It is worth being precise about what flattening is not. It is not encryption: anyone can still open the file, and a determined editor can still alter the page. It is not redaction: text on the page stays text, and a comment you delete was never a secret. If the recipient should be able to change the fields, do not flatten; if information must disappear, use Redact; if the file must not open without a password, use Protect afterwards. After flattening, open the result and try clicking a field — the check takes ten seconds and is the whole point.
How it works
- Drop the filled PDF and open Flatten
- Choose to flatten form fields and, if you like, remove remaining annotations
- Download and verify the fields are no longer editable
Questions people ask
What exactly happens to my answers?
Their current appearance — the typed text, the ticked box, the selected option — is drawn into the page as ordinary content, and the interactive field objects are removed. The result looks the same in every viewer, but there is no field left to clear, edit or tab into.
Does flattening remove comments and hyperlinks?
Only if you enable annotation removal. With it on, remaining annotation objects — sticky notes, highlights, boxes, links — are stripped from the file. Leave it off if the links are meant for the reader, for example a table of contents or citations.
Should I flatten a signed PDF?
A visual signature placed with Bindery’s Sign tool is already part of the page. If you filled fields as well, flattening locks those answers alongside it. Do not flatten a file that carries a cryptographic certification — rewriting the pages would invalidate the signature.