How do I know whether the repair worked?

The result screen shows how many pages were recovered out of how many the file seems to contain, and which problems were fixed. Lost pages are listed by number.

Why are some pages missing from my repaired PDF?

Those pages were too damaged to read, or their data was never in the file, which is common after an interrupted download. The rest of the document is still saved.

What does “only the readable text was rescued” mean?

The structure holding the pages together could not be rebuilt, so vupdf extracted the text it could find into a new PDF. Formatting, pictures and original fonts are not included.

Can it repair a locked file without the password?

No. Encrypted content cannot be read without its password, so the result would only be empty pages. Enter the password and the repair continues.

Can Repair PDF fix a file that is not really a PDF?

No. If the upload has no trace of PDF structure, such as a renamed image or Word file, the tool says so instead of producing a misleading result.

What happens to my damaged file afterwards?

It is processed on vupdf’s own servers only for the repair and deleted once the result is delivered. No account is needed.

All Tools

Repair PDF

Try to repair a corrupted or unopenable PDF.

Choose PDF file

or drop it here

Your files are sent securely from your browser to our server.

Up to 50 MB per file

Completely free
No sign-up
Files are deleted right after processing

What Repair PDF does

Repair PDF is for the file that refuses to open: an attachment that downloaded only halfway, a document left behind by a program that crashed while saving, or a PDF that complains about a damaged cross-reference table. You upload it, and vupdf rebuilds a fresh, cleanly written file from whatever can still be read.

What makes this repair useful is that it tells you what happened. The result screen names the problems it found and fixed, such as junk data before the header, a missing end of file or broken content blocks, and says exactly how many pages came back. If the first pass misses pages, open-source repair engines get a second try, and when even the page structure is gone, the readable text is rescued into a new PDF.

How to use Repair PDF

Open Repair PDF and drop the damaged file onto the upload area, or click to choose it.
If the file turns out to be password-protected, type its password into the field that appears.
Start the repair and wait while the file is analyzed and rebuilt.
Read the note on the result screen: it lists the problems fixed and how many pages were recovered.
Download the repaired PDF and check the pages you need in your usual reader.

Features and options

A report of what was wrong: The tool looks for a damaged header, extra bytes in front of it, a cut-off ending, a broken cross-reference table, unclosed content streams and mistyped structure keywords, and names each problem it fixes.
Page-by-page recovery, nothing left behind: Every readable page goes into a new document together with its bookmarks, links, form fields, page labels and document properties (title, author, language). One unreadable page does not sink the rest, and lost pages are listed by number.
Second-chance repair engines: When pages are still missing, vupdf runs qpdf, MuPDF and Ghostscript and keeps whichever result recovers the most pages.
Text rescue as a last resort: If the page structure cannot be saved but readable text remains, that text goes into a plain new PDF. Layout, images and fonts are not restored this way.
Locked damaged files: If a corrupted file has an open password, the tool asks for it instead of producing blank pages. Files that only restrict editing are repaired without one.

When it helps

An email attachment opens as an error because the download was interrupted, and the sender cannot resend it.
A program crashed while saving a long report, and the PDF it left will not open anywhere.
Another vupdf tool says your file is cut off, and you want to fix it before merging or compressing.

Tips and limits

The upload limit is 50 MB per file.
Repair cannot invent missing data: pages that were never downloaded cannot come back. Downloading the file again is often the quickest fix.
If only text was rescued, export the original source document (Word, a scanner app) to PDF again for the full layout.
Keep the broken original until you have checked the result; an older backup may hold pages the repair could not reach.

Frequently asked questions

How do I know whether the repair worked?: The result screen shows how many pages were recovered out of how many the file seems to contain, and which problems were fixed. Lost pages are listed by number.
Why are some pages missing from my repaired PDF?: Those pages were too damaged to read, or their data was never in the file, which is common after an interrupted download. The rest of the document is still saved.
What does “only the readable text was rescued” mean?: The structure holding the pages together could not be rebuilt, so vupdf extracted the text it could find into a new PDF. Formatting, pictures and original fonts are not included.
Can it repair a locked file without the password?: No. Encrypted content cannot be read without its password, so the result would only be empty pages. Enter the password and the repair continues.
Can Repair PDF fix a file that is not really a PDF?: No. If the upload has no trace of PDF structure, such as a renamed image or Word file, the tool says so instead of producing a misleading result.
What happens to my damaged file afterwards?: It is processed on vupdf’s own servers only for the repair and deleted once the result is delivered. No account is needed.