Change the Title, Author and Properties of a PDF
or drop files here
Fix the name a PDF shows in browser tabs, credit the right author, or wipe its properties before sharing. Both the Info dictionary and the XMP copy are updated here in the tab.
Read the properties, then rewrite them.
Open the PDF
The title, author, subject, keywords, software names and both dates are read as soon as the file loads, and placed in an editable form.
Edit or wipe
Retype any field, stamp the modified date with the current time, or switch to Remove everything. Each change is listed before anything is written.
Save the corrected copy
The Info dictionary and, when the file has one, the XMP packet are rewritten together. Page content is carried over as it was, with nothing re-rendered.
Small fields that travel with every copy.
Document properties are invisible on the page, yet browsers, search engines and file managers read them all the time. Getting them right, or removing them, takes a minute.
A proper name in the tab
Files printed to PDF from Office often announce themselves as "Microsoft Word - final_v3.docx" in browser tabs and title bars. Give them a real title such as "Tenancy Agreement, Flat 4" instead.
Thesis and report submissions
Some thesis offices and journal portals ask that the title and author properties match the title page. Set them, with co-authors separated by semicolons, before you submit.
Templates from old jobs
A proposal or contract template built at a previous employer, or for a client, can still list their company as Author. Replace it before the template is handed to someone new.
PDFs published on a website
Search engines can use the Title property as the headline of a PDF result. A descriptive title and a clear subject read far better than "scan0042" when your price list or white paper turns up in results.
Sharing with fewer clues
Author names, the exact software version and creation timestamps can reveal who drafted a file, when, and on what setup. Remove everything clears those properties in a single pass.
A searchable document library
Desktop search and document management systems can index title, author, subject and keywords. Consistent properties let a folder of manuals or invoices be found by more than its file names.
Info dictionary and XMP: two copies, one answer.
A PDF can store its properties in two places. The older one is the document information dictionary, a short list of keys such as /Title and /Author referenced from the end of the file. The newer one is XMP, an XML packet attached to the document catalog, added in PDF 1.4. PDF 2.0 goes further and deprecates the dictionary for everything except the two dates.
When the two disagree, each viewer picks a side. Acrobat favours the XMP values, and the viewer inside Firefox takes the tab title from dc:title when it exists. That is why a tool that edits only the dictionary can leave the old author showing in Document Properties, even though the change was saved.
Here, pdf-lib writes the dictionary, then each matching XMP property is patched in place, and any that are missing are added in a new block. XMP properties outside the form, such as PDF/A identification or the xmpMM document IDs, are left alone. A file without XMP gets none added.
| Field | Info key | XMP property |
|---|---|---|
| Title | /Title | dc:title |
| Author | /Author | dc:creator |
| Subject | /Subject | dc:description |
| Keywords | /Keywords | pdf:Keywords |
| Creator | /Creator | xmp:CreatorTool |
| Producer | /Producer | pdf:Producer |
| Created | /CreationDate | xmp:CreateDate |
| Modified | /ModDate | xmp:ModifyDate |
The shapes differ too. /Author is one string, while dc:creator is an ordered list, so a semicolon-separated line becomes separate names. Title and Subject are stored in XMP as language alternatives with an x-default entry.
Questions answered.
Why does my PDF still show the old title after I changed it?
What is the difference between Creator and Producer?
How do I list more than one author?
Can I change or delete the creation and modification dates?
What does Remove everything leave behind?
Will the pages or image quality change?
Does editing metadata break a digital signature or PDF/A status?
Can I edit the properties of a password-protected PDF?
Is the PDF sent to a server?
More tools you might need.
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