How to Edit a PDF's Title, Author, and Metadata

Every PDF carries a layer of information you don't see on the page itself — title, author, subject, keywords — set whenever the file was created and often left as whatever the original software defaulted to. It's worth checking and fixing before a document goes out under your name.

What PDF metadata actually is, and why it matters

Metadata is stored separately from the visible page content, but it's not hidden — it shows up in a file's "Properties" or "Get Info" panel, and some of it, particularly the title, can appear in search results or a browser tab when the PDF is opened online. A document with metadata still listing a previous author's name, an old company, or a placeholder title from whatever template it started as looks unpolished, even if the actual content is fine.

How to edit PDF metadata step by step

1. Open Edit PDF Metadata.
2. Drop in the PDF you want to update.
3. Update the title, author, subject, and keywords fields.
4. Download the file with the corrected metadata.

Tips for using it well

Check what's already there before assuming it's blank. PDFs exported from Word, Google Docs, or other tools often carry over the document's original filename or the software's default author name — worth a look even if you don't think you set anything.

Metadata isn't a substitute for actually removing sensitive content. Fixing the title and author fields doesn't touch anything in the visible pages, and it doesn't remove other hidden information a PDF can carry — for a broader check of what a PDF might be exposing, run it through Privacy Risk Scanner.

Keywords help with discoverability, not visible formatting. The keywords field isn't shown to a reader — it exists for search and cataloging purposes, so fill it with genuinely relevant terms.

FAQ

Will editing metadata change how the PDF looks when opened? No — this only changes the file's properties, not the visible page content.

Does this remove metadata a PDF might have picked up from other software, like revision history? Not necessarily every trace — this tool sets the standard title/author/subject/keywords fields directly. If you're concerned about other hidden information, Privacy Risk Scanner checks more broadly.

Can I clear a field instead of replacing it with new text? Yes — leave the field blank and save, which removes that piece of metadata rather than setting it to something new.