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Flatten PDF Annotations

After annotating a PDF (highlights, comments, freehand drawings), flatten the annotations so they become part of the page content - permanent, unremovable, embedded. Useful when distributing reviewed PDFs where you don't want recipients to easily remove your annotations.

When to use this

Use to: distribute reviewed contracts with annotations baked in, lock highlight markup on study notes for resale, prevent annotation removal on signed-off documents, archive PDFs in their annotated state.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can the recipient still see who made the annotations?

No - flattening removes the annotation metadata (author, timestamp, comment threads). The visual content stays, but it's now just part of the page, not a separately-attributed annotation.

Powered by Flatten PDF.

Other targeted versions of this tool — each tuned for a specific use case.

Or use the main Flatten PDF if your use case isn't covered above.