Split PDF
Split a PDF into several files, or keep only the pages you need. Type page ranges such as 1-3, 5, 8- or cut the document every few pages, then download one PDF or a ZIP of PDFs. The document stays on your device.
Drop a PDF file here
PDF only, up to 200 MB. One file at a time.
Your files stay in this browser tab. Nothing is uploaded, saved or logged.
How Split PDF works
The PDF is opened in a background process of your browser. For each range or group of pages, PDFStrong creates a new PDF and copies the selected pages into it. Pages are copied, not redrawn, so text stays selectable, images keep their quality and each page keeps its size and orientation.
There are two ways to choose pages. By page ranges, you type the pages you want and decide whether each range becomes its own file or all the ranges are combined, in the order you typed them, into one PDF, which is the way to extract pages. Every N pages cuts the document into consecutive files of N pages each, the last one holding whatever remains.
A request that produces one file gives you that PDF. When it produces several, they come in one ZIP. File names carry a number that follows page order, such as report_01_pages-1-3.pdf, so they sort correctly in any file manager.
How to use it
- Select a PDF file, or drop it on the area at the top of the tool.
- Choose By page ranges and type the pages, or choose Every N pages and enter N. The tool tells you how many files it will create.
- Choose Split PDF.
- Download the PDF or ZIP. Choose Start over to work on another document.
Example
| Pages typed | What the tool understands |
|---|---|
| 1-3, 5 | 2 ranges, 4 pages: 1–3, 5 |
| 8- | 1 range, 3 pages: 8–10 |
| 2–4; 4–6 | 2 ranges, 6 pages: 2–4, 4–6 |
| 5-2 | “5-2” runs backwards. Write it as 2-5. |
| 11 | “11”: page 11 does not exist, the document has 10. |
Limits and good to know
- The PDF can be up to 200 MB, and one split can create at most 500 files. The whole document is held in your device’s memory while it works, so very large files can make the browser run out of it.
- Password-protected PDFs and PDFs with editing restrictions cannot be split. Remove the protection first, which requires the password.
- Each new file contains only its own pages. Bookmarks and form data belong to the whole original document and may not be carried over.
Frequently asked questions
How do I write the pages to extract?
Separate items with commas. Write a single page as 5, a range as 2-6, and everything from a page to the end as 8-. For example, 1-3, 5, 8- selects pages 1 to 3, page 5 and page 8 to the last page. Spaces are ignored, and a page that does not exist, or a backwards range such as 5-2, is reported before anything runs.
What is the difference between separate files and one PDF?
With one PDF per range, each range becomes its own file, which is how you cut a document into chapters. With one PDF containing all selected pages, the ranges are joined in the order you typed them, which is how you extract or reorder pages. For example, 5, 1-2 produces a file whose pages are the original 5, 1 and 2.
Is my PDF uploaded to a server?
No. The document is opened and cut by your own browser and nothing is sent anywhere. You can verify this in your browser’s developer tools: the Network tab shows no upload while you split. Pressing Start over or closing the tab releases the document from memory.
Why do I get a ZIP file?
Because browsers cannot save a dozen files from one click without asking for each one. When a split creates several PDFs, they are packed in a single ZIP that every operating system opens by itself. If a request creates only one PDF, you get that PDF directly.
Why is each part almost as big as the original?
Some PDFs share one list of fonts and images between all of their pages, and a page cannot be copied without that list. When that happens, every new file carries the resources of the whole document, even those its pages do not use. It is a property of how the source file was made, not of the split.
Can I split a password-protected PDF?
Not with this tool. A protected file cannot be read without its password, and the tool says so instead of producing empty pages. Open the document in a viewer that has the password, save an unprotected copy and split that copy. Only do this for documents you are allowed to unlock.