Folio

Split a PDF in your browser

Extract page ranges, equal chunks, or one file per page. The source never leaves this device.

Split a PDF in this tab when you need some of the pages and not the rest: a signature leaf from a 40-page NDA, chapters out of a handbook, or one attachment that must stay under an email cap. The source file is read locally. We do not keep a copy.

Three modes. Page ranges build one PDF that contains only the pages you listed (1-based, inclusive). Every N pages cuts the document into equal chunks. One PDF per page writes each page as its own file and zips them when there is more than one.

Everything runs in your browser. Your PDFs are not uploaded to a server, there is no account wall, and downloads have no watermark.

Split mode

How it works

  1. 1

    Drop one PDF. Folio counts pages in this tab and refuses passwords and non-PDFs.

  2. 2

    Choose ranges for one smaller file, every N pages for chunks, or one PDF per page for a ZIP.

  3. 3

    Tap Split. Pages are copied locally. Keep the tab open until the download is ready.

  4. 4

    Download a PDF or a ZIP. Closing the tab discards the parts from memory.

When cutting a PDF is the right job

Portals often want ‘the signed page only’. Banks want a passport scan without the covering letter. A teacher wants pages 4–7 of a worksheet, not the answer key. Those are split jobs. Merge would make a bigger file. Compress would keep every page.

Range mode is the usual path: type 1-3, 5, 8-10 and you get one PDF with those seven pages in that order — not three files. If you expected three files, switch mode. Printed headers that say ‘page 12 of 40’ are ignored; we count file order, starting at 1.

What split does not do

It does not crop a page, redact a paragraph, or remove a letterhead. It does not read bookmarks as chapter names. It does not unlock a password. A one-page PDF has nothing to split; you will get an error or a single-page result depending on the mode.

Files over 80 MB are refused. Very large page counts can exhaust a phone. If Safari reloads, use a desktop browser. After you download, close the tab — the original and the parts are gone from Folio’s memory because they only ever lived there.

A scan that is too heavy for mail is often a split job, not a compress job — read why scans stay heavy. Attachment caps: email size. Chat: WhatsApp. After you have the pages you need, merge them on the homepage.

Full guide: split a PDF without uploadingIf it is a scan, not extra pages

Frequently asked questions

Do my PDF files leave this device?+

No. Folio merge, split and compress run in this browser tab with JavaScript. The PDF bytes are read into memory on your phone or computer, rewritten there, and offered back as a download from that same tab. We do not provide an upload API for documents, we do not store PDFs on a server, and closing the tab discards the bytes. That is the difference from typical online PDF sites, which send the file to a machine you do not control.

If I type 1-3, 5, 8-10, do I get three PDFs?+

No. Page-range mode builds one PDF that contains exactly those pages, in order. 1-3, 5, 8-10 becomes pages 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 9 and 10 in a single file. To get a separate PDF for every page, choose “One PDF per page” (a ZIP if there is more than one). To cut a long report into chunks of equal length, choose “Every N pages”.

How do page numbers work?+

Numbers are 1-based and count pages in the file, not the printed folio in the header. Page 1 is the first page of the PDF. Ranges are inclusive. If the document has 12 pages, 10-12 is valid and 10-20 is rejected. We do not read “iii” or “A-4” labels from the page surface.

How large can a PDF be, and can I process a batch?+

Each file is rejected above 80 MB before we try to parse it, because a larger PDF will often crash a tab. Merge accepts two or more PDFs in one go. Compress accepts one or more and zips the results if you add several. Split works on one PDF at a time so page numbers stay unambiguous. A ‘batch’ that is really twenty 40 MB scans will still be limited by RAM; if the tab struggles, do fewer files per pass.

What happens if the PDF is password-protected?+

Folio cannot open an encrypted PDF in the browser without the password, and we will not ask you to type that password into this site. You will see an error instead of a silent failure. Remove the password in the tool that created the file (Preview, Acrobat, the scanner app), then drop the unprotected PDF here. We do not keep a keychain and we do not offer ‘unlock PDF’ as a product.

Can I merge files again after I split them?+

Yes. Split writes ordinary PDFs (or a ZIP of PDFs). Drop those parts onto the Merge tab in the order you want. Page ranges that you extracted as one file come back as that file’s pages, in the order they had inside the extract. Nothing on our side remembers the original, because nothing was uploaded. Keep the source PDF if you might need a page you did not extract.

When do ads appear, and do you ask me to click them?+

Ad slots are reserved after a successful download and in the footer, plus a mid-page slot below the how-it-works block. Until Google marks the site Ready they are placeholders, not live ads. We do not pay you to click, we do not instruct you to click, and we do not place ads over Merge / Split / Compress. Please do not click ads as a favour — that violates Google policy and can close the account.

Who runs Folio and how do I contact you?+

Folio is a local-first PDF utility maintained as a public tool, not a venture product with a sales team. For a bug, a broken PDF that should have worked, or a privacy question, email ultaultimatum@gmail.com. Include the page URL, the browser, and what you expected. Do not attach the PDF unless we ask — the whole point of this site is that documents stay with you. We do not offer phone support.

Will Folio shrink a scanned ID or a stack of photographed pages?+

Almost never in a way that matters. Those files are heavy because of the pictures inside, not because of PDF metadata. Folio does not downsample images and does not OCR. Split if you only need some pages. See the scans guide. Do not upload an ID to a random compressor.

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