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PDF Compress API

Convert pdf files to pdf with a single POST request. Upload a file as multipart/form-data and the API returns a download URL for the converted file.

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Input

pdf

Output

pdf (application/pdf)

Credit cost

1 per file

Max file size

Per plan (10–500 MB)

Endpoint

POSThttps://api.fileswitch.co/api/v1/converter/pdf-compress

Authentication is optional for guests and recommended for production. Send either an API key or a JWT access token as a Bearer token. Authenticated requests deduct 1 credit from your balance; failed conversions are refunded. See Authentication for details.

Quick start

The same request in every supported language. Each example uploads a file and prints the downloadUrl from the response.

Example request
curl -X POST https://api.fileswitch.co/api/v1/converter/pdf-compress \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer fc_YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -F "file=@input.pdf" \
  -F "method=auto" \
  -F "level=medium" \
  -F "dpi=0" \
  -F "quality=80"

Parameters

Send file plus any optional options. Every option is optional and falls back to its default when omitted.

FieldTypeDefaultDescription
filebinary—The file to convert. Accepts .pdf
methodstringauto

How the PDF is compressed.

Values: auto, recompress, raster

levelstringmedium

Compression level: low, medium, or high.

Values: low, medium, high

dpinumber0

Explicit render DPI; 0 derives it from level.

Range: 0 .. 600

qualitynumber80

JPEG quality used when rasterizing pages.

Range: 10 .. 100

grayscalebooleanfalse

Render pages in grayscale to save space.

Example request bodyjson
{
  "file": "input.pdf",
  "method": "auto",
  "level": "medium",
  "dpi": 0,
  "quality": 80,
  "grayscale": false
}

Response

Every conversion endpoint returns the same success / message / data envelope. The data object is a Conversion record with a temporary downloadUrl.

Response bodyjson
{
  "success": true,
  "message": "Conversion completed",
  "data": {
    "id": "b10a5f2e-8c1e-4b3a-9c1d-2e3f4a5b6c7d",
    "inputFormat": "html",
    "outputFormat": "pdf",
    "inputFileName": "document.html",
    "outputFileName": "document.pdf",
    "inputFileSize": 45210,
    "outputFileSize": 88431,
    "status": "completed",
    "error": null,
    "creditCost": 2,
    "downloadUrl": "/api/v1/converter/download/conversions%2Fb10a5f2e-8c1e-4b3a-9c1d-2e3f4a5b6c7d%2Foutput.pdf",
    "createdAt": "2026-07-31T13:00:00.000Z",
    "completedAt": "2026-07-31T13:00:02.000Z"
  }
}

Prepend https://api.fileswitch.co/api/v1 to the downloadUrl and download with the same credentials. Files are retained temporarily and auto-deleted. See the full field reference in Response Schema.

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Ready to convert pdf → pdf? Start free — no credit card required.

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