Given the frequent transfer of PDF files at work and in daily life, compressing file size has become an essential step for PDF files, especially those containing many high-definition images. Compression not only makes your files compatible for sending, it also helps with storage optimization. It means you will get more data space, both for local devices and cloud.
Want to compress PDF to 1 MB or less? To 500 KB, 300 KB, even to 100 KB? Now, read this post to learn 7 PDF compressors. Whether it’s online, offline, free, paid, or built-in tools, you will find them all here.
Cisdem PDF Compressor
Free Download macOS 10.15 or later 
Free Download Windows 11/10/8/7
You are bound to be confused by so many PDF compressors on the market. Some tools focus too much on the result of small size but ignore the quality of files, which makes almost all images in the compressed PDF can not be used normally. On the other hand, some compressors only convert PDF to a slightly smaller size in order to preserve the original quality as much as possible. They usually can’t meet users’ requirements.
Rest assured! Here is a dedicated PDF compress that can keep the best balance between file size and quality, called Cisdem PDF Compressor. The PDF after compression will be small, but still retain the original layout and maximum fidelity.
In the compress setting, you can find 4 personalized modes: small file size (high compression, low quality), medium file size (medium compression, medium quality), large file size (low compression, high quality) and custom mode. Compressing PDF to 1 MB, 500 KB, 300 KB, or even 100 KB is no problem.
Free Download macOS 10.15 or later Free Download Windows 11/10/8/7 
Adobe Acrobat Pro can provide everything you need to work with your PDF files. This highly convenient PDF program is accessible to everyone either on Windows and Mac or even on the browser for free. Some users say it has a complicated learning curve and is not newbie friendly. In fact, Acrobat’s rich tools, multiple ways to open tools and advanced property options are extremely useful for office workers or professionals.
Tips:
We all know that there is more than one way to open tools in Adobe, you can open them from the menu bar, you can operate at the thumbnails, or you can go in from the toolbar. So, let’s add here that you can open the compression tool directly from Tools > Optimize PDF.
Online PDF compressors often bring great convenience, because it saves storage space for application downloads and allows to work on the go. There are various PDF-related online websites that supports compressing PDF to 1 MB or smaller file size for you. We pick DocuPub and iLovePDF here. While they have some limitations in functionality, it's still worth checking out.
DocuPub is one of the intelligent websites that allow you to convert files, compress PDF, combine PDF files into one and resize/scale PDF. The most attractive part of compression feature is the rich and advanced settings, including image settings, discard objects and misc. settings. The backwards are that it can only compress relatively small PDF files to 1 MB or less, and batch conversion is not supported.
It’s easy to find its prominent name on the first page of Google Search. It provides multiple PDF solutions on the web, desktop and even mobile. The compression tool in iLovePDF online offers 3 modes to reduce file size: extreme compression (less quality, high compression), recommended compression (good quality, good compression) and less compression (high quality, less compression).
We tested a 2.1 MB file and it was able to reduce its size by 57% in extreme compression mode. Try it with us if you are interested in this free online PDF compressor:
We can also find offline freeware, some of which are already built into your computer, waiting for you to discover its more useful functions related to PDF. Here we have found easy solutions to compress PDF to 1 MB for Mac and Windows users respectively.
Preview has become a tool that most Apple users can’t live without every day. This is not only an image processor, but also a file compressor. The Mac-only desktop app provides many popular tools you need to work with PDF files without paying. It covers different services like compressing PDF, rearranging pages, adding text to PDF, inserting watermark, adding bookmark, converting PDF, and annotating PDF.
Some Microsoft users may know that MS Word can successfully open and edit PDF files, but I guess few people know that it can also optimize the file size when saving the file. If you have downloaded and installed Microsoft Word on your PC, open your PDF with it and start optimization now.
We have also found software for Windows users that specializes in reducing the file size and supports batch compression. There are 4 modes for text PDF file: best quality, high quality, standard, and smallest file size. What’s more, if your PDF document is protected by password, this utility can automatically remove this restriction.
Features:
Attention: The free version will add a watermark, so if you mind that and don’t want to subscribe to it, you should find a better utility in other parts.
You have got plenty of choices for compressing PDF to 1 MB or less. If you are working on mobile devices, online PDF compressors are quite convenient. Meanwhile, built-in apps like Preview in Mac and Microsoft Word in Windows, can also reduce file size easily. However, if you have higher requirements on PDF compression, such as tailoring the degree of compression, processing multiple files at one go, or hoping a satisfactory result, a cost-effective PDF compressor named Cisdem PDF Compressor is essential.
Carolyn has always been passionate about reading and writing, so she joined Cisdem as an editor as soon as she graduated from university. She focuses on writing how-to articles about PDF editing and conversion.
