Free PDF tool
Unlock A PDF
Take the password off a document you already have access to.
Only remove protection from documents you own or are authorised to change. This tool needs the correct password; it cannot recover or bypass one.
Banks and utilities routinely send statements encrypted with a password derived from your date of birth or account number. Correct for delivery, tedious for the next five years every time you open your own records.
If you can open the document, this removes the protection permanently. It decrypts the file in your browser using the password you supply and hands back an unencrypted copy.
How to use it
- 01Drop in the protected PDF.
- 02Enter its password when prompted.
- 03Download the unlocked copy.
Frequently asked questions
Can this recover a password I've forgotten?
No. It removes protection from a document you can already open — it does not guess, crack or bypass a password, and no legitimate tool does.
Is it legal to remove a PDF password?
For documents you own or are authorised to modify, generally yes. Removing protection from someone else's document without permission is not something this tool is for.
What happens to permissions like “no printing”?
They are removed along with the encryption, since they are part of the same security handler. The unlocked copy is a plain, unrestricted PDF.
Which kinds of encryption does it handle?
The ones a PDF actually uses: RC4 40-bit and 128-bit from older documents, and AES-128 and AES-256 as used by anything modern. Bank statements are typically AES-128, which decrypts here like any other.
Will the unlocked copy look and behave the same?
Yes. Decryption rewrites the file's security layer, not its contents — pages, fonts, images, form fields, links and the text layer come through untouched, so search and copy still work.
Is the password sent anywhere?
No. Both the document and the password stay in the tab: decryption runs on a WebAssembly build of qpdf in your browser, with no request carrying either of them.
Related tools
- Protect PDF With PasswordEncrypt a PDF with AES-256 and set what readers are allowed to do.
- File EncryptionEncrypt a file with a passphrase before uploading it anywhere — AES-256-GCM, fully local.
- Password Strength & Breach CheckerSee how strong a password really is, and optionally whether it has been leaked.
- Merge PDFCombine several PDFs into a single document, in the order you choose.
This is what Purgify automates.
Connect your cloud accounts and Purgify finds duplicates and reclaimable space like this — across all of them, on a schedule.
Want early access? Write to us at [email protected]