Drop in a PDF and pull it apart however you need: turn every page into its own file, or extract just the pages you name. It all happens in your browser using the pdf-lib library, so the file is never uploaded anywhere. That is the whole point — you can split a contract, a bank statement, or a medical record without it ever touching a server.
Three ways to split a PDF
- Every page as its own PDF — best for breaking a scanned bundle into individual receipts, invoices, or contracts. A 50-page file becomes 50 files.
- A single page range — pull pages 5–10 out as one PDF, handy for sending just one chapter or section.
- Multiple custom ranges — type
1-3, 5, 7-9to create three separate PDFs at once: pages 1–3, page 5, and pages 7–9. One click instead of a repeated extract-and-save loop.
How to write page ranges correctly
The syntax is simple but two rules trip people up. Page numbers are 1-based — the first page is 1, never 0. And ranges are inclusive on both ends: 7-9 gives you three pages (7, 8, and 9), not two. A few valid examples:
1-5— the first five pages as a single PDF.3— just page 3 on its own.1-3, 8-10— two separate files, skipping everything in between.1, 3, 5— three separate one-page files.
Split once, email three chapters
Need to send three sections of a long report to different people? Type all three ranges at once — 1-8, 9-20, 21-30 — and you get three ready-to-attach PDFs in a single pass. No re-opening the source file between each one.
Why this doesn't hurt quality
Splitting copies the original page objects straight into the new file. It is not a re-render, a screenshot, or a re-compression — so text stays selectable, links keep working, and images hold their full resolution. The output pages are byte-for-byte the same content as the source. This is a real difference from tools that flatten a PDF to images; those bloat the file and kill the text layer.
Your PDF never leaves your device
Everything runs locally in your browser with pdf-lib. The file is never uploaded, logged, or stored — which is exactly what you want for contracts, medical records, tax returns, and anything confidential.
When to reach for a different tool
Splitting is the wrong move if what you really need is to reorder pages, rotate a sideways scan, or merge several PDFs into one — those are separate jobs. And one hard limit worth knowing: this can't open a password-protected PDF. If your file is encrypted, remove the password in your PDF viewer first (printing to a new PDF is the quickest route), then split the unlocked copy.
FAQ
How do I extract specific pages from a PDF?
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Use range mode and type the pages you want — 5-10 for one block, or 1-3, 5, 7-9 for several ranges at once. Each comma-separated range becomes its own output file. Page numbers are 1-based, so the first page is 1.
Is my PDF uploaded to a server?
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No. Splitting runs entirely in your browser via pdf-lib. The file never leaves your device — nothing is uploaded, stored, or logged — which matters for contracts, medical records, and tax documents.
Does splitting reduce the quality of the pages?
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No. It copies the original page objects intact, so text stays selectable and images keep full resolution. It's not a re-render or screenshot, so the output looks identical to the source.
Can I split a password-protected PDF?
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Not while it's encrypted. Remove the password in your PDF viewer first (printing to a new PDF or saving an unlocked copy works), then split that file. A browser tool can't process a file it can't open.
What is the difference between splitting and extracting?
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Splitting into single pages turns every page into its own file — a 50-page PDF becomes 50 files. Extracting pulls out only the pages you name and leaves the rest behind. Use single-page mode to break a bundle apart, range mode to grab one section.