Compress a PDF to under 1 MB
To get a PDF under 1 MB, choose the “Strong” level above. If that isn’t enough, remove unneeded pages or re-scan at a lower resolution. A short text PDF usually fits immediately; many color scans may need a few steps.
Choose files
or drag and dropPDF
Your files never leave your device — everything runs locally in your browser.
How it works
- 1
Upload the PDF
Choose the file the portal rejects.
- 2
Choose “Strong”
This level shrinks scans and photos the most.
- 3
Check the result
If the new size is below 1 MB, you’re done.
- 4
Trim if needed
Otherwise remove unneeded pages and compress again.
Where the 1 MB limit shows up
Online forms of universities, insurers, government agencies and job portals often limit uploads to a few megabytes — sometimes exactly 1 MB per file. Scanned documents easily exceed that because each page is stored as a high-resolution image.
Rule of thumb
| Content | Typical size after “Strong” |
|---|---|
| Digital text document | often under 100 KB for 10 pages — usually small already |
| Black & white scan | roughly 50–150 KB per page |
| Color scan / photos | roughly 100–300 KB per page |
These are rough guidelines; white space compresses much better than dense photos.
More tricks when it’s tight
- Remove blank pages and backsides with Organize PDF.
- Upload only the required pages — separate the rest with Split PDF.
- Next time, scan in grayscale at 150 DPI instead of color at 300 DPI.
- If several files are allowed, split the document into two uploads.
Tips
- With “Recommended” and “Strong”, pages become images — text is no longer selectable. Try “Light” first for contracts and forms.
- Photo-heavy PDFs shrink the most; text-only PDFs are often small already.
- Several PDFs? Merge them first, then compress.