Flatten a PDF
Annotations and form values become part of the page. Nothing moves, unticks or empties any more: the document is settled.
Free · 100% local — nothing is uploaded- 1Open the annotated or completed document.
- 2Run the flattening.
- 3Download the frozen version.
How to flatten a PDF
Open the annotated or completed document, run the flattening, download. Annotations — highlights, notes, shapes, signatures — and the values typed into form fields stop being objects laid on the page: they become part of the page itself. Nothing moves, unticks or empties any more, and the document displays the same way everywhere, including in readers that render annotations badly. This is the action to make before sending a completed form to an administration, a signed contract, or an annotated quote. The page’s printed text stays text: flattening is not rasterizing, the page is not turned into an image and the document stays searchable and crisp at every scale. Nothing is uploaded. Keep the annotated original if you may still need to take it up again: the exported file is settled.
Locking a PDF without a password
The question is often put another way: “how do I stop someone editing my PDF”. Flattening answers half the need — the additions are frozen — without imposing a password on reading. To stop the file opening at all, or to restrict printing and copying, password encryption is what you need. And know that neither of the two is irreversible: a flattened PDF is still a PDF, whose text can be rewritten by anyone with the tool.
Frequently asked questions
When should a PDF be flattened?
Before sending out a completed form or a signed document: without it, the recipient can still empty a field or move a signature.
Can it be undone?
Not after export: that is the point. Keep the original annotated file if you mean to take it up again.
Can a flattened form still be filled?
No, and that is the point: the values are painted into the page and the fields no longer exist. Keep the blank form aside if you need to reuse it.
What is the difference between flattening and rasterizing?
Rasterizing turns the page into an image: the text is no longer text, it can no longer be searched or copied. Flattening only fixes the additions into the page, and the document stays fully searchable.
Can I flatten only the signatures, not the comments?
No: flattening covers the lot. If some annotations must stay editable, flatten first, then put them back on the frozen document.