How to password-protect a PDF: a step-by-step guide

Uuendatud 2. oktoober 2026

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Protect PDF locks a PDF with a password: without it the file doesn't open. You can also set what someone who opens it may do - print it, edit it, copy its text. The encryption is AES, done on your own device: neither the file nor the password is sent anywhere.

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Lühidalt

  1. Drop your PDF on the page, or press Add files.
  2. Type a password under Password to open, then type it again.
  3. Optionally limit printing, editing and copying under Permissions.
  4. Press Protect PDF: the locked file is saved to your device straight away.

Add the files

Drop the PDF anywhere on the page, or press Add files - one file or several; every file gets the same password. The password covers the whole document, so there are no pages to choose.

Protect PDF with three files in the list and a password typed into the rail

Choose the password

Type the password under Password to open, then the same again in the field under it. The eye in the field shows what you typed. A meter rates the password from Too short to Strong: a long phrase of several words beats a short jumble.

The Password section: the password and its confirmation as dots, the strength meter and the warning to keep the password safe

Keep the password safe. Without it the file cannot be opened, and nobody - including us - can recover it: we never see it.

What readers may do

Permissions set what someone who opened the file may do with it:

  • Printing - Allowed, Low quality only, or Blocked;
  • Editing - Allowed, Comments only, or Blocked;
  • Copying text and images - Allowed or Blocked.
The Permissions section with printing set to low quality and copying blocked

These limits are part of the PDF standard and mainstream readers honour them, but they are not a guarantee against determined tools. If something must not be read at all, the password to open is what protects it - or take it out of the document with Redact PDF.

Owner password and encryption

The Advanced section: the optional owner password and the AES-256 / AES-128 choice
  • Owner password (optional) - a second password, for changing the permissions. Left empty, the password to open is used for this too, which means anyone who can open the file can also lift the restrictions. Set one if the restrictions matter.
  • Encryption - AES-256 is today's standard. Choose AES-128 only for very old readers.

Protect and save

Press Protect PDF. The locked file is saved to your device at once; the button then says Saved and turns into Save, which saves the same file again. Several files are saved together as a ZIP.

The passwords stay in this browser tab only, for as long as it is open: they are never stored and never written into a preset.

Changing or removing a password

A file that already has a password appears in the list in red with a lock. Click it and type its current password; then protect it again with the new one. To take a password off for good, use Unlock PDF.

Limits

Without an account, and with a free one, you can protect two files in a run, each up to 15 MB. With Pro there is no limit on the number or the size, and you can save your permissions and key length as a preset - never the password.

What next?

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