Is the comparison text-based or visual?

Text-based. The tool diffs extracted text, so wording changes are caught, but purely visual differences — moved images, font swaps, layout shifts — are not flagged. For pixel-level comparison of two images or scans, use the Diff Images tool.

Can it compare scanned PDFs?

Only if the scans carry a text layer. For image-only scans, run both files through the Searchable PDF tool first to add OCR text, then compare. Without a text layer there is simply no text to diff.

Why does the diff flag lines that look identical?

PDF text extraction reflects the file's internal layout, so the same paragraph can break into different lines in two files — especially after reformatting. Those show up as a removal plus an addition. Treat clusters of paired red/green lines with near-identical wording as layout noise and focus on genuine wording changes.

Can I export the comparison results?

The diff is displayed in the browser rather than downloaded as a file. For records, select and copy the relevant lines, or screenshot the highlighted sections you need to discuss.

Compare PDFs

Compare the text content of two PDF files.

Drop PDF files here or browse

Max 100MB per file · Up to 2 files

About Compare PDFs

Comparing two versions of a document is one of the most common — and most error-prone — manual tasks in office work. Did the other side change only the indemnification clause, or did a payment term quietly shift too? Convertora's compare tool extracts the text from both PDFs and produces a line-by-line diff, so changes stand out instead of hiding in forty pages of sameness.

Results appear as a single scrollable view: added lines highlighted in green, removed lines in red, unchanged lines dimmed. A summary up top counts additions, removals, and unchanged lines, so you know at a glance whether you're looking at a typo fix or a substantial rewrite.

Both files are read and compared entirely in your browser — relevant, since the documents people most need to diff (contract redlines, policy revisions, settlement drafts) are precisely the ones that shouldn't be uploaded to an unknown server.

How to use it

1Upload the two PDFs you want to compare (up to 100 MB each). The header confirms which file is being compared against which.
2Convertora extracts the text content of every page in both documents.
3The texts are diffed line by line, and the result renders inline: green for lines only in the second file, red for lines only in the first, gray for lines common to both.
4Read the summary counts, then scroll the highlighted output to review each change in context.

Common use cases

Verifying that the returned contract draft changes only what was agreed on the call.
Checking which clauses moved between two versions of a policy or terms-of-service document.
Confirming that a re-exported report matches the original after a tooling change.
Spotting unannounced edits between two revisions of a specification.

Frequently asked questions

Tips

Diff early drafts often rather than two distant versions once — small diffs are readable, hundred-line diffs invite missed changes.
If both documents are long, compare section by section: split out the relevant page ranges with Split PDF first to keep the noise down.

100% private — runs in your browser

Convertora processes everything on your device using JavaScript and WebAssembly. Files never leave your browser, are never uploaded to a server, and are never seen by us or anyone else. The moment you close the tab, the data is gone — there is no temporary cloud copy, no log entry, no retained backup.

Because the work happens locally, processing speed depends on your device — but there are no rate limits, no daily caps, and no file size restrictions beyond what your browser can handle in memory. No signup, no account, no payment. The tool works the same in incognito mode, on a corporate network, or after the page has loaded once, even with the network disconnected.