What PDF metadata can this viewer read?

It reads supported entries in the standard PDF Info dictionary and supported fields in the catalog-level XMP stream. It also reports page count, PDF version, and conservative digital-signature markers.

Does the PDF leave my device?

No. Reading, rewriting, and re-scanning run in a local browser worker. The tool does not send the filename, PDF bytes, metadata values, or a file hash to a processing API.

What happens to a digitally signed PDF?

Any rewrite invalidates the existing digital signature. The remover detects common signature structures conservatively, explains the consequence, and requires explicit consent. It does not validate the signer or certificate.

Can it process password-protected PDFs?

No. Encrypted and password-protected PDFs fail closed and remain unchanged. Password entry and decryption are outside this local tool's current scope.

Does removing metadata make a PDF safe?

No. Metadata removal is not PDF sanitization. Scripts, actions, forms, attachments, annotations, hidden page content, redactions, and embedded files require a separate hardening workflow.

What are the current file limits?

The tool processes one PDF at a time, up to 25 MB. Malformed PDFs, files that require structural recovery, and encrypted PDFs are rejected without creating an output.

Can this viewer tell me who created a PDF?

It can show you what the file claims: the contents of Author, Creator, Producer, and the matching XMP fields, exactly as they are stored. That is different from establishing who actually made the document. These fields can be empty, filled with an unrelated account name, or edited after the fact, and nothing in a plain PDF certifies them. Treat the values as leads worth checking, never as proof of identity or authorship.

Can I see the EXIF of images embedded in a PDF?

No. Metadata stored inside embedded files, such as EXIF in a photo placed on a page or properties of an attached spreadsheet, belongs to those inner objects, not to the PDF's document properties. This viewer does not open them. To inspect a photo's EXIF, extract or locate the original image and check it with an image metadata viewer, such as the one on this site.

Why does it flag a signature but not name the signer?

The signature indicator comes from conservative structure detection: the viewer looks for common digital-signature constructs in the file and reports their presence, and that is where it stops. Parsing the embedded certificate, naming the signer, and verifying that the signature is cryptographically valid all require trust-chain validation this local tool deliberately does not perform. Use Acrobat or another verifier when the signature itself matters.

Private, read-only PDF inspection

PDF metadata viewer

Inspect document properties and catalog XMP in your browser. See supported author, title, dates, software, rights, and signature markers without uploading or modifying the PDF.

Runs in your browser
No file upload
Read-only inspection

Local PDF metadata viewer

Ready for a PDFFree · no signup

Choose one PDF to inspect supported document properties and catalog XMP locally. The viewer does not create or modify a copy.

Drop one PDF here

or choose a PDF from your device

PDF onlyOne file, up to 25 MB

On-device WebAssembly

No file upload

Read-only metadata check

4 source-traceable PDF fixtures · 18 cross-browser page checks

View test evidence

Batch PDF workspace

Audit several PDF property records locally

Inspect up to five PDFs sequentially in a local WebAssembly worker and export a value-free audit report.

Add batch documents

Up to 5 PDFs · 25 MB each · files stay on this device

What the PDF metadata viewer reads

Document properties and XMP, shown separately

PDF metadata can exist in more than one location. This viewer checks the standard trailer Info dictionary and the catalog-level XMP metadata stream instead of treating one field list as the whole file.

Document properties

Title, author, subject, keywords, creator application, producer, dates, and other supported entries from the PDF Info dictionary.

Catalog XMP

Supported Dublin Core, Adobe PDF, XMP, rights, and location fields from the catalog Metadata stream.

Read-only result

The viewer displays supported values, PDF version, page count, and conservative signature markers without writing a new file.

What each PDF property field actually means

Checking PDF properties is more useful when you know who typically writes each field and why. This guide walks through the entries the viewer shows, from descriptive text to software identifiers, dates, and structural markers, so a filled-in value reads as information instead of noise.

Title / Subject / Keywords

Title, Subject, and Keywords: descriptive fields

These three exist to describe the document for search and cataloguing, but in practice software fills them automatically. Title often ends up holding the original filename, sometimes a revealing one like contract_v7_final_FINAL, while Subject and Keywords may carry leftover template text. Reading them tells you less about the document's topic than about how carelessly it was exported. Empty values here are common and unremarkable.

Author

Author: the field people forget to check

Author is the property most likely to surprise the person who made the file. Creating software typically copies it from the operating-system or application account name, which may be a real name, a nickname, an employer-issued ID, or someone else entirely if the document started from a colleague's template. When you view a PDF's author here, you are seeing what that software recorded, displayed read-only and never edited.

Creator / Producer

Creator versus Producer: application and converter

The two software fields answer different questions. Creator names the application the document was authored in, such as a word processor or design tool; Producer names the engine that generated the PDF bytes, such as a print driver or export library. Together, and often with version numbers, they sketch the toolchain a file passed through. This is useful context when you assess where a PDF really came from.

CreationDate / ModDate

CreationDate and ModDate: the file's own timeline

The date fields record when the PDF was generated and last modified, usually including a timezone offset. Comparing them with a document's claimed timeline can be informative: a report dated last year but created yesterday, or a modification stamp after the stated sign-off, invites questions. The timezone offset can also hint at where the exporting machine was configured, which is worth knowing before you forward a file.

Pages / Version / Signature

Page count, version, and signature markers

Not everything the viewer reports is personal metadata. Page count and PDF version describe the file's structure, and the signature indicator is a conservative marker: it means a common digital-signature structure was found, nothing more. The viewer does not parse the certificate, identify the signer, or validate whether the signature is intact. Treat the marker as a reason to check the file in dedicated signature software.

Exact capability boundary

Removing PDF metadata is not the same as hardening a PDF

This tool has a deliberately narrow, testable promise. It handles standard document properties and catalog XMP only. A security hardening workflow would need separate rules, previews, and evidence.

Included here

Inspect the PDF trailer Info dictionary.
Inspect the catalog-level XMP metadata stream.
Display supported fields without modifying the file.
Run the file workflow locally in a browser Web Worker.

Not included

No claim of PDF sanitization or security hardening.
No removal of scripts, actions, attachments, forms, or annotations.
No search for hidden text, redactions, layers, or metadata inside embedded files.
No processing of encrypted or password-protected PDFs.

A visible local workflow

View PDF metadata in three steps

The viewer keeps inspection read-only and makes its narrow scope visible in the result.

01
Choose one PDF
Select a PDF up to 25 MB or use the fictional in-memory sample.
02
Inspect locally
A browser worker reads the PDF structure, document properties, XMP, page count, and signature markers.
03
Review the fields and limits
See supported values grouped by source while keeping the original file unchanged.

Reviewing a PDF before it changes hands

A read-only viewer fits naturally at two moments: when a file arrives and you want to understand it, and just before one leaves and you want no surprises in it. Nothing here modifies the PDF, so checking properties first costs nothing and changes nothing.

Incoming contracts and reports: know the provenance

When a contract, invoice, or report lands in your inbox, its document properties offer quick context the sender may not have thought about: which application authored it, which engine produced the PDF, and when. If those details clash with the cover story, for instance a scanned original that turns out to be a fresh word-processor export, you know to ask more questions before acting on the file.

Outgoing files: check before they represent you

Before a PDF goes to a client, a landlord, or a public website, spend a minute confirming that its properties match what you intend to disclose. Is the Author a name you are comfortable attaching? Do the dates fit the story the document tells? A quick read-only pass either clears the file for sending or tells you it needs a cleaned copy first.

Info and XMP can disagree: read both

A PDF's properties live in two places: the trailer Info dictionary and the catalog XMP stream. Editing tools do not always keep them synchronized. An application may update one location and leave a stale author or date in the other. That is why this viewer presents the two sources separately: a field that looks empty in one panel can still hold a value in the other.

PDF metadata questions

Clear answers before you inspect or remove

The important part is knowing what the tool can prove, what rewriting changes, and where a separate security workflow is still required.

What PDF metadata can this viewer read?: It reads supported entries in the standard PDF Info dictionary and supported fields in the catalog-level XMP stream. It also reports page count, PDF version, and conservative digital-signature markers.
Does the PDF leave my device?: No. Reading, rewriting, and re-scanning run in a local browser worker. The tool does not send the filename, PDF bytes, metadata values, or a file hash to a processing API.
What happens to a digitally signed PDF?: Any rewrite invalidates the existing digital signature. The remover detects common signature structures conservatively, explains the consequence, and requires explicit consent. It does not validate the signer or certificate.
Can it process password-protected PDFs?: No. Encrypted and password-protected PDFs fail closed and remain unchanged. Password entry and decryption are outside this local tool's current scope.
Does removing metadata make a PDF safe?: No. Metadata removal is not PDF sanitization. Scripts, actions, forms, attachments, annotations, hidden page content, redactions, and embedded files require a separate hardening workflow.
What are the current file limits?: The tool processes one PDF at a time, up to 25 MB. Malformed PDFs, files that require structural recovery, and encrypted PDFs are rejected without creating an output.
Can this viewer tell me who created a PDF?: It can show you what the file claims: the contents of Author, Creator, Producer, and the matching XMP fields, exactly as they are stored. That is different from establishing who actually made the document. These fields can be empty, filled with an unrelated account name, or edited after the fact, and nothing in a plain PDF certifies them. Treat the values as leads worth checking, never as proof of identity or authorship.
Can I see the EXIF of images embedded in a PDF?: No. Metadata stored inside embedded files, such as EXIF in a photo placed on a page or properties of an attached spreadsheet, belongs to those inner objects, not to the PDF's document properties. This viewer does not open them. To inspect a photo's EXIF, extract or locate the original image and check it with an image metadata viewer, such as the one on this site.
Why does it flag a signature but not name the signer?: The signature indicator comes from conservative structure detection: the viewer looks for common digital-signature constructs in the file and reports their presence, and that is where it stops. Parsing the embedded certificate, naming the signer, and verifying that the signature is cryptographically valid all require trust-chain validation this local tool deliberately does not perform. Use Acrobat or another verifier when the signature itself matters.

Need a metadata-removed copy?

Open PDF Metadata Remover to inspect the same two metadata locations, rewrite a new copy, and verify the result.

Open PDF Metadata Remover