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HandfulTools

Split PDF

Break a large PDF into smaller documents: by custom page ranges such as 1-3, 4-8, 9-, into fixed-size chunks, or into one file per page.

Runs in your browser

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How to use

  1. Drop a PDF.
  2. Choose custom ranges, every N pages or one file per page.
  3. Click Split PDF.
  4. Download the files one by one or all as a ZIP.

How it works

For each range, the corresponding pages are copied into a new PDF without re-compression, so quality and selectable text are preserved. Ranges use 1-based page numbers; “7-” means from page 7 to the end and ranges may overlap.

Files are processed in your browser with the open-source pdf-lib and pdf.js libraries — they are never uploaded.

Examples

Scanned batch
A 60-page scan of 20 three-page forms → every 3 pages → 20 separate PDFs.
Book chapters
1-12, 13-40, 41- → three chapter files.
Just the pages to sign
From a 40-page lease, the range 12, 39-40 gives one small PDF with only the pages your landlord asked for.

Common uses

  • Separating scanned documents
  • Sending only part of a report
  • Splitting books into chapters
  • Reducing attachment size

Privacy & security

This tool runs entirely in your browser. Your files and text are never uploaded to our servers — processing happens on your device and results are created locally. How each tool handles files

Frequently asked questions

Can I extract just a few pages into one file?

Yes — use a single range, or the Extract PDF Pages tool to click pages visually.

Is there a page limit?

No, but very large documents take longer on slow devices.

How do I write the ranges?

Separate them with commas: 1-3, 5, 8- gives three files (pages 1 to 3, page 5 alone, page 8 to the end). Page numbers start at 1 and refer to the pages of the PDF, not to any numbering printed on them.

Can I split a scanned document into single pages?

Yes — choose “every 1 page”. Each page becomes its own PDF, and the files are delivered as a ZIP so you download them in one go.

Do the smaller files add up to the original size?

Roughly, but often a little more: fonts and images used across several ranges have to be embedded in each output file.

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