3 Easy Ways to Delete Text, Graphics, and Pages on Adobe Acrobat

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Easy options for deleting or erasing objects in PDFs

Co-authored by Christopher Batchelor and Darlene Antonelli, MA

Last Updated: March 4, 2024 Fact Checked

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• Deleting Individual Items
|
• Deleting Pages
|
• Redacting Content
|
• Q&A
|
• Tips

|Show more |Show less

Do you need to get rid of an element from your PDF? This wikiHow article teaches you how to delete items in PDF documents with Adobe Acrobat. Note that you need to pay for an Adobe Standard or Pro subscription to unlock many of these actions with Adobe. While you only need Standard to edit files, you need the more pricey Pro subscription to redact information.

Quickly Delete Items in a PDF with Acrobat Reader

• Click Edit PDF, then select the item you want to get rid of, and press Del on your keyboard.
• To delete pages, click the Pages tool, then click the page you want to eliminate, and click the trashcan icon.
• Hide information by clicking Redact a PDF, then select the text to hide, and click Apply.

Steps

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Deleting Individual Items

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1. 1
   Click Edit a PDF. It's a pink icon in the menu on the left side of the window.

   • If you're not signed in, you'll be prompted to subscribe to unlock the editing feature. You can sign in by clicking Sign In in the top right corner of the Adobe Reader window.
2. 2
   Click the object you want to delete. This displays options for editing the object. You can select a text box, an image, or any other object.
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3. 3
   Press Delete on your keyboard. This deletes the selected items.

   • To delete specific words within a text box, click the text you want to edit to display a cursor. Click and drag highlight the text you want to delete and press Delete or ← Backspace.
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Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Deleting Pages

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1. 1
   Click the Pages icon. It's the icon that resembles two sheets of paper stack on top of one another. It's at the top of the toolbar on the right side.
2. 2
   Click the pages you want to delete. The pages are listed in a column to the left. Click a page to select it. To select multiple pages, hold Ctrl and select all the pages you want to delete.
3. 3
   Click

   

   . You'll see the trash can icon to the right of your selected page.

   • Alternatively, press Ctrl + Shift + D (Windows) or Cmd + Shift + D (Mac), using a keyboard shortcut to quickly get rid of pages.
4. 4
   Click Ok in the pop-up windows. This confirms that you want to delete the pages you selected and permanently deletes them.
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Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Redacting Content

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1. 1
   Click All Tools. It's in the menu bar at the top of your screen.
2. 2
   Click Redact a PDF. It has a tool that resembles a pink highlighter.
3. 3
   Select the items you want to redact. This can be any aspect of the document, including pictures. Use the following steps to select an object to redact:

   • Double-click to select a word or image.
   • Click and drag to select a line, block of text, or an area of the document.
   • To select multiple spots, hold Ctrl while you select the next part.
   • If you want a redaction mark to repeat across pages - such as a header or footer in the same place each page - right-click it and select “Repeat Mark Across Pages.”
   • Alternatively, click Find text and redact from the menu on the left to find specific terms to black out. You can use "Patterns" to hide information like credit card numbers.
   • Use Sanitize document to get rid of any hidden information, like metadata links, comments, signatures, and more.
4. 4
   Click Apply. You'll find this blue button in the bottom left corner.
5. 5
   Click Continue. This confirms that you want to redact the selected items.

   • If you want to remove hidden information from the document. click Yes in the dialogue box.
   • You're then prompted to save the redacted file. To avoid overwriting your original document, make sure it isn't in the same location or have the same name as the original file.
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Community Q&A

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• Question

  In some PDF's, it isn't possible to remove some links or blocks used for links, even in Acrobat DC. Why is this not possible?

  

  Community Answer

  If you are using the free version of Acrobat DC, it will not let you edit documents. You have to pay to get the ability to edit PDFs.

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Tips

• Press Ctrl + Z (Windows) or Cmd + Z (Mac) to quickly undo whatever edits you made.
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