What “without losing quality” means
With the “Basic” level, which is already selected, the PDF is reorganized internally and unnecessary data is removed, but the content isn't touched: text stays as text, can be selected and copied, and links keep working.
The trade-off is that it reduces less. For PDFs created from Word or similar programs, it's usually enough. For scanned documents or ones with lots of photos, the size is in the images, and to really reduce it you need to lower their resolution with “Recommended”.
Which one to use for your document
- Contracts, invoices or documents made in Word: “Basic”.
- Scanned documents to send by email: “Recommended”. Quality is still good for reading on screen and printing at home.
- Only if you need the smallest possible size: “Extreme”.
How to use it
- Choose your PDF.
- Keep the “Basic” level to leave the text intact.
- Click “Compress PDF” and compare the size before and after.
Frequently asked questions
Why does “Basic” reduce so little?
Because it doesn't modify images or text, only how they're stored. If your PDF is heavy because of photos or scans, you'll need “Recommended”.
Is “Recommended” noticeably worse?
On screen and when printing at home, hardly ever. You'll notice if you zoom in a lot or need to select text, which is no longer possible.
Related guide: How to email a PDF that's too large
Related searches: Compress PDF to 1 MB