All PDF tools
FREE TOOL · NO UPLOAD · NO SIGNUP

Flatten PDF form fields, right in your browser

Drop in a PDF that has fillable form fields and flatten it. The values that were typed into the fields get baked into the page as permanent content, and the fields are no longer editable. Everything happens in your browser, your file is never uploaded to a server, so it is safe for confidential drawings and NDA work. No signup, no email, no watermark. This flattens interactive form fields; for locking freehand markups on a drawing, use Ncored desktop.

Drop your PDF here
or click to browse, a PDF with fillable form fields
Your file never leaves your browser. Flattening runs entirely on your device.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does my PDF get uploaded anywhere?
No. The flatten runs entirely in your browser on your own device. Your file is never sent to a server, we never see it, and nothing is stored. That makes this safe for confidential construction drawings, NDA documents, and client files, unlike tools that upload your PDF to process it in the cloud.
What exactly does flattening do?
It takes the interactive form fields in your PDF (text boxes, checkboxes, dropdowns and the values someone typed or selected into them) and burns those values into the page as fixed content. After flattening, the fields are gone as editable objects, so the filled answers are locked and can no longer be changed in a normal PDF editor. It is the usual last step before sending a filled form to someone who should not alter it.
Can it flatten my freehand markups, comments, or highlights?
No. This tool flattens interactive form fields only. Freehand pen markups, comments, and annotations on a drawing are a different layer, and merging those into the page is exactly the kind of work the Ncored desktop app handles. If your file has no form fields, there is nothing for this web tool to flatten.
I flatten and mark up heavy CAD drawings all day. What about those?
Flattening a form is the easy part. The hard part is opening and marking up a 50-200 MB+ AutoCAD, Revit or ArchiCAD export without your PDF tool freezing on scroll and zoom. That is exactly what we built Ncored for, a fast desktop PDF editor for large construction drawings on Windows and Apple Silicon Mac. There is a free 14-day trial at ncored.com.