Split PDF

Split PDF lets you pull specific pages out of a PDF, or break a whole document into single-page files, directly in your browser. Type a page range such as 1-3, 5, 8-10 to create one new PDF containing just those pages, or choose to split every page into its own PDF and download them together as a ZIP. The tool shows the page count as soon as you load the file, so you know what you are working with. Your document is never uploaded, which matters when the pages you are separating are payslips, bank statements, medical letters or identity documents.

How to use the Split PDF

1. 1 Open your PDFDrop a PDF onto the tool or click to choose one. The file is read in your browser and the total number of pages is shown straight away.
2. 2 Choose how to splitPick extract pages to build one new PDF from the pages you name, or split every page to turn each page into a separate PDF file.
3. 3 Enter a page rangeIf you are extracting, type the pages you want, separated by commas. Use a hyphen for a run of pages, for example 1-3, 5, 8-10.
4. 4 Run the splitStart the split. The pages are copied into new documents on your own device, with their text and image quality unchanged.
5. 5 Download the resultExtracted pages download as a single PDF. Split-every-page results download as one ZIP file containing a PDF for each page.

Split a PDF without uploading it

People usually split a PDF because they need to share only part of it. A lender wants your latest three payslips, not the whole year. A solicitor needs one signed page of a long agreement. An insurer asks for a single letter from a bundle of scanned post. In almost every case the document is personal or commercially sensitive, which is exactly when uploading it to an unfamiliar website feels uncomfortable.

Split PDF does all of its work in your browser. The file is opened locally, the pages you choose are copied into a new PDF locally, and the result is offered as a download from your own device. Nothing is sent to our servers and there is no account, watermark or daily limit.

How page ranges work

The page range box accepts single page numbers and runs of pages, separated by commas. A hyphen between two numbers means every page from the first to the second, inclusive. Spaces are optional, so 1-3,5,8-10 and 1-3, 5, 8-10 mean the same thing. Page numbers count from 1, the first page of the file, regardless of any page numbers printed on the pages themselves.

That last point catches people out. A report might have a cover, a contents page and then printed page 1, which is actually page 3 of the file. Always work from the page count the tool shows and from the position of the page in your PDF viewer, not the number printed in the footer.

• 5 gives you page 5 only.
• 1-3 gives you pages 1, 2 and 3.
• 1-3, 5, 8-10 gives you pages 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 9 and 10 in one new PDF.
• A range that goes past the last page, such as 1-40 on a 30-page file, is not valid, so check the page count first.

Extract pages or split every page?

Extract pages is the right choice when you want one smaller document made from part of a larger one: the signature page of a contract, the summary section of a report, or a few months of statements from an annual download. You get a single PDF back, ready to attach.

Split every page is for when each page is really a separate document. Phone scanning apps and office scanners often produce one long PDF from a stack of paper, so a batch of twenty receipts or invoices ends up in a single file. Splitting every page gives you twenty individual PDFs, which you can rename and file one by one, or forward to your bookkeeping software separately. Because downloading twenty files one at a time is tedious, they come bundled as a ZIP.

Quality, text and file size

Splitting copies pages rather than re-drawing them. Text stays selectable and searchable, vector graphics stay sharp, and embedded images are carried over unchanged, so a split page looks exactly like the original.

File size usually drops roughly in proportion to the pages you remove, but not always neatly. Fonts and images that are shared across many pages in the original may need to be included in each output file, so ten single-page PDFs can add up to more than the original document. That is normal and nothing to worry about. If one of your output files is still too large to email or upload, and it is a scan or photo-heavy page, our Compress PDF tool can shrink it further.

Practical uses for UK businesses and households

Splitting is one of those small jobs that comes up constantly once you notice it. Sharing only what is needed is also good data protection practice: under UK GDPR's data minimisation principle, organisations should not process more personal data than they need, and sending one page instead of a full bundle is an easy way to follow that spirit.

• Sending only the payslips or statements a lender, letting agent or landlord has asked for.
• Separating a batch of scanned invoices or receipts so each can be recorded and filed individually.
• Pulling the signed pages out of a contract to return to the other party.
• Removing internal notes or blank pages from the end of a document before sending it to a client.
• Extracting a single certificate, such as an insurance or gas safety certificate, from a larger pack.
• Breaking a long manual or brochure into chapters that are easier to share and print.

Combining Split PDF with other tools

Split and merge work well together. To reorder a messy document, or build a new one from parts of several files, extract the pages you want from each source with Split PDF, then combine the pieces in the right order with our Merge PDF tool. To turn a single page into an image for a presentation, a website or social media, use PDF to JPG instead, which renders pages as pictures.

Password-protected PDFs need unlocking before any of these tools can read them. Use the program that applied the password, or ask the sender for an unprotected copy.

Common reasons to split a PDF

Most splitting jobs fall into a handful of everyday tasks. Accountants separate one client's pages out of a combined bank statement. HR teams pull a single payslip or contract page out of a batch. Students and job seekers send just the relevant chapter, certificate or reference instead of a 60-page document.

Splitting is also the quickest way to get under an upload limit. If a portal rejects a large file, sending the required pages on their own is often enough, and because pages are copied rather than re-rendered, the text stays sharp and searchable.

If you need the pages in a different order, split out the pieces you want and then rejoin them in the right sequence with our Merge PDF tool.

Examples you can copy

5             -> page 5 only
1-3           -> pages 1, 2, 3
1-3, 5, 8-10  -> pages 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 9, 10
1-3,5,8-10    -> the same, spaces are optional

qpdf report.pdf --pages . 1-3,5,8-10 -- extract.pdf

qpdf --split-pages report.pdf page-%d.pdf

pdfseparate -f 3 -l 5 report.pdf page-%d.pdf

Common mistakes to avoid

Frequently asked questions