How to Split a PDF Into Separate Pages (Free, No Upload)

When You Only Need Part of a PDF

Someone sends you a 47-page report and you only need pages 12 through 15. Or your bank statement is one giant file and you need to pull out just February. Or you're submitting an application that asks for "page 3 of your passport scan only."

You don't need the whole file. You need a way to extract the pages that matter.

How to Split a PDF in Your Browser

The PDFShift Split tool lets you pull specific pages out of any PDF. It runs entirely in your browser — your file never gets uploaded anywhere.

Here's the process:

1. Drop your PDF onto the upload area
2. Enter page ranges — type something like 1-3, 5, 8-12 to grab exactly those pages
3. Click Split — extraction takes a second or two
4. Download your new PDF containing only the pages you selected

That's it. No account, no email address, no "free trial" tricks.

Page Range Syntax

The split tool accepts flexible page ranges:

• Single pages: 3 grabs just page 3
• Ranges: 5-10 grabs pages 5 through 10
• Mixed: 1, 3-5, 8 grabs pages 1, 3, 4, 5, and 8
• All pages: leave it blank to split every page into its own file

This covers most real-world scenarios. Pull out a signature page, extract a chapter, or isolate a single form from a packet.

Real Scenarios Where Splitting Saves You

Job Applications

Many application portals accept one PDF upload with a strict size limit. If your resume, cover letter, and references are in a single combined file but the portal only wants the resume, split it out.

Legal Document Review

Contracts often run dozens of pages. When you need your lawyer to review only the indemnification clause on pages 14-16, send just those pages instead of the entire agreement. Less reading, faster turnaround.

Student Submissions

Your professor wants "Chapter 3 only" as a separate upload. Split your thesis PDF at the chapter boundary and submit exactly what's asked for.

Tax Preparation

Your accountant needs W-2s separated from 1099s. If your tax software exported everything as one file, split it into the individual forms they need.

Split Then Compress: A Powerful Combo

Splitting a PDF naturally reduces file size since you're removing pages. But if the remaining pages still contain heavy images or embedded fonts, run the result through the Compress tool for additional savings.

This two-step approach is often more effective than compression alone. A 47-page, 30MB report might drop to 3 pages at 2MB after splitting — and under 1MB after compression.

What About Splitting Into Individual Pages?

Sometimes you need every page as its own file — for example, when scanning a batch of receipts that your expense system needs uploaded one at a time.

The Split tool handles this too. Instead of specifying page ranges, select the "split all pages" option. You'll get separate PDF files for each page, downloaded together.

Privacy: Nothing Leaves Your Device

This is the part that matters most if you're splitting contracts, medical records, financial statements, or any document you wouldn't post on a billboard.

PDFShift processes your file locally using your browser's built-in capabilities. The PDF never touches a remote server — not even temporarily. No one at PDFShift (or anywhere else) can see your document.

Compare that to online services that require you to upload your file to their cloud, where it sits on someone else's server for anywhere from minutes to "we'll delete it eventually."

Splitting vs. Printing to PDF

Some people try to "split" by opening a PDF in their viewer, printing specific pages, and choosing "Save as PDF." This works in a pinch, but it re-renders the content, which can change fonts, shift layouts, and bloat the file size.

The Split tool preserves the original PDF structure — fonts, vector graphics, form fields, and all. The extracted pages are identical to the originals, byte for byte.

Works on Any Device

The Split tool runs in any modern browser — Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge — on desktop, tablet, or phone. No app downloads, no browser extensions. If you can open a web page, you can split a PDF.

For other PDF tasks, check out the Merge tool to combine files or the Rotate tool to fix sideways pages.