Draw a Rectangle on a PDF
Draw a filled rectangle on PDF pages - for highlighting or covering an area.
Fill in the form and press “Draw rectangle” to see the result here.
How to use it
- 1Select your PDF, or drag and drop it onto the upload area.
- 2Adjust the options if you need something other than the defaults.
- 3Press the button. The document is processed on your device - nothing is uploaded.
- 4Download the result. Your original file is untouched.
About the Draw a Rectangle on a PDF
The PDF coordinate system starts at the bottom-left corner of the page, which is the opposite of most screen coordinate systems. A y of 0 is the bottom edge.
Drawing a black box over text does not remove the text. It remains in the file, fully selectable and extractable by anyone who copies from the document - which is exactly how several high-profile redaction failures happened. Genuine redaction means deleting the underlying content.
Questions people ask
Is my PDF uploaded to a server?
No. The document is read and rewritten by JavaScript in your own browser. Nothing is transmitted, which is the only sensible arrangement for contracts, invoices, medical records and anything else people put in a PDF.
Can I use this to redact sensitive information?
Not safely. The text underneath is still in the file and can be selected, copied or extracted. To redact properly, remove the content itself - for example by rendering the pages to images and rebuilding the PDF from those.
Is your document uploaded to a server?
No. This tool runs entirely in your browser using standard web APIs, so your document never leaves your device. You can confirm it by opening your browser's network panel while the tool runs, or by disconnecting from the internet after the page has loaded.
Is it free, and do I need an account?
Yes, it is free, and there is no account, no sign-up and no watermark on the result. The project is funded by optional donations.