Simple PDF Tools

Simple PDF Tools is a privacy-first web app for quick PDF utilities that run entirely in the browser.

Live site: https://simplepdftools.app

Current tools:

• Merge PDF
• Split PDF

Planned tools:

• Compress PDF
• Extract Pages
• Rotate PDF

What it does

Merge PDF

• Upload multiple PDF files
• Preview the first page of each file before export
• Reorder files with drag and drop
• Rotate files before merging when needed
• Remove files you do not want included
• Export one merged PDF locally in the browser

Split PDF

• Upload one PDF and preview its pages directly in the browser
• Extract selected pages into one new PDF
• Split every page into separate PDF files
• Split by page ranges with guided range inputs
• Review grouped range output before export
• Export the resulting PDFs locally in the browser

Product direction

This project started as a sibling product to Simple Photo Tools and is being built into a broader suite of browser-based PDF utilities.

The homepage acts as a simple tool hub, with dedicated routes for each tool:

• /
• /merge-pdf
• /split-pdf
• /compress-pdf
• /extract-pages
• /rotate-pdf

Merge PDF and Split PDF are live now. Additional PDF tools will be added over time.

Privacy

All PDF processing happens locally in the browser.

• No uploads to our server
• No accounts
• No backend required
• Drafts and preferences stay on the device

Tech

• React
• TypeScript
• Vite
• pdf-lib for browser-side PDF generation and document assembly
• pdfjs-dist for PDF preview rendering
• PWA support for offline app-shell usage

Running locally

Requirements:

• Node.js 20+
• npm

Install:

npm install

Start the dev server:

npm run dev

Build for production:

npm run build

Notes

• The app works offline after the initial load
• Merge PDF supports draft restoration, page preview thumbnails, file rotation, and drag-and-drop ordering
• Split PDF supports selected pages, every-page export, and grouped page-range export
• Larger PDFs may take longer to preview on lower-memory devices because rendering happens in the browser

Why I built it

I wanted a fast, simple set of PDF tools that:

• work well on mobile and desktop
• are easy for non-technical users
• keep sensitive documents off random servers
• stay free and lightweight