Edit a PDF

The editor at /pdf/edit changes one PDF. Open it from PDF Editor with Open PDF, by dropping one PDF on /pdf, or by choosing a tool under Edit a PDF on that page. The PDF is read and changed in your browser; it is not uploaded to Magpie unless you save it to Secure Files or send it for signature.

The pages are listed down the left, with the current page beside them. Choose a page to show it, or use Previous page, Next page and the page number box. + and − zoom the page. File, at the start of the toolbar, has All PDF tools, Open another PDF… and Properties. When you open another PDF, the one you had open stays under Recent in this browser on /pdf.

Pages

Page actions apply to the pages whose boxes are ticked, or to the current page when none are ticked. Select all ticks every page.

• Rotate left and Rotate right turn pages by 90 degrees. Rotate all turns every page.
• Straighten levels tilted scans. Each page is measured and turned so its lines of text are level, by up to 6 degrees; pages that are already level are left as they are. A straightened page becomes an image of itself at 200 DPI, so text on it can no longer be selected until you use Recognise text again. PDF Editor asks first when a page has selectable text.
• Duplicate adds a copy after each page, including anything added to it.
• Extract makes a new PDF from the pages. They stay in the PDF you are editing.
• Delete removes the pages. A PDF must keep at least one page.
• Move moves the pages up or down one place, or to the beginning or end. You can also drag pages in the list. With a page focused in the list, the up and down arrow keys change the current page, and Alt with an arrow key moves it.
• Insert pages adds pages from another PDF, from images, or a blank page, before or after the current page or at the end. Insert images opens the image picker: pick pictures from Your images, or upload new ones there. Image and blank pages are the size of the current page.

Long documents show page images in the list as they are drawn, nearest the current page first.

Text, highlights, drawings and notes

Choose a tool, then use it on the page. Select chooses something you added so you can drag it to a new place or press Delete to remove it. Double-click added text or a note to change it. With an addition selected, the colour, line and text controls change it.

• Add text types onto the page, for example on a form that has no fillable fields. Choose the size, font and alignment first. Added text becomes part of the page when you export. Text in other alphabets, such as Greek, Cyrillic, Arabic, Hebrew, Hindi, Thai, Chinese, Japanese and Korean, is drawn with Noto Sans in place of the chosen font. Right-to-left text is ordered one line at a time. Emoji cannot be added.
• Highlight marks text you drag across. On a scanned page, the highlight covers the area you drag.
• Draw, Rectangle, Ellipse and Arrow draw on the page.
• Note places a comment that PDF readers show as a note icon.

Highlights, drawings, shapes and notes are saved as PDF annotations, so other PDF apps can select, move or delete them. Text already in the PDF cannot be changed; to hide it for good, see Redact a PDF. Drawing is not a signature request; to have a document signed, use Send for signature.

Links

Choose Link and drag over an area of the page, then choose where it goes: a page in this PDF, or a web address, email address or phone number starting with https://, http://, mailto: or tel:. The PDF's own links are outlined in blue; click one to change or remove it. A link to a page follows that page when pages are moved, and is left out if the page is deleted. Links do not open in the editor's page view.

Bookmarks

Bookmarks lists the PDF's bookmarks with the page each one opens. Type a title and choose Add bookmark to add one for the current page. Each bookmark can be renamed, moved up or down with the bookmarks under it, indented under the one above, outdented, pointed at the current page or deleted. Bookmarks follow their pages when pages are moved, and bookmarks to deleted pages are left out of the exported PDF. Inserting a PDF adds its bookmarks at the end.

Page size and crop

More, then Page size and crop, changes the current page, the selected pages or all pages.

• Change page size puts each page on A4, Letter, Legal, A3, A5 or a size you enter in millimetres, in the same orientation as the page or the one you choose. The content is scaled to fit the new size, or kept at its size and centred. Use the original size undoes it.
• Crop pages cuts the margins you enter from each edge, as the page is viewed. You can also choose Crop and drag over the part of a page to keep. Cropped areas are shaded in the editor. Remove crop undoes it.

A crop hides what is outside it; that content is still in the file. To remove it, use Redact.

Header and footer

More, then Header and footer, adds text at the top and bottom of every page when you export: left, centre and right in each. {page} is replaced with the page number, {total} with the number of pages, {date} with the export date and {file} with the file name. Choose the first page number and how many pages at the start have none, such as a cover. They are shown in grey while you work.

Watermark

More, then Watermark, adds text such as DRAFT across the pages when you export, diagonally or horizontally, in the colour and strength you choose. Or choose An image, such as a logo, choose the image from Your images (or upload one there) and its width (a quarter, half or three quarters of the page); it is centred on each page and outlined in blue while you work. Over the page content it is drawn on top; under the page content it is hidden where a page has a white background, such as most scans. Leave Pages empty for every page, or list pages such as 1-3, 5.

Page numbers

More, then Page numbers, adds numbers when you export. Choose the position, the format (1, Page 1, 1 of 24, Page 1 of 24 or your own wording, such as Seite {page} von {total}), the first number and how many pages at the start have no number, such as a cover. Numbers are shown in grey while you work. They count pages in the order shown in the editor. The PDF's own page labels, such as i, ii and iii, are shown next to the page numbers in the list of pages.

Find

Find searches the text of every page and lists each page with matches. Choose a result to show that page. Scanned pages have no text to search until you use Recognise text; see Recognise text in a scanned PDF.

Properties

File, then Properties, shows the file size, page size, PDF version, whether the file has a password, form fields, selectable text, bookmarks, attachments, digital signatures or scripts, and its title, author, subject, keywords, creating application and dates. Tick Remove document properties when exporting to leave them out of the exported PDF.

Undo

Undo and Redo, after File in the toolbar (Ctrl+Z, Ctrl+Shift+Z, or ⌘Z and ⇧⌘Z), reverse page changes, additions, form values and settings, one at a time. The button's label names the change.

The editor keeps the open PDF and your changes in this browser, so reloading the page or returning later continues where you stopped. They are deleted 24 hours after the last change, or when you choose Remove on /pdf. They are not stored on Magpie and are not available on other devices. A PDF with a password asks for it again when it is reopened, because the password is not stored.

Export, save and send

Export PDF (Ctrl+S or ⌘S) sets the file name and where the PDF goes:

• Download only downloads it.
• Secure Files: when the PDF is ready, choose Open Secure Files. Secure Files opens in a new tab, where the PDF is encrypted and uploaded. Unlock Secure Files if it asks. Choose the button within 10 minutes; after that, export again.
• Replace the original in Secure Files appears for a PDF opened from Secure Files. The new file is saved in the same folder and the original is moved to Trash, where it can be restored.

Export can also flatten form fields, remove document properties, compress images and protect the PDF with a password. The PDF is exported without a password unless you add one, even if the file you opened had one.

When pages are kept in their original order and nothing is redacted, the export keeps the PDF's bookmarks, page labels, attachments and form structure. When pages are added, removed or reordered, the PDF is rebuilt page by page. Bookmarks, page labels and links between pages follow their pages, and those for deleted pages are left out. Attached files are kept unless the PDF has redactions. Document-level scripts are not kept.

Send for signature, shown when you can edit the selected team, creates a signature request in that team's E-Signatures with the current PDF. You then add signers and place fields in E-Signatures; see Send documents for signature. It accepts PDFs up to 25 MB and 500 pages.

A PDF with a digital signature can still be edited, but the exported copy will not have a valid signature.

For help with editing a PDF, Contact support.