlocking runs entirely in your browser. Your PDF and your password are never sent to a server, so both stay private.
  • What if I forgot the password? This tool cannot recover a forgotten password. It does not guess, crack or brute-force passwords, so a wrong password simply shows an error. It only removes a password you already know, from files you own or are allowed to open.
  • Which passwords can it remove? The password that asks for opening the PDF, which you type in the Password box. PDFs that already open without a password but block printing, copying or editing need no password at all. Just tick the restrictions box to remove those limits.
  • What does the restrictions checkbox do? Ticked, the unlocked copy has no password and no print, copy or edit limits. Unticked, only the open password is removed, and any limits the PDF already had are kept. It is ticked for you when none of your PDFs need a password.
  • Can I unlock several PDFs at once? Yes. Add as many PDFs as you like and they are all tried with the same password. Download them together as a ZIP or one at a time. Each unlocked file is named like your-file unlocked.pdf, or as you set in File Name.
  • Which PDFs are supported? PDFs protected with the standard password handler: AES-256, AES-128 and RC4 (40 and 128-bit). Certificate-based protection and unusual custom encryption are not supported. Digitally signed PDFs can be unlocked, but rewriting the file invalidates the signature.
  • Will the unlocked PDF look the same? Yes. Each result is opened again here without a password and compared with the original, checking page count, page sizes, rotation, text, links and annotations. If any check fails, no file is offered.
  • Is it okay to use this on any PDF? Use it only on PDFs you own or are allowed to open. It removes protection you can already get past with the password, and is not meant for getting into files that belong to someone else.

What happens to your PDF

  • Decryption: your password unlocks the key that protects the file. That key then decrypts every page, image, font and piece of text, and the PDF is saved without any encryption. The work is done by your own browser.
  • Your password: it is used once, in memory, to unlock the file. It is not stored, not logged and not sent anywhere, and it is gone when you close or refresh the page.
  • What it can’t do: it cannot recover a forgotten password, and it has no way to guess, crack or brute-force one. If the password is wrong, you only see an error.
  • Who it is for: removing protection from files you own or are allowed to open.
  • Restrictions: ticked, the copy has no print, copy or edit limits. Unticked, only the open password goes, and any limits already in the PDF are kept by locking the copy with no open password.
  • Your content: pages, text, images, links, bookmarks and forms look exactly the same as in the original. The document details such as title and author are readable again too.
  • Signatures: rewriting the file invalidates a digital signature, so signed PDFs lose their signature when unlocked.
  • Safety check: the unlocked PDF is opened again here without a password to confirm that it opens and has the same pages, sizes, rotation, text, links and annotations. If anything differs, you don’t get a file.
  • File names: each copy is named like your-file unlocked.pdf, or as you set in File Name, and the original is left untouched.

How to get the most out of it

  • Type the password exactly. Check capital letters, spaces and look-alike characters. Use Show to see what you typed.
  • Keep the original. This tool never changes your original file, so keep it if you may need the password protection again.
  • Lock it again when needed. Unlocked copies are readable by anyone who has them. Re-protect a PDF before you share it with our PDF password protector.
  • Do many at once. Add all your PDFs together and download them as one ZIP. They share one password, so run separate batches if the passwords differ.
  • Mixed batches work. PDFs that open without a password ignore what you type. Tick the restrictions box to have them processed too, otherwise their cards ask you to tick it.
  • Check the card status. “Password needed”, “Wrong password”, “Unlocked” and “Already unlocked, no password” tell you what happened to each file.
  • Know the limits. Certificate-based protection and unusual encryption are not supported, and digitally signed PDFs lose their signature when rewritten.

How it compares with iLovePDF

  • Privacy: iLovePDF uploads your PDF to its servers and says it deletes files automatically within two hours. Here nothing is ever uploaded. Your PDF and its password stay on your device.
  • Limits: this tool needs no account, has no daily limit and adds no watermark. Your device's memory is the only limit.
  • Offline: iLovePDF offers desktop apps for Mac and Windows and mobile apps for iOS and Android. This page keeps working offline once it has loaded, and can be installed as an app from your browser.
  • Checking the result: this tool re-opens every unlocked file without a password and compares pages, text, links and annotations before you download it.
  • Forgotten passwords: this tool is upfront that it cannot recover a forgotten password and never tries to guess one.
  • What iLovePDF has that this doesn't: importing files from Google Drive or Dropbox, desktop and mobile apps, an ISO/IEC 27001 security certification, and a large set of other PDF tools such as merge, split and compress. This page does one job only.

How it compares with other popular PDF unlock tools

  • Smallpdf: works in the cloud, protects transfers with TLS, deletes files after one hour, and asks you to type the password. It is free without an account, and its Pro plan advertises unlimited uploads. Here your PDF is never uploaded.
  • Adobe Acrobat: removes security from inside its desktop app, and Adobe says an Acrobat subscription or free trial is required to remove a password permanently, with plans shown from US$14.99 a month. Here it is free, runs in your browser and needs nothing installed.
  • PDF24: its online tool is free with advertising, needs no registration, runs on its servers in Germany and deletes files after one hour. It also needs the current password and says it is not a password cracker. Its free PDF24 Creator app works offline on Windows. Here your file never leaves your device.
  • The main difference: these online tools process your PDF on their servers, so both the file and its password have to be sent first. Here everything happens inside your browser, which matters most for contracts, ID documents and other private files.
  • What they have that this doesn't: Smallpdf offers 40+ other PDF tools, a Windows app and mobile apps. Adobe offers a full editing, signing and security suite and support for policy-based security. PDF24 offers many more tools, Google Drive import and a desktop app. This page only removes passwords and restrictions.
  • Trade-off: a cloud service does the work on its own servers, so it can handle extremely large PDFs more easily. Here, very large files depend on your device's memory and may be slow on a phone.
  • Note: these details come from each service's own website as of September 2026 and can change.