Flatten PDF
Make a filled-in form, a marked-up draft or a signed page final. Flattening draws every answer, comment and signature into the page itself, so the file shows the same thing in every viewer and nobody can quietly change a field after you send it.
Flatten PDF
or drop PDF files here ·
Max 95 MB per file· Up to 20 files· Deleted after 30 minutes
Files are processed on our servers and deleted after 30 minutes.
Vector keeps text sharp and selectable. Image renders each page as a picture, which removes every hidden layer and edit history but makes text unselectable.
Used when pages are rasterised. 200 DPI is sharp on screen and in print; 300 for fine print.
How to use this tool
- 1
Upload the finished PDF
Add up to 20 PDFs, each up to 95 MB. Complete and sign the form before you flatten; afterwards the fields can no longer be typed into.
- 2
Choose what to flatten and how
Leave What to flatten on Everything or limit it to form fields, comments or signatures. Under Advanced settings, Flatten as chooses vector or image.
- 3
Flatten and keep a copy
Press Flatten and download the flattened PDF. Keep the fillable original as well, in case an answer needs correcting.
To flatten a PDF is to turn its interactive layer, the form fields, comments, stamps and signature widgets floating above the page, into fixed page content. The document looks the same, but what you see is now all there is.
Flatten a PDF form: what changes and what stays
Fillable forms have been part of PDF since version 1.2 in 1996. A form field is an object placed on top of the page with a name, a value and an appearance, the little picture of the value that a viewer draws. Comments, highlights, stamps and signature boxes work the same way. Because they are separate from the page, viewers can show, hide, move or reformat them, and anyone with a PDF editor can change their values.
Flattening takes each of those appearances and draws it permanently into the page content, then deletes the interactive object. The page text, images, page size and order do not change. With Keep links on, clickable web and page links continue to work, and Keep bookmarks leaves the bookmark panel as it was. Remove metadata is optional and clears author, title and software information.
What does not survive is anything that depended on the objects: form calculations, scripts, the replies inside comment threads, and the cryptographic part of a digital signature. The signature's appearance stays visible, but it can no longer be validated, so flatten a copy if the original signature still needs checking. A step-by-step comparison of desktop methods is in how to flatten a PDF, and flatten PDF online opens this tool with settings for quick one-off forms.
Choose what to flatten
Everything
The default. Fields, comments and signatures all become page content.
Form fields
Typed answers, checkboxes and dropdowns are fixed; comments stay editable.
Comments & markup
Notes, highlights and stamps are fixed; the form stays fillable.
Signatures
Signature fields become images on the page; other content stays live.
Vector or image: picking the flatten method
Keeps text
Appearances are merged into the page as vector content, exactly like the rest of the page.
- Text stays sharp at any zoom
- Text stays selectable and searchable
- File size stays about the same
Rasterizes pages
Each page is rendered as a picture at the Resolution you set, 200 DPI by default, between 72 and 600.
- Removes every hidden layer and edit history
- Text can no longer be selected
- File grows with the DPI you choose
Flatten PDF free: limits
- PDFs per run
- 20
- Maximum size
- 95 MB
- DPI for image flattening
- 72–600
- Until files are deleted
- 30 min
Before you flatten a PDF
- Fill in every field and check dates, names and amounts; flattened answers cannot be edited.
- Sign the form, then flatten, so the signature image is part of the page.
- Save the fillable original under a different name.
- Flatten each form before you combine several with merge PDF, so fields with the same name cannot overwrite each other.
- Choose Image only when hidden content must go; keep Vector for anything that needs searchable text.
- Compress or protect the file afterwards, not before, so those steps work on the final pages.
Flattening without Acrobat: print-to-PDF and its catch
The oldest trick is to print the form to a virtual PDF printer, such as Microsoft Print to PDF on Windows or Save as PDF in the macOS print dialog. The printer only receives what is visible, so fields and comments come out flat. It works in a pinch, but the new file usually loses bookmarks, internal links and document metadata, may rasterize transparent elements, and can change page size when the printer defaults to Letter or A4 instead of the original size.
Flattening here avoids those side effects: the original page boxes are kept, Keep links and Keep bookmarks preserve navigation, and you choose whether pages stay vector or become images. It also runs in a phone browser, which matters when a form arrives by email and has to go back the same day.
Flatten PDF form questions
How do I flatten a PDF form online for free?
Upload the filled form, keep What to flatten on Everything or choose Form fields, and press Flatten. Typed answers, ticked boxes and selected dropdown values become ordinary page content that every viewer shows and nobody can edit.
Why do courts and agencies ask for flattened PDFs?
A filed document has to stay exactly as it was submitted. Live form fields and comments can be changed later, can display differently in the receiving system, or can be dropped when the file is converted for the record, so e-filing instructions often ask filers to flatten forms first.
Can I flatten only the comments and keep the form fillable?
Yes. Set What to flatten to Comments & markup. Highlights, sticky notes and stamps are drawn into the page, while text fields and checkboxes stay interactive for the next person.
Will the text still be searchable after I flatten a PDF?
With Flatten as on Vector, the default, yes: page text and the flattened answers stay real, selectable text. The Image method turns each page into a picture, so text can only be found again with text recognition.
What does Merge layers do?
Some PDFs contain optional content layers, for example a draft watermark or an alternative language, that a reader can switch on and off. Merge layers keeps what is visible and removes the switch, so hidden layers cannot be turned back on.
Is a flattened PDF the same as a PDF/A file?
No. Flattening removes interactivity; PDF/A is an ISO archival format with rules about fonts, color and metadata. Archives that want PDF/A usually also want flat content, so flatten first and then convert with PDF to PDF/A.
Can I flatten a password-protected PDF?
Not while it is encrypted. Remove the password with unlock PDF, using the password you were given, flatten the unlocked copy, and protect it again afterwards if needed.
Why are flattened checkboxes or answers missing in the result?
The form app saved the values without drawing an appearance for them, so there was nothing visible to flatten. Open the original in another viewer such as Acrobat Reader or Chrome, click into a field and out again so the appearance is generated, save, and flatten that copy.
All Flatten PDF tools
Pick the exact target you were asked for. Every page below is the same tool with different defaults.
- Flatten PDF OnlineFlatten a PDF online: forms, comments and signatures become page content, links and bookmarks survive, metadata is removed. Files deleted after 30 minutes.
- How to Flatten a PDFWhat flattening a PDF means, when Print to PDF is enough and when it is not, and how to flatten forms, comments and signatures in three steps, free.