PDF Medic OnlineRepair a damaged PDF
Fix a PDF that won’t open or shows errors — and see honestly what could be saved.
Files never leave your device
How to Repair PDF
- Choose the PDF, or drop it on the box above, even if no other app will open it.
- Press Repair PDF.
- Read the message: it tells you how the file was saved and what to check.
- Press Download and look through the new file, which ends in “-repaired”. Your original is not changed.
What the repair tries, in order
A PDF is made of many pieces (pages, fonts, pictures) plus an index at the end that tells a reader where each piece starts. Most damaged files have a broken index or are missing their end, often because a download or an email attachment stopped part-way. The tool tries four things, from the gentlest to the last resort, and stops at the first that works:
- A clean rewrite: the file is read and written out again with a fresh index. Small faults are fixed on the way.
- Reading piece by piece: if the index can’t be trusted, the file is read from start to end without it, and a new file is written from what was found.
- Rebuilding from the pieces: for a cut-off file, every complete piece is kept, the pages are gathered into a new page list, and a new file is built around them.
- Saving pages as pictures: if nothing else works, the tool draws every page a PDF viewer can still show and saves each one as a picture at 200 dots per inch.
What the result message means, and what to check
- “This file was fine — saved a clean copy”: nothing was wrong with how the file is put together. If it still fails in one app, try the clean copy there, or open it in another app; the problem may be the app, or the content may always have been that way.
- “Repaired” with “Small faults were fixed”: the file had minor errors and was rewritten cleanly. The content should all be there; a quick look through is enough.
- “The file’s index was broken; the pages were gathered and the file rebuilt”: check every page. Compare the page count with what you expect. A page whose pieces were lost may come back blank or without some pictures or text, and bookmarks, form fields or the document title may not come back.
- “The file could only be saved as pictures of its pages”: you can read and print the pages, but the text can no longer be selected, copied or searched, and links are gone. A note may also say how many pages could not be recovered at all.
- “This file is too damaged to repair: no page could be recovered”: no page could be found or drawn. The pages are most likely not in the file at all.
When repair can’t help
Repair can only rescue what is inside the file. If a download stopped half-way, the missing half was never saved, so no tool can bring it back. A file that is far smaller than it should be is a sign of this. The best fix is to download it again, or ask the sender for a fresh copy, and use the repaired file in the meantime.
Some files only look like PDFs: a web page or an error message saved with a .pdf name, for example. They contain no pages, so they can’t be repaired.
A PDF that needs a password to open is refused: remove the password first with Unlock PDF, using the password you know. If the file was digitally signed, the repaired copy is a new file and its signature won’t check out, so keep the original if you may need to prove it is authentic.
Everything happens in your browser: your file is never uploaded to any server. You can check: once your file is open, turn on airplane mode — the tool still works.
Questions
Why won’t my PDF open?
Usually the file was cut off during a download or transfer, or its index was damaged when it was saved. Try Repair PDF; if the message says the pages were rebuilt or saved as pictures, check them carefully.
Can you repair a PDF that is 0 KB?
No. A 0 KB file is empty: nothing was saved in it, so there is nothing to recover. Look for another copy, for example in your email or downloads.
Will the repaired file still have selectable text?
Yes, unless the message says the file could only be saved as pictures. In that case the pages are pictures and the text can’t be selected.
Is the repaired file exactly the same as the original?
It is a new file written from what could be read. After a clean rewrite the content is the same; after a rebuild some parts may be missing. The message after repair tells you which happened.
The file says it is damaged and can’t be repaired. What now?
The pages are most likely not in the file. Download it again, or ask the sender for a fresh copy. If you have an older copy, for example in your email, try that one.
Is my file uploaded?
No. Repair PDF runs in your browser on your own device. The file is never sent to our server or anyone else. Once your file is open you can even turn on airplane mode.
Is it free?
Yes. No sign-up, no limits on how many files, and no watermark is added to your file.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes, in any modern browser on iPhone, Android, Mac, Windows or Linux. Very large files work best on a computer, because a phone browser has less memory.