The free online PDF metadata editor edits or strips the Title, Author, Subject and Keywords. It writes both the Info dictionary and the XMP in the browser, and the document is never uploaded. The visible page stays as it is.
Document format work by OnlinePCApps since 2013
The hidden properties of a PDF travel with it everywhere. The free online tool sets them right or clears them out.
A document built from a downloaded template often carries the original author name in its properties. A client who opens the file sees the wrong firm. Editing the Author field fixes it in a second.
A PDF with no Title shows the filename in a browser tab and gives a search engine nothing to read. Setting a proper Title makes the file look right and helps it surface in a search.
The properties can hold a name, a username, an organization and the software that made the file. Stripping all metadata before a public release keeps those fingerprints off the document.
Drop a document onto the panel above or pick one from the device. The current metadata loads into a form, and no copy is sent out.
Change the Title, Author, Subject, Keywords and the dates. Empty a field to remove it. A single clear strips every property at once for privacy.
Download the file with the new metadata written to both the Info dictionary and the XMP. The original stays untouched, and the visible page is unchanged.
To edit PDF metadata is to change the hidden properties that describe a file, not the page it shows. The tool covers both jobs.
Set or change the Title, Author, Subject, Keywords, Creator and Producer, along with the creation and modification dates. These are the eight fields every PDF reader and file system reads.
A PDF keeps metadata in the Info dictionary and again in the XMP stream. Writing only one leaves the other stale, so a change here is put into both and the two never disagree.
A single clear removes all metadata at once, taking out the author name, the software fingerprint and the timestamps. It is the fast way to anonymize a legal, medical or financial file before it is shared.
The Title is what a browser tab shows and what a search engine reads first. A clear Title with matching Keywords is a small piece of PDF SEO, helping a document look professional and surface in a search.
A PDF metadata editor, a PDF property editor and a document information tool all name the same job. The tagged file is written new here, and the original is left as it stands.
These are the properties a PDF carries and where they live inside the file.
| The field | Store | What it holds |
|---|---|---|
| Title | both | The document name shown in a browser tab and read by a search engine ahead of the filename. |
| Author | both | The person or organization credited with the document. Often left over from a template. |
| Subject | both | A short description of the content, used by some readers and accessibility tools. |
| Keywords | both | Terms that help a file surface in a search or a document management system. |
| Creator | both | The application that made the source content, such as a word processor. |
| Producer | both | The application that wrote the PDF, which can reveal the software and its version. |
| Dates | both | The creation and modification timestamps, which can be set for an archive record. |
| Info dictionary | legacy | The original store from PDF 1.0, eight simple string fields most tools read. |
| XMP stream | modern | An XML store built on Dublin Core that mirrors the same fields and can hold custom and rights properties. |
Changes the Properties, Not the Page
Metadata is the hidden set of properties that describe a PDF, the Title, the Author, the Keywords and the dates, held in two places at once. Editing them fixes a wrong name, sets a Title that reads well in a search or clears every field before a document is shared. None of it alters the visible page or its layout. Because a PDF stores the same properties in the Info dictionary and again in the XMP, a change written to only one leaves the other stale, so both are updated together here. Metadata is for organization and privacy rather than security, since anyone with an editor can change it. The standards below define where it lives.
Both change the properties of a PDF. The trade matters, since metadata often is the identifying part of a file.
| Point of comparison | This tool Edited in the browser On the device | Hosted editors Uploaded and edited on a server |
|---|---|---|
| Where the document goes | Never leaves the device | Uploaded to a server |
| Writes both stores | Info dictionary and XMP | Often the Info dict only |
| Price | Free with no cap | Free tier often capped |
| A whole library at once | One file in the browser | Batch on their hardware |
| Custom XMP schemas | Standard fields | Rights and custom tags |
The last two rows go to the hosted and desktop tools, since a batch across a library and custom XMP schemas both suit a server. The first two matter most for a single file. The document never leaves the machine, both metadata stores are kept in step and the work is free with no task cap, unlike a hosted tier limited to a few tasks an hour.
The metadata is read and rewritten inside the browser, so the document and every property in it stay on the machine that opened them. Nothing is sent away to be tagged.
With metadata the detail being changed is often the identifying part, an author name or an organization. A hosted editor uploads the file to a server to read those fields, which is the opposite of what stripping them is meant to do.
Each of these can change a document property. They differ in reach, in whether both stores are written and in where the file goes.
The Acrobat, command line and file manager routes keep the file on the machine, unlike a hosted editor that wants it uploaded first. The free online tool above stays local in the same way, and it writes both stores rather than one.
A moment of context keeps the change clean and correct.
Editing metadata sets the hidden properties only. The words, images and layout on the page stay exactly the same, so a wrong Title is fixed without reflowing a single line of content.
A name removed from the Info dictionary can still sit in the XMP behind it. Stripping a field means clearing it in both places, which the tool does in one step so nothing stale is left.
Anyone with an editor can change a property, so metadata records and organizes rather than protects. For real protection of the content itself, a password or true redaction is the right tool.
The browser tool tags one document at a time, held in memory, which suits the file in hand. A folder of reports that all need one Author, or a set merged from many sources with clashing titles and creators, is work for the desktop edition, which reads from disk and rewrites the metadata on every file in one pass.
Point it at a directory and one Author, Creator or Title is written across every PDF in a run, each saved beside its source.
Beyond the standard fields, custom XMP schemas and rights tags can be set for a document management or publishing workflow.
Creation and modification dates can be set in bulk to match a publication timeline for a legal or compliance archive.
Free and online, with no sign-up and no upload. Set the Title, Author and Keywords or strip them for privacy, all on the device.