“Split a PDF” describes at least five different jobs. The useful question is not which button to press but what decides where the cuts go: page numbers you already know, a repeating page count, the document’s own bookmarks, the text printed on each page, or a file-size ceiling.
Pick the method first. The rest of the split — names, bookmarks, ZIP — takes care of itself.
Step by step
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1
Upload your PDF
Drag your PDF onto the box or click Choose file. It is sent over an encrypted connection and only used for this task.
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2
Set the options
Adjust ranges (one group per line), file name pattern and discard bookmarks. Every field has a sensible default, so you can usually run the tool straight away.
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3
Run it and download
Press Split by pages and the page shows progress while it works. When it finishes you get a download link — nothing is emailed and nothing is stored longer than it needs to be.
Five ways to split, and when each one fits
- By range — you know the page numbers, such as chapters 1–12, 13–24, 25–end. Split by pages returns one PDF per range.
- Every N pages — tickets, forms or statements repeat on a fixed rhythm. Split every N pages makes one file per run without typing ranges.
- By bookmarks — the document already has an outline. Split by bookmarks follows it and names each part from its title.
- By text — statements say “Invoice” or chapters begin with a heading. Split by text previews the matches before cutting.
- By size — an upload form cares about kilobytes, not pages. Split by size packs the most pages that fit under the limit.
Give every part a name you can recognise
A folder of document-1.pdf through
document-14.pdf is technically split and practically
useless. Use the file-name pattern field: include the basename, the
part number and, for ranges, the page the part ends on. A pattern
such as [BASENAME]-pages-[CURRENTPAGE] gives every
invoice a name you can match to its contents without opening it.
The split parts download together as a ZIP. Unzip them into a folder named after the original document, not into a shared downloads pile where the next split will collide with them.
Check the cuts before you delete the source
Open the first and last part and compare their page counts with the ranges you asked for. If the source had bookmarks, open the contents panel in one part to make sure the outline points inside that part rather than at pages that no longer exist. A split cannot repair a bookmark that was already broken, but it should not make a good outline worse.
Keep the original until the parts have been opened, named and accepted. The split is a copy — the source is the only backup you have if the ranges were wrong.
Good habits for Split by pages
- Page thumbnails are tap-friendly, so you can reorder and delete on a phone.
- Every tool works on a copy — your original file is never modified.
- Use Split by text when a document has no bookmarks to split on.
Common questions
Is this tool free?
Yes. Every tool on this site is free to use, with no sign-up, no watermark and no daily task limit.
Do I need to install anything?
No. The tools run in your browser and are processed by this server.
What happens to my files?
They are stored under an unguessable id and swept automatically after a couple of hours. Nothing is shared or indexed.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. The page pickers and editors are built for touch, so dragging, rotating and selecting pages all work without a mouse.
What does Split by pages do exactly?
Split specific page ranges, or every page into a separate document.
Will splitting keep the PDF bookmarks?
Bookmarks that point at pages inside each part are carried over where the document structure allows it. Check the contents panel of one part; broken links in the source cannot be repaired by the split itself.
Can I split a scanned PDF?
Yes, by page range or every N pages. Splitting by text needs a real text layer, so run OCR first if the scan is unsearchable.
What if I only need one page?
Use Extract Pages instead of a split. It keeps the pages you choose and returns a single new PDF.