Learning how to edit PDF metadata on Mac is essential for efficient document management. It describes the hidden information of a file, such as its title, author, time and date of creation. These details can make PDF files easier to search and sort.
This article will give step-by-step tutorials on how to edit PDF metadata on Mac and Windows, including offline and online free solutions.
Cisdem PDFMaster
Free Download macOS 11 or later 
Free Download Windows 11/10/8/7
Metadata is an integral part of PDF files. Many PDF editors enable users to view the attributes of PDF files, but don’t support them to change the file metadata. Here we recommend 3 desktop PDF software to help edit PDF metadata easily.
Among 3 excellent PDF metadata editors, Cisdem PDFMaster is the most cost-effective and light-weight one.
It is an all-embracing PDF editor that can edit all the text, images, links, form fields, annotations and measurement marks in a PDF, even modify the metadata about PDF.
When used as a PDF metadata editor, this software lets you check the document properties and see if there are any restrictions imposed on the PDF. Some basic facts about the PDF like file name and size, page size, page count, the file title/subject/keywords/author, created date and last modified date are displayed clearly. If necessary, it takes only few steps to edit and remove these metadata.
Free Download macOS 11 or later Free Download Windows 11/10/8/7
Adobe Acrobat is a powerful and full-featured PDF editor. You can do all your PDF work including editing, signing and converting with Adobe Acrobat.
However, its free version--Adobe Acrobat Reader can only help you view the document properties, it will fail to edit or remove the descriptive metadata within the fields. To change the PDF metadata successfully, you have to pay a high cost for its Pro version.
Foxit PDF Editor is a leading PDF editing solution in the world. It offers a clear and user-friendly Ribbon-style toolbar--similar to the Microsoft Office's, which greatly shortens the users' learning curve. With Foxit PDF Editor, you can easily create and edit your PDF, as well as changing PDF metadata.
In addition to downloading software, you can also choose online PDF metadata editors. The biggest advantage is that you can start editing anytime and anywhere with a stable Internet connection.
However, it is worth mentioning that you should not upload private files or files containing confidential information, as online PDF tools pose a risk of disclosure. Here we’ve picked out 3 well-reviewed online tools to edit PDF metadata from Google rankings.
Sejda is a productive online PDF editing tool, where files are uploaded and processed on the third party servers. The imported files will be automatically deleted after 2 hours. With its built-in Edit PDF Metadata tool, you can change PDF author, title, keywords, subject, and other metadata fields effortlessly.
It is free to use with daily limits:
PDF Candy is a simple and fast solution that allows you to edit or remove PDF metadata free of charge. You can modify such PDF metadata values as author, title, subject, keywords, created and modified dates in no time. But same as Sejda, you’re asked for a sign up and web subscription for no hourly file limits and high priority processing.
2PDF.com has offered users several basic functionalities to cope with PDF files. All of them are simple to use and cost free. However, there are many huge annoying commercial ads on its web page, which extremely mars the overall positive user experience.
For those pursuing a comfortable experience and advanced practices, this online meta editor is not ideal.
The answer is no, we can’t edit PDF metadata on Mac using Preview app.
We all know Preview is a default program for PDF and image viewing on macOS. It does let users to check the general information, keywords and encryption about a PDF. But there is no option to modify these details.
If you want to change the PDF metadata on Mac, another built-in program on Mac can be helpful, named Automator.
The process of editing PDF metadata is absolutely free, and you don’t need to download anything.
Simply put, PDF metadata is data about a PDF file. It summarizes a lot of additional information about a PDF document, including but not limited to the following:
In summary, PDF metadata refers to properties of a PDF file that identify what that PDF is about.
For easy access, PDF is becoming increasingly common in everyday life. Each of you probably has stored hundreds of PDF files on your computer. Once the file is not named correctly or you forget the file name, it can take lots of time to find a particular file.
But with PDF metadata, you can quickly find the target file if you know the file's title, author, subject, keywords or any other descriptive items that you had added to that PDF. The same is true when you search for a file on the Internet. The more keywords you enter, the easier it will be to locate the PDF file.
Up to now, we have introduced 7 efficient ways to edit PDF metadata on Mac and Windows, Some require a download and installment, while others offer an instant web service. A majority prefer online free services in the beginning, but find them fall short of their expectation and turn to desktop applications eventually.
Taking all the factors into consideration, Cisdem PDFMaster must be the best one, which gives users a safe and stable environment to edit PDF metadata and enables to do much more with PDF files than the online tools.
Free Download macOS 11 or later Free Download Windows 11/10/8/7
Earlier than macOS 11, click here
Bianca is a senior tech editor and strategist at Cisdem with Over 10 years of experience on PDF related solutions which covers all document editing, annotating, converting and managing etc.
