We stand with Ukraine to help keep people safe. Join us
All Apps
Best AppsReviewsComparisonsHow-To
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission

PDF Shrink for Mac

Compress PDF documents.

$35.00
In English
Version 4.9.1
3.8
Based on 28 user rates

PDF Shrink overview

PDF Shrink can reduce most PDF files - including those created by Mac OS X iLife and iWork applications, Adobe Creative Suite, Microsoft Word & PowerPoint - by as much as 90% of their original size. PDF Shrink is ideal for consumers and small businesses that need to produce PDFs at a quality and file size appropriate for use on the Web, as email attachments, CD-ROMs and for on-screen reading. The software is compatible with OS X 10.4 and supports PDF Services, droplets, and AppleScript.

Images make up a significant part of the size of typical PDF file. PDF Shrink can modify the resolution and compression level of the images to match different requirements. Fonts can also make PDFs larger than necessary so Shrink allows you to optionally remove embedded "base 14" fonts. Shrink can also delete unused elements such as metadata, thumbnails and duplicated data.

Protect your documents using PDF Shrink's new encryption feature. Prevent unauthorized access by adding a password or restrict use by selecting from several options including whether to allow changes, printing and content extraction. You can even set a different password to prevent unauthorized people from opening the PDF.

Need PDF optimized for a different use? The intuitive new wizard removes the jargon and unfamiliar terms from selecting different configurations to produce PDF optimized for different uses. Just tell the wizard how you plan to use your PDF and Shrink 4 picks the appropriate settings for you. Or use the Advanced mode to directly specify your settings.

PDF Shrink can be used in several different ways - drag-n-drop a PDF to the application icon or Dock, drag-n-drop to a setting, print through PDF Services, create a droplet or use AppleScript.

How much can PDF Shrink reduce the size of my PDF files? PDF files can be created by so many different applications that it is difficult to give one answer. PDF Shrink can reduce most types of PDF files by up to 10% to 90% of their original size.

What’s new in version 4.9.1

Version 4.9.1:
  • Fixed an issue corrupting some PDF files created on Mac OS X 10.12

PDF Shrink for Mac

$35.00
In English
Version 4.9.1

What users say about PDF Shrink

Try our new feature and write a detailed review about PDF Shrink

Write your thoughts in our old-fashioned comment

MacUpdate Comment Policy. We strongly recommend leaving comments, however comments with abusive words, bullying, personal attacks of any type will be moderated.
3.8

(34 Reviews of PDF Shrink)

  • Comments

  • User Ratings

Aargl
Aargl
Oct 24 2018
4.9.1
5.0
Oct 24 2018
5.0
Version: 4.9.1
Incredible but true! The switch to 64 bits has been done, after 5 years since the last version, and it works perfectly. Thanks! :-)
josehill
josehill
Jun 10 2018
4.8
4.0
Jun 10 2018
4.0
Version: 4.8
Although PDF Shrink hasn't seen a major update in a while, it remains my favorite tool for shrinking PDFs. I have Acrobat Pro and a few other PDF tools (including other PDF "shrinkers"), but PDF Shrink routinely seems to give the best combination of speed, compression, and accuracy/quality out of all of them. I've also seen a few cases where PDF files that were not opening correctly in programs like Adobe Reader or Apple Preview worked fine after processing with PDF Shrink. I particularly like the easy-to-use "Droplets," which allow you to save particular settings as mini-apps. Drag and drop a PDF file on a droplet, and it automatically will process the file accordingly.

My only complaint is that the "Check for Updates" command seems to be broken, and the Apago website doesn't make it easy to determine if there is a new version. (You need to enter a name and email address to download the latest version, and then you need to "Get Info" on the downloaded app or actually open the app to see what version it is. FWIW, as of June 2018, the latest version is 4.9.1, released in 2016.)
yourhiltonheadagent
yourhiltonheadagent
May 2 2018
4.8
0.5
May 2 2018
0.5
Version: 4.8
I have had PDF Shrink for ages. Now it has disappeared and this site wants $35. I feel like I've been kidnapped and raped. Anyone can help solve this? Thanks
Aargl
Aargl
Feb 10 2018
4.8
5.0
Feb 10 2018
5.0
Version: 4.8
Amongst all the shrinkers I could try, PDF Shrink is not the best, size wise (Shrinkit is), but it gives you the most compatible output. I'm using a random simple one page pdf for this test: - Shrinkit can give weird characters in Acrobat (probably doesn't store the correct encoding format) - PdfCompress gives an almost blank document in Acrobat (while ok in Skim) - Preview's integrated "reduce size" option alters images As I'm searching for a totally reliable solution for archiving, PDF Shrink is the best I found, though it has not been updated for years and is 32 bits only — making it a poor choice for recent OSes, given its high price.
Watertownimac
Watertownimac
Dec 20 2015
4.8
5.0
Dec 20 2015
5.0
Version: 4.8
Got it today after trying several programs to cut down the size of pdfs. This is expensive, but does work very well. FYI - currently running Mac OSX 10.11.2
Aargl
Aargl
Oct 24 2018
5.0
Oct 24 2018
5.0
Version: null
josehill
josehill
Jun 10 2018
4.0
Jun 10 2018
4.0
Version: null
yourhiltonheadagent
yourhiltonheadagent
May 2 2018
0.5
May 2 2018
0.5
Version: null
Pdandyk
Pdandyk
Aug 22 2017
2.5
Aug 22 2017
2.5
Version: null
rgp
rgp
Jun 4 2017
2.0
Jun 4 2017
2.0
Version: null
Watertownimac
Watertownimac
Dec 20 2015
5.0
Dec 20 2015
5.0
Version: null
Dwight-Kelly-Apago
Dwight-Kelly-Apago
Nov 24 2015
5.0
Nov 24 2015
5.0
Version: null
Sanchai
Sanchai
Nov 24 2015
1.0
Nov 24 2015
1.0
Version: null
Yoshita
Yoshita
Aug 17 2015
4.0
Aug 17 2015
4.0
Version: null
ScottUpdate
ScottUpdate
Jun 9 2014
1.5
Jun 9 2014
1.5
Version: null
Julian-Ko
Julian-Ko
Feb 7 2014
4.5
Feb 7 2014
4.5
Version: null
Yubben
Yubben
Jan 21 2014
3.0
Jan 21 2014
3.0
Version: null
c2b
c2b
May 24 2013
5.0
May 24 2013
5.0
Version: null
CFrag
CFrag
Sep 22 2012
4.0
Sep 22 2012
4.0
Version: null
ChristopherPrice
ChristopherPrice
May 5 2012
3.5
May 5 2012
3.5
Version: null
Rmara
Rmara
Jan 18 2012
4.0
Jan 18 2012
4.0
Version: null
shutupxo
shutupxo
Jul 2 2011
5.0
Jul 2 2011
5.0
Version: null
Webzu
Webzu
Jun 24 2011
0.5
Jun 24 2011
0.5
Version: null
Singerjttm11
Singerjttm11
Mar 15 2011
5.0
Mar 15 2011
5.0
Version: null
Rich-Rodecker
Rich-Rodecker
Dec 9 2010
4.0
Dec 9 2010
4.0
Version: null
Uncoy
Uncoy
Mar 30 2010
4.0
Mar 30 2010
4.0
Version: null
Buu-San
Buu-San
Jan 10 2010
5.0
Jan 10 2010
5.0
Version: null
An-onymous
An-onymous
Oct 28 2009
5.0
Oct 28 2009
5.0
Version: null
Taipan2008
Taipan2008
Mar 9 2009
4.0
Mar 9 2009
4.0
Version: null
Winet
Winet
Aug 17 2008
5.0
Aug 17 2008
5.0
Version: null
Orion-Mk-V
Orion-Mk-V
Feb 8 2008
5.0
Feb 8 2008
5.0
Version: null
Guest
Guest
Mar 21 2005
4.5
Mar 21 2005
4.5
Version: null
Guest
Guest
Apr 22 2004
4.8
Apr 22 2004
4.8
Version: null