Skip to main content
VellumPDF

Optimize a PDF for the web

A PDF published online that opens right away, with no loss of quality.

Your files never leave your device

Drop the PDF you will publish online

or click to browse your files

How to optimize a PDF for the web, step by step

Linearization reorders the file so an online viewer shows the first page from the first bytes.

  1. Drop the PDF you will publish

    Drag the file onto the drop area, or click to choose it. VellumPDF shows straight away whether it is already optimized for the web.

  2. Click “Optimize for the web”

    qpdf, running in your browser, linearizes the file and compacts it losslessly.

  3. Download the optimized file

    The summary compares the size before and after. Put this file online in place of the old one.

A password-protected PDF must be unlocked first: linearization rewrites the whole file.

Frequently asked questions

What is optimizing a PDF for the web for?

On a website, a non-optimized PDF often has to be downloaded in full before the first page appears. Linearized (“Fast Web View”), it shows its first page from the first bytes received: useful for regulations, an annual report or a newsletter published online.

Does the content of the PDF change?

No. Text, images, links and bookmarks stay identical; only the internal order of the objects changes, and the file is compacted losslessly along the way.

Is it the same as compressing?

No. Compression cuts the size sharply by recomputing images; web optimization touches no image and aims at display speed. The two combine: compress first, then optimize.