How to remove password from pdf when I forgot PDF password?

Set a password on an important PDF a while back and completely blanked on what it was. The file has documents that are needed now and there's no backup copy without the protection on it. Checked the usual places like browser saved passwords and notes apps but no luck so far.

Anyone been through this before? Not looking for anything sketchy — just curious if there's a legitimate way to remove password from pdf that was originally protected by the person asking. Would be really useful to know if there are any options that don't involve downloading random tools from dodgy websites.

 

This is a quite common issue and you can recover or remove password from PDF by using a dedicated software such as iSeePassword Dr.PDF. It helped me twice to recover the forgotten PDF password and the password is pretty strong, see attached.

East steps to remove PDF password: https://www.iseepassword.com/online-help/pdf-password-recovery.html

 

How to remove password from PDF: Using command-line tools that are completely free and open-source. These aren't programs you download from a random website; they are tools often used in technical environments like Linux or macOS. The most prominent one is pdfcrack, which is designed specifically to "recover passwords from pdf-documents". It can use either a wordlist or pure brute-force to try and crack the password.

It's Command-Line Based: You'll need to run it from a terminal, which can be intimidating if you're not used to it.
Enough patience: Cracking a password, especially a complex one, can take an incredibly long time—we're talking hours or even days. The success depends entirely on how complex the password is. A simple password like "1234" might be found quickly, but a strong one is essentially impossible.

Here's what using pdfcrack if you are wondering how to remove password from PDF, for example, on a Linux or macOS system where you can install it via a package manager:

bash
pdfcrack -f locked_file.pdf -w wordlist.txt

This command uses -w to try a list of common passwords. For a full brute force attack, you would specify a character set -c and minimum/maximum password length -n and -m.

 

You can use Print to PDF if you are looking for a way on how to remove a password from PDF. It works best for PDFs that have an "owner password" (also called a permissions password). This is the type of lock that lets you open the file but stops you from printing, editing, or copying text . You can see the content, but you can't do much with it.

It's super simple, and you probably already have everything you need on your computer. Here's how to remove a password from PDF:

1. Open the PDF: Open your password-protected PDF in any program that can display it. This could be a web browser like Chrome or Edge , Adobe Acrobat Reader , or another viewer.

2. Enter the Password: When prompted, type in the password you know to view the file .

3. Open the Print Dialog: Press Ctrl + P on your keyboard to bring up the print options .

4. Pick the Right Printer: Instead of your physical printer, choose "Microsoft Print to PDF" from the list of printers . This is a built-in virtual printer that "prints" the document into a new PDF file.

5. Save Your New PDF: Click "Print" (or "Save"), give your new file a name, and choose where to save it. That's it! Your new PDF will be completely password-free .

 

You can remove password from pdf file using Microsoft Edge's built-in print feature. The print operation generates a brand-new PDF file, thereby removing all editing and printing restrictions from the original document.
However, it cannot unlock PDF files that have a Open with Password restriction set.
How to Remove Password from PDF File
Step 1: Right-click the restricted PDF file, select Open with, and then choose Microsoft Edge to open the PDF.
Step 2: Press the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + P to open the print dialog box.
Step 3: From the printer drop-down menu, select Microsoft Print to PDF.
Finally, click Print and save the output as a new PDF file.
The new file will no longer be subject to permission restrictions.
The browser's print rendering feature reconstructs the PDF document and removes all hidden restriction markers stored in the original file.
Pros

• Offline processing, with no hidden fees or file size limits
• Easy to use—just right-click and print
• No need to worry about sensitive PDF content being leaked to external servers

Cons

• Cannot process PDF files protected with an open password
• Complex layouts, embedded fonts, or high-resolution images may lose quality after reprinting
• Cannot remove encryption from the entire document; only print/edit permission restrictions can be removed
• Generating a new, unrestricted file takes longer for large, multi-page PDF files