Local recovery

Repair PDF online

Attempt to rebuild a PDF containing structural errors or recover its readable pages into a new document processed directly in your browser.

Local and private processing

Repair PDF file

Attempt to rebuild a PDF containing errors or recover its visible pages into a new document.

The document is processed directly in your browser and is not uploaded to our servers.

Drop a PDF file here

You can also select the document from your device.

PDF files onlyRecommended maximum: 100 MB
The file remains on your device
No registration required
Free tool
Structural rebuilding works only when the document can still be opened. It cannot guarantee recovery of severely damaged or truncated files, and links, forms and digital signatures should be reviewed.

How to repair a PDF document

  1. 1

    Select the damaged file

    Upload the PDF document containing errors from your device.

  2. 2

    Choose a recovery method

    Try structural rebuilding first and use visual recovery when necessary.

  3. 3

    Download the result

    Save the new rebuilt or visually recovered PDF document.

Important

Recovery depends on the level of damage. A truncated or incomplete PDF may not contain enough information to be rebuilt.

Structural rebuilding

Structural rebuilding creates a new PDF and copies every readable page from the source document. This can rebuild damaged internal references when the PDF can still be opened.

  • Keeps selectable text when compatible.
  • Preserves images and vector elements.
  • May preserve some compatible metadata.
  • Creates a new internal PDF structure.
  • Does not rasterize every page.

Visual recovery

Visual recovery attempts to render every readable page and inserts it as an image into a new PDF. It can be useful when the original internal structure cannot be rebuilt.

The tool offers high, balanced and reduced quality levels. Higher quality produces sharper pages but may increase processing time and output size.

Content lost during visual recovery

Visual recovery converts each page into an image. The visible page content remains, but interactive and structural document elements are not preserved.

  • Selectable and searchable text.
  • Clickable links.
  • Interactive forms.
  • Bookmarks and document layers.
  • Digital signatures.
  • Embedded files and annotations.

Files that may not be recoverable

  • Files that were only partially downloaded.
  • Documents with missing page data.
  • Strongly encrypted or password-protected PDFs.
  • Files with severely damaged object tables.
  • Documents containing unreadable page streams.
  • Files that are not actually valid PDF documents.

Private local processing

The document is processed directly inside your browser and is not uploaded to SG Hub's servers.

Visual recovery may use considerable memory because each readable page must be rendered before the new PDF is generated.

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After repairing the PDF

  • Open the result and review every recovered page.
  • Check whether page order and orientation are correct.
  • Verify important text, figures and signatures.
  • Keep the damaged original file as a backup.
  • Apply OCR if visual recovery removed selectable text.
Apply OCR to the recovered PDF →
Frequently asked questions

Questions about repairing PDF files

How does structural rebuilding work?

The tool opens the document, copies its readable pages and generates a new PDF with rebuilt internal references.

What is visual recovery?

Visual recovery renders readable pages as images and creates a new PDF. It may work when the original document structure contains errors.

Will text remain selectable?

Text normally remains selectable when structural rebuilding succeeds. Visual recovery converts every recovered page into an image.

Can the tool repair every damaged PDF?

No. Truncated, incomplete, encrypted or severely damaged files may not contain enough information to be recovered.

What happens to links, forms and digital signatures?

Structural rebuilding may preserve some compatible document elements, but links, forms and digital signatures should be reviewed. Visual recovery removes them.

Is the document uploaded to a server?

No. The document is processed locally inside your browser.

How many pages can visual recovery process?

Visual recovery supports up to 150 pages per operation.