A scan can contain a large photograph for every page, even when most of the page is blank. Lowering image detail can make that document easier to send. A PDF made mostly of selectable text is different: rebuilding it as page images may increase its size and remove useful document features.
Know what this compression changes
TableFix's Compress PDF renders each page and builds a new PDF from JPEG page images. You choose the image quality and page resolution. This preserves the visible appearance at the chosen detail level, but flattens selectable text, form fields, links and annotations. Keep the source PDF whenever those features matter.
A smaller output is not guaranteed. An already optimized PDF may be smaller than a new image-based copy. The result message tells you whether the exported file became smaller, so compare the actual file sizes before deciding which version to share.
Start with a readable trial
- Choose your PDF in Compress PDF. If it needs an opening password, enter the current password and use Open preview.
- Start with Detailed · 144 dpi and an image quality around 80%. This is a starting point for a trial, not a guarantee that every scan will be readable.
- Click Compress PDF and download the result. Open a page with the smallest text, a fine chart or a signature, rather than judging only the cover page.
- If the file is still too large, try Balanced · 108 dpi or lower the image quality a little. Change one setting at a time so you can see which tradeoff helped.
- Keep the clearest output that meets your attachment limit. If important details disappear, return to the original instead of repeatedly compressing the last output.
Resolution and quality solve different problems
Page resolution changes how many pixels describe the page. Screen · 72 dpi uses fewer pixels than High · 216 dpi. Small print can become difficult to read at low resolution. Image quality controls JPEG compression; lowering it can introduce rough edges or block-like marks around letters and diagrams.
If a page is legible but larger than necessary, test a moderate quality reduction first. If it is a high-resolution scan intended only for reading on a screen, a lower resolution may save more space. Enlarging a poor source scan cannot recreate detail the camera or scanner did not capture.
Check the purpose of your shared copy
For an online form, check both the file-size limit and whether searchable text or fillable fields are required. For printing, inspect a trial print or a page at the expected viewing size. A file that looks acceptable as a thumbnail can still contain unreadable notes.
If you need searchable English text after compression, OCR PDF can add a recognized text layer, which needs review and may increase the file size. If you only need a few pages, extract those pages first. Removing irrelevant pages can reduce the attachment without degrading the pages you keep.