A freelance writer exports a client report as a PDF from Word and sends it over. The client checks File Properties and sees "Created by: John-DESKTOP" with a subject line from a completely different project. A legal team publishes a guidance document online and a journalist notes the Author field still shows an internal staff member's name from a draft seven months ago. Neither person intended to share that information. It was sitting invisibly in the PDF metadata the entire time.
PDF metadata is editable. The title, author, subject, keywords, creator application, and producer fields embedded in the document information dictionary can all be corrected or cleared before the file is shared. This tool handles every one of those fields entirely in your browser. No file leaves your device at any point.
How It Works
- Load your PDF — Drag and drop the file or click to browse. The tool reads the document information dictionary embedded in the PDF and populates each field with the current metadata values. You can immediately see what title, author, subject, keywords, creator application, and producer are currently stored in the file before making any changes.
- Edit the metadata fields — Update any combination of the six editable fields: Document Title, Author, Subject, Keywords (as a comma-separated list), Creator Application, and PDF Producer. Leave fields blank to clear their current values. The Date Modified field and header cleaning are handled automatically during the update process.
- Save and download — Click Update Metadata. The tool writes the new values into the PDF's information dictionary using PDF-Lib, recompiles the document structure, and produces an updated PDF for download. The visible content of the PDF stays exactly the same. Only the embedded metadata properties change. The result panel shows the original and updated file sizes side by side.
Compatibility & Support
Supported Input → Output Formats
- Input: Standard PDF (any version)
- Output: PDF with updated metadata fields; content, layout, and pages unchanged
- Editable fields: Document Title, Author, Subject, Keywords, Creator Application, PDF Producer
- Auto-handled: Date Modified, Clean Headers
Unsupported Formats
Only PDF files can have their metadata edited here. Word documents, Excel files, and other file types must be converted to PDF first. Password-protected PDFs that restrict modifications cannot be edited until the permission restriction is removed. XMP packet metadata (an extended metadata standard used by some publishing and archiving workflows) is not separately editable through this tool; it updates the core document information dictionary fields only.
File Size Limits
All processing runs client-side in the browser, so no server-imposed file size cap applies. Metadata editing is extremely lightweight since it only rewrites a small dictionary section of the PDF structure. Even large files process in seconds regardless of document length.
Who Should Use This Tool?
- Students: A student submitting a dissertation PDF can update the Title and Author fields to match their official name and submission title, replacing whatever username their Word installation assigned when the file was first created.
- Freelancers & Designers: A brand consultant delivering a client strategy document can clear the Creator Application field that reveals the internal tool chain, and set a clean Author field matching the client's organization before the document goes into their files.
- Office Professionals: A communications team publishing a PDF report on their organization's website can set accurate Title, Subject, and Keywords fields so the document is correctly indexed by search engines and document management systems rather than appearing under the original drafter's personal name.
- Developers: A developer generating PDFs programmatically can fix batch metadata issues in individual files, correcting Title or Author fields that were incorrectly set during an automated export process without reprocessing the full document pipeline.
Key Features
Here's what separates this tool from generic alternatives:
No Server Upload
The PDF is read and updated entirely in your browser. Confidential strategy documents, legal files, and personal records are never transferred to any external server during the metadata editing process.
Six Editable Fields
Title, Author, Subject, Keywords, Creator Application, and PDF Producer are all editable in one pass. Most casual tools only expose Title and Author. Clearing the Creator and Producer fields removes software fingerprints from the document.
Current Values Pre-Loaded
When the PDF loads, all existing metadata values populate the form fields automatically. You immediately see what is currently stored before making any edits, removing the guesswork about what needs fixing.
Content Stays Intact
Metadata editing does not touch the visible document. Every page, image, text block, font, and layout element in the PDF remains exactly as it was before the update. Only the embedded properties dictionary changes.
Before and After Size Check
The result panel shows original and updated file sizes side by side. Since metadata editing adds negligible overhead, the output should be virtually identical in size to the input.
Clean Headers Option
The built-in header cleaning pass removes residual metadata artifacts from the PDF structure. Useful for documents that have passed through multiple tools and accumulated inconsistent or duplicate property entries.
Why This Tool Beats the Alternatives
- No account, email, or signup required at any point.
- No watermarks added to the output PDF.
- No server upload; confidential documents with sensitive author or title information stay on your device throughout.
- Six editable metadata fields including Creator Application and PDF Producer, which most basic tools omit.
- Current metadata values pre-populate the form on load, so you can see and correct existing values rather than replacing them blindly.
- No daily limits or paid tier needed to process any file.
Pro Tips
- Before sharing any PDF externally, check the Creator Application and PDF Producer fields. These often reveal the exact software version used to create the file, including version numbers that can indicate whether your software is outdated or which internal tools your organization uses. Clearing both fields removes that information before distribution.
- When setting Keywords for a PDF that will be hosted on a website or stored in a document management system, use terms that match how people actually search for the document's content. These keywords are read by search engine crawlers and by Windows Search and macOS Spotlight when indexing local files.
- If the PDF was originally exported from Word or Google Docs and carries an incorrect Author field showing someone else's username, the fastest fix is to edit just the Author field here rather than re-exporting the source document. This is particularly useful when you no longer have access to the original editable source file.
Upload your PDF, correct the metadata fields, and download the updated file in seconds. For documents that also need sensitive visible content removed before sharing, use the Redact PDF tool to permanently black out text and images in the same browser-based workflow.