A locked PDF carries an encryption dictionary and a set of permission flags. Unlock PDF decrypts the file with the password you supply and writes a plain copy with the flags cleared, so Acrobat Reader, Preview and browser viewers stop asking for a password and no longer grey out print, copy or edit. Pages, fonts, images, bookmarks and form fields are copied as they are; the result is a normal PDF.

PDF locks come in two kinds, and the difference decides what you need to type. An open password (Acrobat calls it a document open password or user password) encrypts the whole file; nothing displays until the password is entered. A permissions password (owner password) leaves the file readable but tells the viewer to disable printing, text copying, editing or commenting. Bank statements, payslips and insurer letters usually carry the first kind. Vendor manuals, exam papers and downloaded reports usually carry the second, which is why they open fine yet refuse to print or let you copy a paragraph.

If the file asks for a password when you open it, type that password into the PDF password field before you start the task; the tool decrypts the file with it and saves a copy that no longer asks. If the file opens on its own but the print or copy commands are greyed out, leave the field empty and run the tool: the owner restrictions are removed without a password. The tool cannot recover a password you do not know, and a rejected password ends the task with an error message. The Remove Password from PDF page opens this same tool, and our guide on how to unlock a PDF covers bank statements, Acrobat and Preview step by step.

Unlocking is usually the first step in a job, not the last. Once the restrictions are gone, Merge PDF will accept the file alongside others, OCR PDF can read a scanned statement, PDF to Word can turn a contract back into editable text, and PDF Editor lets you fill fields or add notes that the lock blocked before. When the edited file goes back out, put a fresh password on it with Protect PDF, or black out account numbers first with Redact PDF. The rest of the set is listed under Security.

Small PDFs are unlocked in your browser; larger or more complex ones use an encrypted upload to our servers, where the file is decrypted automatically with no human access and deleted within 2 hours. Keep the locked original until you have checked the unlocked copy. Unlock PDF is free for personal use and needs no account; a task can hold up to 20 files and 2 GB in total. Use it on documents you own or are permitted to open; removing a lock from a file someone else protected may break the terms under which you received it.