Compare two PDFs
Line up two PDFs and walk through the differences page by page. You stop having to flip between windows or open a diff desktop app when a teammate sends a revised file.
Compare PDFs
See exactly what changed between two versions.
Drop the old PDF and the new PDF. We highlight every word, image, and page that changed — in red for removed, green for added. Free, no signup.
Start here
Upload your file to start
Supported formats: Two PDF inputs compared side by side, text and structure diff report.
PDFSingle file
Upload the first PDF to compare
Drag and drop or click to browse. Pdf Clarity opens the compare tool with your first PDF staged as Document A.
Drop files anywhere inside this panel.Processed locally — we never keep it.
What happens next
Your file opens in the matching tool so you can edit, convert, or export it without uploading it a second time.
- No signup
- No watermarks
- Files deleted after 1 hour
Encrypted upload. Deleted in an hour. Never shared. Never trained on. Ever.
ISO/IEC 27001 (in progress)
GDPR compliant
TLS 1.3
Files deleted after 1 hour
No signup required
How to compare two PDFs, end to end.
Three clicks from a dropzone on this page to a clean diff report in your browser. You never leave the tab.
Drop the old PDF.
Drag the earlier version onto this page, or click to browse. It uploads encrypted as Document A. We can't see it.Drop the new PDF.
Drop the newer version into the Document B slot. We line the two up and run the diff the moment both are in.Read the diff. Save it if you want.
Red means removed, green means added. Walk through every changed page. Download a plain-text or JSON summary if you need a record.
What you can actually do on this page.
Four honest moves you can finish in the browser you're already in. No Adobe, no signup, no half-features held behind a paywall.
Red for removed, green for added.
Every changed word, image, and page is called out in color so you can scan the differences in seconds. No hunting through two tabs.
Side-by-side pages.
Walk through both PDFs one aligned page at a time. Spot the moved signature or swapped paragraph without flipping windows.
Text, metadata, and structure.
We flag text edits, metadata shifts, and page-structure differences in one report. Three tools in one view.
Save the diff.
Download a plain-text or JSON summary of every difference for your records. Good for contract redlines and audit trails.
Why people choose Pdf Clarity
Private by default
Your PDFs are transferred over TLS and deleted within one hour. We don't look at them, and you don't need an account.
Fast and free
Editing, annotating, signing, merging and splitting are free with no signup. Your first upload opens the editor in seconds.
Works in any browser
Open the editor in Chrome, Safari, Firefox or Edge on Mac, Windows, Linux or Chromebook. You never install anything.
More ways to compare PDFs
Find differences in PDFs
See text, metadata, and structural differences without deep-diving every page yourself. You get a changed-versus-unchanged summary before you open individual pages.
Version diff for PDFs
Compare the v1 and v2 of the same PDF when you need to know exactly what the latest round of edits changed. Your diff report lists every page where the two versions diverge.
Contract redline check
Compare a signed contract against a clean version to confirm nothing else was altered. You keep a record of the differences in case you need to come back to them later.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers to what people ask us most about editing a PDF online for free. Tap any question and the answer expands inline.
Does it catch text changes, or layout changes, or both?
Both. The report flags text edits on pages with selectable text, plus metadata and page-structure differences. One view covers all three.
Can I compare two versions of a contract?
Yes. Drop the earlier version in the Document A slot and the newer version in Document B. The diff shows every change so you can confirm what was touched.
Will the compared PDFs get a watermark?
Never. Not on free, not on Pro, not ever.
Does it work on a scanned PDF?
The text diff needs selectable text. Run OCR on the scan first (free, linked below) so the pages carry real text, then come back here to compare.
Can I download the diff?
Yes. Export a plain-text or JSON summary of every difference. Good for redline records, audit trails, or just to keep alongside the signed copy.
Is it really free? What's the catch?
There isn't one. Comparing, merging, editing, signing — all free. No signup, no watermark, no trial timer.
What happens to my files after I'm done?
Both PDFs are deleted within one hour of upload. Encrypted in transit and at rest. Never read by a human, never shared, never used to train anything.
Does it work on an iPad, Chromebook, or phone?
Yes. Any browser — Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge. A laptop is easier for long documents, but the compare runs on anything.
Related PDF tools
PDF Editor
Switch into the editor when the diff tells you which file needs a cleanup before you send or archive it.
Merge PDF
Combine the two versions into one packet when your real job is archiving both rather than diffing them.
Redact PDF
Move into redaction when your compare flags private data that needs to disappear from one of the files.
Learn more
Ready to keep reading? You can go deeper on common tasks in the help center articles below.
- Compare two PDFsSee the fastest browser path for lining up your two PDFs and reading the diff report.
- Edit a PDF without AdobeCompare the in-browser workflow with the desktop suites you might already use for diffs.
- Redact a PDFMove into redaction when your compare highlights private data that needs to disappear from one file.
You can also browse all PDF tools from the tools hub.