How to Split a PDF and Extract Pages (Free, No Upload)

To extract pages from a PDF, open the Split PDF tool, load your file, type the pages you want, for example 1-3, 7, and download the new PDF. The original file isn't changed. You get a separate document with only the pages you listed, in ascending page order.

That covers most cases. The rest of this guide explains the range syntax, how to remove pages rather than keep them, and how to get pages in a custom order.

When you need to split a PDF

People split PDFs far more often than they realise:

• Sending only what's relevant. A landlord needs page 1 of your employment contract, not all 14 pages.
• Separating a combined scan. A scanner's feeder put your passport, birth certificate and utility bill into one file, but the portal wants them as separate uploads.
• Removing private pages. A bank statement has a page of unrelated transactions you'd rather not share. Extract the rest.
• Getting under a size limit. Splitting a long document into parts helps when a portal accepts several smaller files (see how to get a PDF under an upload limit).
• Pulling a chapter. Students and researchers often need a single chapter from a long report or e-book they're allowed to use.

How to split a PDF, step by step

1. Open the Split PDF tool in your browser.
2. Choose your PDF. The tool shows its name, size and page count. Keep the page count in mind, because you can only ask for pages that exist.
3. In the page box, type the pages to keep, separated by commas.
4. Click to extract. The tool copies just those pages into a new PDF.
5. Download it and open it once to check you have the right pages.

Everything happens in your browser, so the PDF isn't uploaded anywhere. That matters when the document is a contract, medical record or bank statement.

Writing page ranges correctly

The page box accepts single pages, ranges, or a mix:

Two rules to remember:

• Pages are always output in ascending order. Typing 7, 2 gives page 2 then page 7. To change the order, see "Putting pages in a custom order" below.
• Duplicates are removed. Each page appears once, even if you list it twice.

Use the page numbers the tool counts from the first physical page, not the printed page numbers in the document. A report whose page "1" comes after six pages of front matter is physically page 7 in the file. When in doubt, open the PDF in your browser's viewer and use its page counter.

How to remove pages from a PDF

There's no separate "delete pages" step; you extract everything you want to keep. To drop page 4 from a 10-page file, type:

1-3, 5-10

To drop the first and last page of a 20-page file, type 2-19. This "keep" approach has an advantage: you never lose the original, so a mistake is easy to redo.

Putting pages in a custom order

Because the splitter sorts pages in ascending order, a custom order takes two quick tools:

1. Extract each piece separately. For example, to get the order 5, 1, 2, extract 5 to one file and 1-2 to another.
2. Open the Merge PDF tool, add the pieces, arrange them with the up and down arrows, and merge.

This is also how you build one document from pages of several different PDFs, such as a cover page from one file and an appendix from another.

What happens to bookmarks, links and forms

The visible content of each page (text, images, layout) is copied exactly. Document-wide features may not come with it:

• Bookmarks usually point to pages in the original file and may be missing.
• Internal links ("see page 12") may no longer work if page 12 wasn't extracted.
• Form fields may not stay fillable. Fill in the form first, then extract.
• Digital signatures become invalid, because the extracted file is a new document. If a signature must stay verifiable, share the original signed file.

Fixing sideways pages after splitting

Scanned pages sometimes come out rotated. If your extracted pages are sideways, run the file through Rotate PDF before sending it. If you need a single page as a picture instead of a PDF, for a slide or a social post, use PDF to JPG.

Common mistakes

• Typing a page that doesn't exist. Asking for 1-15 from a 12-page file won't work. Check the page count shown by the tool.
• Mixing up printed and physical page numbers. Count from the first page of the file, including the cover.
• Forgetting to rename the output. Rename the file to describe its contents, such as Contract_Page1_Signed.pdf, so it isn't confused with the full document.