How to split a PDF in half or at a chosen page
Splitting at a specific point is a different job from splitting into single pages. You usually have a natural break — the end of a chapter, the start of appendices, the point where two merged documents meet — and you want two clean files either side of it.
Drag and drop here, or choose from your device.
Up to 50 MB per file. Files are processed in your browser.
Full options and FAQs on the Split PDF page.
Find the break point first
Open the document and note the page number where the second part should begin. Use the PDF viewer's page counter, not the number printed on the page: a report with roman-numeral front matter will have them disagree, and the tool works in absolute page positions.
If the split point is not obvious, look for the change in header, the start of a new numbering sequence, or the cover page of the second document in a merged bundle.
Where splitting beats compressing
- The recipient needs three pages of a ninety-page report — send those three at full quality instead of degrading all ninety.
- A scanned bundle contains two unrelated documents that should be filed separately.
- A file exceeds an upload limit and the content divides naturally in two.
- You want to share a chapter without exposing the confidential appendix bound with it.
Quality and what carries over
Splitting copies page objects into new documents without re-encoding, so text stays selectable and images keep their original resolution. Neither half is degraded.
Some document-level features do not survive cleanly: bookmarks pointing across the split, internal links to pages now in the other file, and form field relationships. Check those if the document relies on them.
Step by step
- 1Open the PDF and note the absolute page number where part two begins.
- 2Load the file into the tool below.
- 3Enter the range for the first document — for example 1-45.
- 4Extract, then repeat with the remaining range, for example 46-90.
- 5Open both results and confirm nothing is missing or duplicated at the join.
Frequently asked questions
- Can I split into more than two files?
- Yes. Repeat the extraction for each range you need, or split into single pages if every page should become its own file.
- Does splitting reduce the total file size?
- Each half is smaller than the original, though the two together can be slightly larger, because shared resources such as fonts are duplicated into both files.
- Is the original file changed?
- No. The tool produces new documents and leaves the file on your device exactly as it was.