About the PDF reader
This is a PDF reader that runs in your browser. Open a PDF and read it at once: no app to install, no account, no upload. The pages scroll one after the other, like in a desktop reader.
You can zoom, jump to a page, see small pictures of all pages, search for a word, turn the pages dark for reading at night, and read in full screen. The reader also remembers the page where you stopped in each file.
Your file stays on your device. The browser reads it, draws the pages and forgets it when you close the tab.
Features
- Continuous scroll — all pages one under the other, drawn sharp as you reach them
- Zoom — fit the width, fit the whole page, or 50% to 400%, with buttons, keys or Ctrl + mouse wheel
- Page list — small pictures of every page; click one to jump there
- Search with highlights — every match is marked, and the arrows step from one match to the next
- Night and sepia pages — dark pages with light text, or warm paper colour, for long reading
- Full screen — the reader fills the screen, for reading or for showing a document
- Remembers your page — open the same file again and it goes back to where you stopped
- Select and copy text — the text of a normal PDF can be selected and copied
Zoom: which setting to use
| Setting | What it does | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Fit width | The page is as wide as the reader | Reading text on a computer |
| Fit page | The whole page fits on the screen | Slides, forms, posters |
| 100% | The real size of the page on a normal screen | Checking a print layout |
| 150–400% | Bigger than the real size | Small print, plans, maps |
The reader keeps your choice for the next PDF. "Fit width" and "Fit page" follow the window: make the window bigger and the page grows with it.
Night and sepia pages
Night turns white paper dark grey and black text light grey. Colours keep their hue, so a red word stays red and a photo is still readable. It is easier on the eyes in a dark room.
Sepia lays a warm paper colour over the page. Black text stays black, and the white turns cream. Many people find this calmer for long reading.
Both only change how the pages look on your screen. The PDF file does not change. To save a dark copy of a PDF, use Dark Mode PDF.
How the search works
Type a word in the search box. After a short moment the reader looks through every page and marks all matches. The box shows "3 of 12" and jumps to the first match after the page you are on. Press Enter for the next match and Shift + Enter for the one before.
- Upper and lower case do not matter: "Paris" finds "PARIS"
- Accents do not matter: "cafe" finds "café"
- A word split with a hyphen at the end of a line is still found: "example" finds "exam- ple"
A scanned PDF holds only pictures of pages, so there is no text to search. The reader tells you when this happens. Make the text searchable first with OCR PDF, then open the new file here.
Keyboard shortcuts
Click on the pages first, so the reader has the keyboard.
| Key | What it does |
|---|---|
| ← → | Previous / next page |
| + − | Zoom in / out |
| 0 | Fit width |
| Ctrl + F or / | Search |
| Enter, Shift + Enter | Next / previous match (in the search box) |
| T | Show or hide the page list |
| N | Day → night → sepia |
| F | Full screen |
What it remembers, and where
The reader saves two things in your browser's own storage on this device:
- Your settings: zoom, page colours and whether the page list is open;
- The last page of up to 40 files. A file is known by its name and size, so a new copy with the same name and size counts as the same file.
Nothing is sent anywhere. Another browser or another device does not see it. Clearing your browser data removes it.
Good to know
- Password PDFs open when you type the password. To remove the password for good, use Unlock PDF.
- Forms are shown as they are, but you cannot type in them here. Use Fill PDF Form for that.
- Links inside the PDF are not clickable in this reader.
- Very large files (hundreds of MB) need a lot of memory. A phone may be slow with them.
- The first time, the page downloads the free pdf.js engine (made by Mozilla). Your PDF is never sent with it.
Frequently asked questions
Is my PDF uploaded to a server?
No. Your browser reads the file on your device and draws the pages there. Nothing is sent, so private documents, bank statements and contracts are safe to open.
Can I open a PDF with a password?
Yes. The reader asks for the password and opens the file. The password is not saved.
Why does the search find nothing in my PDF?
Your PDF is probably a scan: each page is a picture, with no text inside. Run it through OCR PDF to add a text layer, then search again.
Does it remember where I stopped reading?
Yes. Open the same file again in the same browser, and the reader goes back to your last page. A "Go to page 1" button lets you start from the beginning.
Can it read the PDF aloud?
Yes, on the Read PDF Aloud page. It is the same reader with a voice that reads the text and marks each sentence on the page.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. The page list opens over the pages on small screens, and you scroll the pages with your finger. Full screen works on most phones; on an iPhone the reader fills the browser window instead.
Related tools
- Read PDF Aloud — listen to a PDF and follow the sentence on the page
- EPUB Reader — read EPUB ebooks in your browser
- Dark Mode PDF — save a dark copy of a PDF for reading at night
- PDF to Text — copy all the text out of a PDF
- OCR PDF — make a scanned PDF searchable
- Compress PDF — make a big PDF smaller
How to use it
- Click Open a PDF (or drop the file on the box)
- Scroll down to read; use the arrows or type a page number to jump
- Pick Fit width, Fit page or a percent in the zoom list
- Click the page list button to see all pages, then click one to go there
- Type a word in the search box and press Enter to go from match to match
- Pick Night or Sepia for softer pages, and press the full screen button to read without distractions
