PDF Metadata Editor

Every PDF carries a small set of document properties that most people never look at: a title, an author, a subject, keywords and the name of the application that created it. They do not appear on the page, but anyone who opens File > Properties in a PDF reader can read them, and search engines and document management systems index them. This PDF metadata editor shows you what those fields contain and lets you rewrite or delete them before the file leaves your hands. The whole process runs locally in your browser, so the document you are trying to clean is never sent to a server.

What PDF metadata reveals about you

Metadata is filled in automatically. Word, LibreOffice, Google Docs exports and scanner software copy whatever they know into the file, usually without asking. The result is that a PDF can say more about its origin than its author intended:

• Author: often the name or login of whoever created the original document, which may be a colleague, a former employee or a contractor rather than the person sending it.
• Title: frequently a leftover from an earlier draft or a template, such as "Draft v3 internal" or the name of another client.
• Subject and keywords: sometimes contain internal project codes, case numbers or tags that were never meant for the recipient.
• Creator: the application that produced the source document, which tells the reader what software and sometimes which version your organisation uses.

Journalists and researchers have used these fields for years to work out who wrote an anonymous report or which agency prepared a document. The same check is available to anyone who receives your file.

Who needs to check PDF metadata before sharing

Legal teams are the classic case. A contract or brief that goes to the opposing party should not reveal which associate drafted it or which template it was cloned from, which is why metadata review is a standard step for lawyers before filing or exchanging documents. HR departments send offer letters, warnings and references built from reused templates, where the Author field may still name the previous HR manager. Newsrooms publishing source documents need to strip identifying properties so a leak cannot be traced back through the file itself, a routine part of the workflow for journalists. Freelancers and agencies often reuse proposals, and the Title field is a common place for another client's name to survive.

How to view and edit PDF metadata with this tool

1. Drop a PDF onto the tool, or click to select one. You can also select several files at once.
2. The form fills in with the current Title, Author, Subject, Keywords and Creator values read from the document. Empty boxes mean the field is not set.
3. Rewrite any value, or clear a box completely. A cleared field is removed from the PDF rather than saved as an empty string.
4. Click Save Metadata & Download. You get a copy named yourfile-metadata.pdf; the original stays untouched on your disk.

When you select several PDFs, the form shows the values from the first file, and the values you save are written to every selected file. The results download together as a single ZIP. This is useful for setting one company author name across a batch of exported reports, or blanking the Author field on a whole folder of documents at once.

What this editor changes, and what it does not

Being precise about scope matters when the goal is privacy. The editor works on the document information dictionary, the classic set of PDF properties.

• Edited: Title, Author, Subject, Keywords and Creator. Each can be rewritten or removed.
• Left as is: the Producer field (the PDF library or printer driver), the creation and modification dates, and any custom properties a program may have added.
• Not touched: the separate XMP metadata stream that some applications, notably Adobe products, embed alongside the classic properties. Some readers show XMP values, so a field you cleared here can still appear elsewhere in such files.
• Not metadata at all: names in the visible text, headers and footers, comments, form field values and hidden layers. Those live in the page content and need a document editor.

If you need every property gone, including XMP and dates, the Compress PDF tool has a Strip metadata option that deletes the whole information dictionary and all metadata streams. Note that compression may also re-encode large images as JPEG, so use it when a smaller file is acceptable. A combined routine (edit what should stay here, strip the rest when needed) is described in our metadata hygiene checklist.

How to check PDF metadata in Acrobat or Preview

You can confirm the result in any reader. In Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader, open File > Properties and look at the Description tab, which lists Title, Author, Subject, Keywords, Creator (shown as Application) and Producer. On a Mac, open the file in Preview and choose Tools > Show Inspector, then the info tab. Checking the downloaded file this way before sending it takes a few seconds and shows exactly what the recipient will see.

No upload. The PDF stays on your device.

It would make little sense to send a confidential document to an unknown server just to remove the names inside it. This tool reads and rewrites the PDF with Rust compiled to WebAssembly, inside your browser tab. No request carries the file anywhere, which you can verify in the Network tab of your browser's developer tools, or by going offline once the page has loaded. That matters for exactly the files people clean most often: contracts, HR letters, medical and financial records, and documents from confidential sources. Files up to 75 MB and 1,000 pages are supported.

Frequently asked questions

How do I remove the author name from a PDF?

Drop the PDF here, clear the Author box (and Creator if you want to hide the application too), then click Save Metadata & Download. The field is deleted from the document properties of the new copy.

Does editing metadata change the content of my PDF?

No. Pages, text, images, fonts and layout are left as they were. Only the selected document properties are rewritten.

Can I change the creation or modification date?

Not with this editor. The dates are kept as they are. If you need them removed, use the Strip metadata option of the Compress PDF tool.

Why does my reader still show the old title?

The file probably contains an XMP metadata stream as well, which some readers prefer over the classic properties. This editor does not modify XMP. Stripping metadata with the Compress PDF tool removes both.

Is my PDF uploaded to a server?

No. Reading and writing happen entirely in your browser through WebAssembly. Nothing is uploaded or stored, and the page keeps working offline once loaded.

Does it work with password protected PDFs?

Encrypted PDFs may fail to open. Remove the password in the application that set it, edit the metadata, then protect the file again if needed.

Related tools: remove GPS coordinates and camera details from photos with the EXIF viewer and remover, or browse all PDF tools.