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Edit PDF: Change Text, Add Text and Images

Click any line to change it, add new text, pictures or a logo, and white-out or highlight parts of the page. Free, online, no file retention.

How to edit a PDF

  1. 1

    Add your PDF

    Choose the PDF above. It opens for the current task and is never retained by PilotPDF, so it is fine for contracts, statements and forms with personal details.

  2. 2

    Change, add or cover

    With Edit text, click any line and retype it. Add text and Image place new things anywhere on a page; White-out, Highlight and Box cover or mark what's already there. Undo and Redo step back and forward.

  3. 3

    Download the edited PDF

    Press Download PDF. Pages you didn't touch are saved exactly as they were, with their text, links and form fields.

How editing existing text works

A PDF is not like a Word file. Its text is a set of characters placed at exact positions, often split into short pieces and drawn with fonts that only contain the letters the document used. That is why most PDF editors, including this one, change text the same way: the old words are covered with a patch of the background colour, and your new words are written in their place in a matching font, size and colour.

The result looks and prints like the original, and your new words are real text that can be searched and copied. The old words are still in the file underneath, though, hidden by the patch. That is fine for fixing a typo or updating a date. If the old text must not be recoverable, for example an account number or a name you were asked to remove, use Redact PDF, which removes it for good.

Text is matched to one of three standard fonts (a sans serif like Helvetica, a serif like Times, or a typewriter font like Courier), in bold or italic if the original was. If your document uses a distinctive typeface the change may be noticeable up close, so check it at full size. Characters those fonts don't have, such as ₹ or Polish letters, are written in Noto Sans instead.

What it can't do, and what to use instead

Scanned pages are pictures, so there is no text to click. You can still cover words with White-out and type new ones on top with Add text, or make the scan searchable first with PDF OCR.

Edit PDF doesn't reflow paragraphs: if a new sentence is longer than the old one it won't push the following lines down, so keep changes short, or cover a whole paragraph and type it again. For filling in a form, Fill PDF writes into the form's own fields; for a signature, Sign PDF lets you draw one; for page order, deleting or rotating pages, use the page tools listed further down this page.

Your files are never retained by PilotPDF

PilotPDF does not keep copies of your original files, completed files, passwords, or document contents after processing.

Read our privacy policy for details about analytics and data handling.

Related tools

Redact PDF

Remove text for good, not just cover it.

Fill PDF

Type into a form's own fields.

Sign PDF

Draw or type a signature and place it.

PDF OCR

Make a scanned PDF searchable first.

Annotate PDF

Add comments, notes and freehand marks.

Other ways to edit a PDF

For forms, signatures, comments, page order and permanent removal, these tools do the job better.

Redact PDFRemove sensitive text for good, not just cover it.Fill PDF FormsType into a form's own fields and save it.Sign PDFDraw or type your signature and place it on the page.Annotate PDFAdd comments, sticky notes and freehand marks.Rearrange PDF PagesDrag pages into the right order.Delete PDF PagesRemove pages you don't need.Rotate PDFTurn sideways or upside-down pages the right way up.Add WatermarkStamp DRAFT, CONFIDENTIAL or a logo on every page.Edit PDF MetadataChange the title, author and keywords.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. Choose Edit text, click the line you want to change, type, and press Enter. The new words appear in the same place, in a matching font, size and colour.
No, it is covered. The old words stay in the file underneath a patch of background colour, which is how most PDF editors change text. To remove something so it can't be recovered, use Redact PDF.
Yes. Add text puts a text box wherever you click; Image adds a PNG or JPG that you can drag into place and resize from the corner.
Use White-out and drag over it. On a coloured page, pick the page colour first. White-out only covers; for permanent removal use Redact PDF.
The page is probably a scan, which is a picture of text. Cover the words with White-out and type over them, or make the PDF searchable with PDF OCR first.
Yes. Edit PDF only adds drawing on top of the pages you change. Everything else in the file is kept as it was.
Yes. Use Undo and Redo, or Ctrl+Z and Ctrl+Shift+Z (Cmd on a Mac). Select something you added and press Delete to remove it.
Yes. Tap a line to edit it, tap to place text, and drag with your finger to white-out or highlight. A computer is easier for detailed work.
No. The PDF is opened and saved without PilotPDF retaining a copy, so it is never retained by PilotPDF.
Yes. No account, no watermark and no limit.