How to Remove Header and Footer from a PDF

When updating a report, reusing a template, or just want a minimalist look, clearing the header and footer keeps things polished.

In the following, you’ll learn some easy methods to effectively remove headers and footers in PDFs, regardless of the original applying method.

Remove PDF Headers and Footers Online for Free

PDFgear online editor provides an easy-to-use whiteout feature to remove any visible headers and footers in PDF.

PDFgear is free to use, there’s no watermark, and there’s no signup.

Moreover, PDFgear also works with scanned/image-based PDFs, and if you can’t delete PDF headers & footers in other PDF editors, PDFgear can be of help.

Step 1. Go to PDFgear online PDF editor and click the Select PDF File button to open the PDF file.

Step 2. Once the PDF is opened, click the Shapes button in the upper ribbon and select the Rectangle tool.

Draw a rectangle to cover the unwanted header or footer.

Step 3. Click the Change Color or Change Stroke Color button from the upper ribbon and change them both to white, and that will white out and remove the header/footer.

Step 4. Repeat the steps until you’ve removed all unwanted PDF headers/footers.

Go to the upper-right side and click the Print file button to download and save the new PDF, this will also remove the content layer or metadata of the PDF headers/footers, making sure they are gone for good.

Remove All Headers and Footers in PDF in One Click

PDFgear software is a free and powerful PDF editor that can recognize and batch delete PDF headers and footers added by PDFgear or Adobe Acrobat.

In PDFgear, you can add, update, or delete PDF headers and footers in 1 click, including details like date, page number, file name, etc.

PDFgear software is also free to use, now get it on your device to get started!

Step 1. Download and install PDFgear on your computer, and click Open File to open the PDF you need.

Step 2. When the PDF is opened, go to the Edit tab, select Header & Footer, and click Delete in the dropdown.

Step 3. Click Yes in the pop-up window to confirm the deletion, after that, the PDF headers and footers will all be removed.

Step 4. In some cases, some PDF headers and footers still show up after the process, and you can still use PDFgear’s editing feature to delete them.

Go to the Edit section and select Edit Object. Then click on the unwanted header and click Delete in the context menu.

Step 5. When all unnecessary headers and footers are gone, click Save as in the upper-left corner to save the modified PDF.

Remove Headers and Footers in PDF on Mobile

PDFgear has a dedicated mobile app that allows you to edit and remove headers and footers on iPhone and Android phones.

With the powerful PDF text and object editing feature, you can select and delete unwanted PDF headers and footers in a simple click.

Step 1. Open the PDFgear app, tap the lower-right Plus icon to add a PDF file to the Files list, and tap on it to open it.

Step 2. Tap the upper-right Edit button.

Step 3. Tap the top Annotate button and go to the Edit Text mode.

Step 4. Locate and tap on the text block that represents the PDF header/footer, and tap Delete to remove it.

Repeat the steps to delete all the PDF headers and footers you need.

Step 5. When you’ve done your work, tap the upper-right triple dots button to save or share the new PDF.

Remove PDF Header and Footer with Adobe Acrobat Pro

Adobe Acrobat functions in a similar way as PDFgear, it helps delete embedded PDF headers and footers in one go.

However, this feature is only available in Adobe Acrobat Pro, which means you’ll need a pro subscription instead of the free Acrobat reader.

Step 1. Open your PDF file in Adobe Acrobat Pro.

Step 2. Go to the Tools section and click the Edit PDF button.

Step 3. Click the Header & Footer button from the upper ribbon, and click Remove.

Step 4. Click Yes in the popup window.

Step 5. Lastly, go to File > Save As to save the PDF without headers/footers.

FAQs

How can I remove headers and footers from a scanned PDF document?

To remove headers and footers from a scanned PDF, you can use the whiteout feature in the PDFgear online editor. Just make sure to flatten the whiteout areas so the headers and footers are permanently removed.

How to edit a PDF header and footer?

In PDFgear, you can use the Header & Footer feature to update all existing PDF headers and footers. What’s more, You can also use the text editing feature to edit PDF headers and footers as content.

Will removing headers and footers affect other text in the document?

It depends on how they were added. If they were inserted as a separate layer, they could be removed without affecting the main content. However, if they are part of the original text, removal may require manual editing.

Can I selectively remove headers and footers from certain pages within a PDF?

In PDFgear software, you can use the object editing feature to selectively remove PDF headers and footers. The batch deletion features will remove all PDF headers and footers.