Edit a PDF's Title, Author, Subject and Keywords
Editing PDF information means rewriting the entries in the file's Info dictionary - the Title, Author, Subject, and Keywords fields that PDF readers display and search engines index. This tool edits those four fields directly in your browser and produces an updated file to download. The PDF is processed entirely on your device and is never uploaded.
How it works
Every PDF may carry a small object called the document information dictionary, referenced from the file's trailer under the /Info key. It is a plain key–value dictionary whose standard entries include /Title, /Author, /Subject, /Keywords, plus producer and date stamps. These strings live completely outside the page tree: no page object, font, or content stream references them, which is why changing them can never alter how the document looks when printed or displayed.
When you pick a file, the tool parses it with the pdf-lib library, reads the current Info entries, and shows them in editable fields. On save, it writes your new values as PDF text strings. Values that fit 8-bit PDFDocEncoding are stored directly; anything else (accented characters, CJK text, emoji) is stored as UTF-16BE with a byte-order mark, exactly as the PDF specification requires. The whole document is then re-serialized and offered as a download — the tool performs a full rewrite rather than an incremental update, so the old values are not left behind in earlier revisions of the file.
One caveat worth knowing: many PDFs also embed an XMP metadata stream, an XML packet attached to the document catalog. Applications that follow the newer convention read XMP in preference to the Info dictionary, so a stale XMP packet can still surface old values in some viewers. This page deliberately edits only the Info dictionary; if you want the XMP stream gone too, run the file through Remove PDF metadata and then set fresh values here.
Because everything happens in your browser tab, the file's contents never cross the network. That matters for exactly the kind of documents whose metadata people edit: contracts, manuscripts, and reports that reveal author names, internal usernames, or draft filenames.
Worked example: fixing a report exported from Word
A typical case: a 24-page annual report, 1.8 MB, exported from Microsoft Word. Its Info dictionary reads Title: Microsoft Word - annual_report_FINAL_v3.docx, Author: jsmith (a Windows login name), Subject: empty, Keywords: empty. Opened in a browser, the tab shows the ugly Word artifact; forwarded outside the company, it leaks an employee's username.
Loading the file here and entering Title: Annual Report 2025 — Northwind Ltd, Author: Northwind Communications, Subject: Financial year 2025 results, Keywords: annual report, 2025, Northwind takes under a minute. The rewritten file weighs 1.79 MB — a few hundred bytes of difference from re-serialization, since only four short strings changed. Every page renders identically; the only visible change is the clean title in the reader's tab and document properties panel.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my PDF show the wrong title in the browser tab?
Browsers and PDF readers show the Title entry from the Info dictionary when one exists, and fall back to the filename when it is empty. Files exported from word processors often carry leftovers like Microsoft Word - draft_v3.docx as the title. Setting a proper Title with this tool fixes what the tab displays.
Does editing PDF metadata change the visible pages?
No. The Info dictionary is stored separately from page objects and content streams, so text, images, and layout are untouched. Only the descriptive fields that readers display change.
What is the difference between the Info dictionary and XMP metadata?
The Info dictionary is a small set of key-value strings defined since PDF 1.0, while XMP is a full XML packet embedded as a metadata stream. Some applications read XMP first, so an old XMP packet can still show stale values after you edit the Info fields. Use the Remove PDF metadata tool if you want the XMP stream deleted as well.
Can I clear a metadata field completely?
Yes. Leave the field empty in the form and the corresponding entry is written as an empty string in the output file. Readers then treat the field as unset and fall back to defaults such as the filename.
Will changing metadata break a digitally signed PDF?
Yes. A cryptographic signature covers the file's byte ranges, and this tool rewrites the file, so any existing signature will show as invalid afterwards. Edit metadata before signing, not after.
Does this tool work on password-protected PDFs?
Encrypted files cannot be rewritten without the password, so a protected PDF must be unlocked first. Once you have an unencrypted copy, the metadata fields can be edited normally.