Why remove PDF metadata?
When you export a PDF, the program writes details about the document next to its pages: an author name (often the user account of the computer), the application and library that produced it, and the creation and modification dates. Sending a contract, CV, report or invoice passes all of that along. To remove PDF metadata, drop the file here and click one button. The cleaned copy has the same pages, text, images and links, without the properties.
What "Remove all metadata" removes
| Removed | Where it lives |
|---|---|
| Title, Author, Subject, Keywords, Creator, Producer, dates and custom keys | The document information dictionary |
| XMP metadata packets | XML streams on the document, pages, images or fonts |
| Editing-app private data | /PieceInfo entries written by tools such as Illustrator |
| Old copies of objects | Earlier versions kept in the file by incremental saves |
The last row matters more than it looks. Many editors save changes by appending to the file, so an author name you deleted earlier can still sit in an older part of it. The remover writes a new file that contains only the objects the document still uses, which drops those old copies.
Editing instead of removing
Sometimes you want a proper title for search engines and screen readers but no personal name. Open Edit the fields instead, change the title, author, subject, keywords, creator or producer, and leave a field empty to delete it. You can also keep or drop the created and modified dates and any custom properties. The XMP packet is always removed when you edit, because it would still contain the old values.
Proof in the saved copy
After saving, the tool opens the new file again and lists what is left. When everything was removed you see "No metadata left". You can double-check any PDF with the PDF metadata viewer.
Limits
- Encrypted PDFs are not changed. Saving a copy would also drop the password protection, so remove the password in the app that created the PDF first.
- Digital signatures become invalid, because any change to a signed file breaks the signature.
- Visible content stays. Names printed on the pages, in comments or in form fields are part of the document, not metadata.
Photos have the same issue: the EXIF remover strips camera details and GPS location from images.