# PDF Find and Replace - Edit Text in a PDF Online

> Find and replace text in a PDF for free: fix dates, names, prices or typos, or delete text. Old text is truly removed and the rest stays put. Runs locally.

- URL: https://qilingtools.com/en/pdf/find-replace
- Category: PDF Tools (https://qilingtools.com/en/pdf)
- Tags: [PDF](https://qilingtools.com/en/tags/pdf), [Text](https://qilingtools.com/en/tags/text), [Documents](https://qilingtools.com/en/tags/document)
- Last updated: 2026-10-26
- Price: Free, no sign-up
- Privacy: Runs locally in the browser; files are never uploaded

A date is wrong, a company name has changed or a template needs a different name, but all you have is the PDF? This tool finds text in a PDF and replaces it. Unlike the usual trick of covering the old words with a white box, the matched characters are actually removed from the page content, so copying, searching or extracting text can no longer reveal them, while every other character on the same line keeps its original font and position. New text is placed at the original position, size and colour; Latin letters and digits use the closest standard font (sans, serif or monospace, keeping bold and italic) and stay selectable and searchable, while Chinese and other characters are embedded as a high-resolution image. When the new text is longer, it can be shrunk to fit the original space. Match case, whole words and regular expressions are supported (use $1 in the replacement to insert a group), you can limit the search to certain pages, tick each occurrence individually and compare the page before and after. Leave the replacement empty to delete text in bulk. Everything runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded.

## How to use

1. Upload a PDF; its text is analysed page by page
2. Enter the text to find and its replacement, and set match case, whole words, regex or a page range as needed
3. Review each occurrence, compare the before/after preview and click “Replace & download”

## Features

- Old text is truly removed from the content stream
- The rest of the line keeps its font and position
- New text matches the original position, size and colour, keeping bold and italic
- Finds words split across text runs or kerned
- Match case, whole words, regular expressions and group references
- Tick occurrences individually with a before/after preview
- Shrinks text that is longer than the original
- Runs locally; files are never uploaded

## FAQ

### Can the old text still be copied or searched after replacing?

No. Many tools only paint a white box over the old words and write on top, leaving the original text in the file. Here the matched characters are removed from the page content and replaced by blank spacing of the same width, so copying, searching and text extraction no longer find them, and the rest of the line does not move.

### Will the new text use exactly the same font?

Not always. Fonts embedded in a PDF usually contain only the glyphs the document uses, so they cannot be used to write new text. The tool picks the closest standard font for the original style (sans, serif or monospace, keeping bold and italic) at the same size, colour and position. Chinese and other characters are embedded as a high-resolution image, which displays and prints normally but cannot be selected.

### What if the new text is longer than the old text?

PDFs do not reflow like a Word document. The option to shrink wider text, on by default, scales the new text to fit the width of the original (down to half size) so it does not overlap what follows. For large edits it is better to change the source document and export a new PDF.

### Why can some matches not be replaced?

The list shows the reason: the hidden text layer of a scan (the visible letters are an image), vertical text, fonts whose encoding can't be read, fonts without glyph widths, and text inside form XObjects can currently be found but not replaced. Scans can be OCR'd first with PDF OCR, but the letters in the image itself still cannot be changed.

### Can I use it to change someone else's contract or invoice?

No. Only use it on documents you are entitled to edit, such as your own documents, templates and drafts. Altering contracts, invoices or certificates signed or issued by others may be illegal. Files are processed in your browser and never uploaded.

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