PDF Metadata Editor for Titles, Authors and Keywords
PDF readers show a properties panel with a title, an author, and a pair of dates, and those values come from a small dictionary stored inside the file. They are what file explorers display, what document libraries index, and what stays with a document after it changes hands. This page lists what your file already carries, lets you type replacements or blank out names, and writes a new PDF with the details you chose.
Eight fields are available: title, author, subject, keywords, creator, producer, created, and modified. The Clear personal fields button empties the five that can name a person or a desktop tool, and the two date boxes take a day in YYYY-MM-DD shape.
Only the info dictionary is rewritten. Page contents, fonts, and images pass through untouched, the file is read and saved inside this tab, and the result arrives as a local download named metadata-updated.pdf.
Edit PDF Details and Save a New File
Source document
Pick one PDF file. Password-protected and damaged files are reported under the buttons.
Document details
Metadata currently in the file
The eight values as they were read when the file was loaded.
Load a PDF to see its current metadata.
How It Works
- Pick a PDF. Its bytes are read from your device into memory and opened with the PDF library, and the eight values are pulled out of the info dictionary into the inputs; a blank input means the file carries no value for that field.
- Change only the fields you care about. Whatever the boxes hold is compared against the values that were loaded, so a field you never touched is not written again.
- Press Save PDF. Each differing value is stored in the info dictionary, the file is written out, and the summary reports how many fields your run actually changed.
- Download metadata-updated.pdf from the link that appears. The link points at a local object URL holding the new bytes, and any later save replaces it.
The listing under the form shows the eight values exactly as the file stored them at load time, which gives a fixed point to compare against while you type. Dates arrive as YYYY-MM-DD from the reader and go back at midnight in UTC, so the day survives the trip while the time of day does not. The Clear personal fields button touches the form only, and nothing moves into the file until you press Save PDF.
Before and After
Title:
Author: J. Rivera
Subject: Q3 planning notes
Keywords: planning q3
Creator: WordMachine 4
Producer: WordMachine 4
Created: 2023-11-02
Modified: 2024-01-15Title: Q3 Planning Notes
Author:
Subject: Q3 planning notes
Keywords: planning q3 shared
Creator: WordMachine 4
Producer: WordMachine 4
Created: 2023-11-02
Modified: 2024-01-15Use Cases
| Developer | Production | Workflow |
|---|---|---|
| Set fixture metadata for document parsing tests | Fix wrong titles on generated reports before archiving | Prepare a clean copy of a contract for a client |
| Strip a contributor name before a repository release | Correct a producer string a downstream tool rejects | Clear personal fields before publishing a form |
| Add keywords so a document library can index files | Update the dates shown on a reissued policy PDF | Rename the title shown in file explorers |
Common Mistakes
- Expecting the page to scrub every trace of authorship. The edit covers the eight info dictionary values, while annotations, attached files, and an XMP packet stored elsewhere in the document keep whatever they held.
- Blanking a date box and expecting the day to disappear. The writer skips empty date values, so the old day stays in place; type the day you want instead, or leave the box as it was loaded.
- Loading a password-protected file and waiting for the inputs. The reader stops with the encryption error and no values appear, so remove the password in a desktop app first and load that copy.
- Judging the result by file size alone. The document is written out again through the library, so a small size change says nothing about whether your text edits landed.
Best Practices
- Read the listing under the form before typing. It shows the values the file actually carries, which stops you from replacing a correct title with a near copy of itself.
- Clear personal fields before a document goes outside the team, then check the summary to confirm how many blank values the save wrote.
- Keep dates in the YYYY-MM-DD shape by picking them from the date boxes; a value in any other shape is refused by the writer with a format message.
- Save once per round of edits rather than after every keystroke. Each save is compared against the loaded file, so several passes over the same fields produce the same result as one pass.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which fields can I edit?
All eight values in the form: title, author, subject, keywords, creator, producer, created, and modified. They map one to one onto the entries most readers show under Document Properties. A keyword list is split on commas before it is stored, and readers usually display those words separated by spaces.
What does clearing a field do?
Clearing writes an empty value into the document info dictionary, so readers show the field as blank and this tool reads it back as empty on the next load. The Clear personal fields button empties author, subject, keywords, creator, and producer together, and the save then stores those blank values. The dictionary entry itself can remain with an empty value, which is why nothing readable is left in the properties panel.
What do the created and modified dates mean?
They are the two dates stored in the PDF info dictionary, usually read as the day the file was made and the day it last changed. The date boxes take the YYYY-MM-DD shape and the writer stores that day at midnight in UTC, so the day survives the round trip while hours and minutes do not. A blank date box does not delete an existing date, because the writer skips empty date values; type a real day when you want to replace one.
Do other pages or the text change?
No. Only the eight info dictionary entries are written, while page contents, fonts, images, links, and the page count pass through untouched. A reader draws the same pages before and after the save, with different details in the properties panel.
What happens with an encrypted PDF?
The page reports "This PDF is encrypted. Remove the password before editing its metadata." and stops, because the library refuses to parse a protected file without its password. This tool never asks for a password, so open the document in a desktop app, save a copy with the password removed, and load that copy here.
Will the file size change?
The document is written out again through the PDF library, so byte totals move a little even when one short string changed. Differences of a few hundred bytes in either direction are normal, since the library rebuilds the file structure instead of patching it in place. Fonts and images are copied as stored, so a large scan does not suddenly shrink or grow.
Does my file leave the browser?
No. The bytes are read from your device with the File API, the edits run in this tab, and the download comes from a local object URL. Nothing is uploaded, and closing the page drops the file from memory.