Why PDFs fail to send via email
Email providers enforce strict message-size limits. Even if one provider supports a larger attachment, the recipient’s server might reject it.
- Make PDFs small enough to attach and send (no signup, no watermark)
- Choose Compact (better quality) or Rasterize (smallest size)
- Works on desktop + mobile (iPhone/Android)
- Built for real-world limits: Outlook/Exchange can be as low as ~10–20MB
- Fast results: compress → download → attach
Email-ready PDFs in minutes
Start with Compact for quality. If you must hit a hard limit, use Rasterize.
Then attach the compressed PDF and send.
Open CompressorHow to compress a PDF for email (3 steps)
1) Upload your PDF
Drag & drop your file into the compressor (TLS encrypted transfer).
2) Choose Compact or Rasterize
Use Compact first for quality. Use Rasterize when you need a much smaller PDF.
3) Download & attach
Download the smaller PDF and attach it to your email.
Smart PDF Compression
- Guaranteed Size Reduction
- Smart Mode: Preserves Text (Vectors)
- Force Mode: Flattens to printable images
Drop your PDF here
We'll analyze it to see how much we can compress.
Compress PDF for Email — FAQs
What PDF size is best for emailing?
Aim for a small size like 1MB or 500KB for maximum compatibility. Some accounts (especially business/Exchange) can reject larger attachments, even if Gmail supports higher totals.
What are common email attachment limits (Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo)?
Gmail allows 25MB total attachments but may turn larger files into Drive links. Many Outlook/internet accounts are around 20MB total email size, and some business Exchange accounts default to ~10MB. Yahoo Mail attachments total 25MB.
How do I compress a PDF for email without losing quality?
Start with Compact mode (retain-PDF). It preserves text and vector graphics while optimizing images and removing unnecessary data.
My PDF is still too big—what should I do?
Switch to Rasterize mode and lower quality/DPI gradually. If the file is scanned/image-heavy, Rasterize usually achieves much smaller sizes.
Is my PDF uploaded to your servers?
Yes for compression. Your PDF is transferred over encrypted TLS to our compression backend and Adobe PDF Services for processing. Avoid uploading extremely sensitive documents to any online tool.
More compression targets + tools
If you’re emailing for a strict limit, use a target page:
Or keep working: