Split a PDF
Choose the pages you need, then decide whether they belong in one PDF, separate range files, or individual page files.
This tool works with one PDF at a time. It creates new PDFs from your selection, so check the page summary and open the finished files before sharing them.
Drop a PDF here
or choose a file belowOne PDF, up to 20 MiB and 200 pages.
Files are processed in your browser and are not uploaded.
Selected pages go into one PDF in the source order. Duplicate pages are included once. Separate entries with commas, semicolons, or line breaks. Full-width digits and hyphens are supported; spaces alone do not separate entries.
Select one PDF, then choose the pages you need.
How to split a PDF
- Choose one PDF. On a computer, you can also drag it onto the tool.
- Choose a split mode and enter page numbers, such as 1-3,5.
- Check the output summary, select “Split PDF”, then download the PDF or ZIP.
Supported files and limits
The input can be up to 20 MiB and 200 pages. Output is limited to 50 files and 50 MiB in total. If you are saving pages separately, select no more than 50 pages. Reusing an image in several output files can make their combined size larger than the original.
Password protection, forms, annotations, signatures, bookmarks, attachments and other special document structures are not supported. The tool stops when it detects them to avoid losing content. Splitting is not secure redaction and does not guarantee removal of confidential or hidden data.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between extracting pages and splitting by range?
Extracting puts the selected pages into one PDF. Splitting by range creates a separate PDF for each range. Ranges can overlap; check the page numbers for each output before splitting.
Will text become an image?
No. The tool copies PDF pages, so selectable text remains text. A scanned page is already an image and will not become editable text.
Are files uploaded or saved?
Files are processed in your browser and are not uploaded. The tool does not keep files or results after you refresh or leave the page, so download what you need first.
How can I merge the files again?
Use Merge PDF. To save pages as images, use PDF to JPG; to put photos into a document, use Images to PDF.
Choose pages, split the PDF, and check each file
Back to toolUse the PDF page order, not printed page numbers
Enter the position of a page in the PDF, counting from the first page in the file. A cover, contents page, or blank page counts even if the printed page numbers start later. A page labeled 1 on the paper may therefore be page 3 in the PDF.
For a long report, look at the page thumbnails in a PDF viewer and note where the section starts and ends. If the source has changed since you last checked it, confirm the positions again; inserting a cover or replacing an appendix can shift every page after it.
Choose one excerpt or several output files
Select an output mode before entering page numbers. Put selected pages in one PDF when they should be read together. The pages are sorted into the original PDF order, and a page entered more than once appears only once.
Create one PDF per range when different sections need separate files. The tool follows the order of the ranges you enter, and ranges may overlap when a shared page belongs in both files. It rejects the same complete range entered twice. Save each selected page separately when every page must be its own PDF; selecting more than 50 pages is not allowed in that mode.
Use commas, semicolons, or line breaks between page numbers and ranges. For example, 1-3,5 selects a range and a separate page. Full-width digits and the full-width hyphen are accepted, but spaces alone do not separate entries. If you later need to join finished PDFs into one document, use the PDF merger; it arranges whole files, not individual pages.
Example: take three pages from a 12-page report
Imagine a 12-page report with a cover and contents page before the body. The body’s printed page 1 is PDF page 3, so printed pages 2–4 are PDF pages 4–6.
To make one excerpt, choose Put selected pages in one PDF and enter 4-6. Before starting, the summary should show one output containing original PDF pages 4–6. After processing, open the downloaded PDF and check its first page, last page, and any heading or explanation needed to understand the excerpt.
The same selection produces a different set of files in the other modes: Create one PDF per range makes one three-page PDF, while Save each selected page separately makes three one-page PDFs. The summary lets you confirm which result you are about to create.
| Output mode | Selection | Expected files |
|---|---|---|
| Put selected pages in one PDF | 4-6 | One PDF with original pages 4–6 |
| Create one PDF per range | 4-6 | One PDF with original pages 4–6 |
| Save each selected page separately | 4-6 | Three one-page PDFs: original pages 4, 5, and 6 |
Check the summary and open the results
The summary lists each planned file and the pages it will contain from the original PDF. In range mode, confirm both the page list and the order of the ranges. If ranges overlap, the shared page is intentionally included in each matching output.
When splitting finishes, download each PDF or create split-pdfs.zip. Open the files and compare their contents with the summary; a filename such as part-001.pdf does not identify its recipient or prove that the right pages were selected. Keep the original until you have checked the new files.
If you cancel or processing fails after some files are created, those completed files may remain available. A list of downloads does not mean the whole job finished. Read the status message, and rerun the selection if you need every planned file.
Check the limits and unsupported PDF features
One input PDF can be up to 20 MiB and 200 pages. A run can create up to 50 PDFs, with a combined output size of up to 50 MiB. You choose page numbers yourself; this tool does not split automatically by file size or bookmarks. The limits apply together: a selection can fit the page limit but still exceed the number-of-files or total-output limit.
Password-protected, damaged, empty, or unsupported PDFs may be rejected. This tool also rejects files when it detects structures such as forms, annotations, bookmarks, attachments, document actions, layers, or accessibility structure. A PDF that looks like a plain document can still contain an annotation or another feature the tool cannot handle.
The tool copies selected pages into new PDF files. It does not add OCR to scanned pages, edit the source PDF, or securely remove hidden or sensitive information. Do not use page splitting as redaction: information on a selected page can remain, and page copying does not guarantee that every document-level feature is preserved. Keep the original when signatures, forms, or other special features matter.
| Item | Limit |
|---|---|
| Input PDFs | 1 |
| Input file size | Up to 20 MiB |
| Input pages | Up to 200 |
| Output PDF files | Up to 50 |
| Combined output size | Up to 50 MiB |
Questions about splitting a PDF
Can I rearrange pages in a different order?
No. The tool uses the PDF’s original page order. Entering pages as 6,4,5 does not make a reversed excerpt; the output contains those pages in their original order.
Does splitting delete pages from my original PDF?
No. The original file is left as it was. Splitting creates new PDF files from selected pages; it does not modify or replace the source.
Are my PDF files uploaded?
The selected PDF is processed in your browser and is not uploaded for splitting. Loading the website itself still requires a network connection.
Sources
- Adobe Acrobat: Split PDFsExplains how to split PDFs in Adobe Acrobat. Adobe’s split-by-size and split-by-bookmark options are not available in this tool.
- Adobe Acrobat: Extract pagesDescribes extracting pages into a separate PDF. This tool does not delete extracted pages from the original PDF.
- pdf-lib: PDFDocument.copyPagesDocuments the page-copying operation used to create the outputs; it does not guarantee preservation of every PDF feature.
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