Linearize PDF
Linearise PDFs for Fast Web View with qpdf running in your browser, so the first page can appear before the whole file downloads. Up to 10 files at once.
Upload PDF Files
About This Tool
Linearize PDF rewrites a PDF in linearised form, which viewers call Fast Web View, using the open-source qpdf engine in your browser. The first page's data goes at the start of the file with a guide to the rest, so a viewer reading from a web server can show that page before the download finishes.
The gain only appears when a file is opened over the web from a server that supports byte-range requests, in a viewer that reads the file progressively. A file opened from disk or sent as an email attachment behaves much as before. Several submission specifications, including those of the FDA, EMA and ICH, ask for PDFs optimised for fast web view; How to Prepare PDFs for Regulatory Submissions covers the rest of that checklist.
Pages, text and images are not changed: qpdf reorders the objects inside the file and adds hint data for viewers. The size usually changes a little either way, and the result panel shows the original and new sizes; its page count is an estimate and can be wrong. Make linearisation the last step, because most editing tools save files without it, and note that the file is rewritten, so a digital signature in the original will no longer verify. View Metadata reports whether a file is linearised.
You can add up to 10 files. One file downloads as its name with _linearized added; several come back in a single ZIP, and a file that fails is left out of it, so check the count. The Use object streams checkbox is shown but not currently passed to qpdf, which keeps each file's existing setting. Files that need a password to open must first be unlocked with Decrypt PDF. Nothing is uploaded.
How to Use
Add your PDFs
Drop up to 10 PDFs on the upload area or click to browse. Each one appears in the Selected Files list, where it can be removed.
Leave the option as it is
The Use object streams checkbox does not change the output in the current version, so there is nothing to set.
Linearise
Click Linearize PDF. Files are processed one after another, with a progress bar.
Download and confirm
Save the PDF or the ZIP, then confirm Fast Web View with View Metadata or your viewer's document properties.
Use Cases
PDFs published on a website
Linearise reports and leaflets that readers open in the browser from your site, so the first page appears while the rest loads.
Final step before a submission
Run finished files through linearisation last, when a regulatory specification asks for fast web view.
Long manuals on an intranet
Make large procedure manuals hosted on an internal server start displaying sooner for staff who open them over the network.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does linearising change in the file?
The order and indexing of the objects inside it, plus some hint data that viewers use. Page content, text and images stay the same.
Will my PDF open faster?
Only when it is opened from a web server that supports byte-range requests, in a viewer that reads linearised files progressively. Opened from your own disk, there is little or no difference.
Does linearising make the file smaller?
Not as a rule; the size usually changes a little either way. If size matters, run Compress PDF first and linearise as the final step.
Why does the object streams option make no difference?
In the current version the setting is not passed to qpdf, which keeps whatever object stream layout the file already had.
Can I linearise a password-protected or signed PDF?
A file that needs a password to open must be unlocked with Decrypt PDF first; files with only permission restrictions are processed and keep them. A signed file is rewritten, so its signature will no longer verify. Linearise before signing.
How can I check the result?
Open the file in View Metadata, which reports whether it is linearised, or look for Fast Web View in your PDF viewer's document properties.