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PDF metadata remover / editor

Wipe the hidden author, software and date metadata from a PDF before sharing it, or set your own. Everything happens in your browser.

How PDF metadata remover / editor works

PDF Metadata Editor lets you read, edit or completely strip the document information embedded in a PDF: author, title, subject, keywords, and the creator and producer software fields. These fields are part of the PDF's document info dictionary and are readable by any PDF viewer or metadata extraction tool. pdf-lib handles all reading and writing inside your browser, so the file stays on your device throughout.

The creator and producer fields often contain the name and version of the application used to generate the PDF, which can reveal information about your internal software stack. The author field may contain a person's real name. Stripping or replacing these values before distributing a PDF is a straightforward privacy step. Metadata can also live in an XMP stream, a separate XML block inside the file. The tool unlinks that stream as well, so a viewer that reads XMP does not keep showing an author you just cleared from the info dictionary.

Written by Bastien Sulyan

How to use PDF metadata remover / editor, step by step

  1. Load your PDF into the metadata editor.
  2. Review the current values shown for author, title, subject, keywords, creator and producer.
  3. Edit any field you want to change, or clear it to remove the value.
  4. Use the "strip all" option to clear every field at once if you want to remove all document info.
  5. Click save and download the updated PDF.

Common use cases

  • Remove the author name and creating software details from a PDF before distributing it publicly.
  • Correct an incorrect document title that was auto-set by the export application.
  • Add descriptive keywords to a PDF so it is easier to find in a document management system.
  • Strip all metadata from a PDF template before sending it to a client to avoid leaking internal naming conventions.

Frequently asked questions

Does editing or stripping metadata affect the visible content of the PDF?

No. The document info dictionary fields are metadata stored separately from the page content. Changing or clearing them has no effect on the text, images, layout or any visible element of the document.

What is the difference between the document info dictionary and XMP metadata?

PDF supports two metadata formats. The document info dictionary is a flat set of key-value pairs (title, author, etc.) readable by any PDF viewer. XMP is a more structured XML-based format that can carry richer data and is stored as a separate stream. This tool edits the document info dictionary and unlinks the XMP stream at the same time, so the two cannot end up disagreeing about who wrote the file.

Does the PDF travel to a server when I edit its metadata?

No. The metadata fields are read and rewritten by pdf-lib entirely within your browser tab. The document remains in local browser memory from the moment you load it until you download the result. No copy of your file is sent anywhere.

Can I batch-edit metadata for multiple PDFs at once?

The tool processes one PDF at a time. For bulk metadata editing across many files, you would need a desktop application or a scripting approach with a PDF library.

What metadata fields does a typical PDF contain?

Common fields include Title, Author, Subject, Keywords, Creator (the application that authored the document), and Producer (the application that converted or exported it to PDF). The creation date and modification date are also standard fields.

Is there a way to verify that metadata has been removed after I download?

Yes. Open the downloaded PDF in Adobe Acrobat Reader or any viewer that shows document properties (usually under File > Properties or Document Info). The fields you cleared should appear blank. You can also drag the file back into this tool to inspect the current values.

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