If you want a free alternative to Smallpdf, iLovePDF or CloudConvert that doesn’t upload your files, use tools that run inside your browser. JFDI covers the most common jobs (merging, compressing, editing, signing and redacting PDFs; converting documents, spreadsheets, video, audio and images) with no account, no watermark and no daily limits, and your files never leave your device. It doesn’t do everything the big services do, and this post is honest about the gaps.
The big three, fairly
Smallpdf, iLovePDF and CloudConvert are popular for good reasons: they’re quick, polished and handle a huge range of formats. All three process files on their servers, and all three are open about it. By their own documentation, Smallpdf deletes free users’ files after 1 hour, iLovePDF within 2 hours, and CloudConvert within 24 hours at the latest, with delete buttons for immediate removal on the latter two. We compared six services’ policies in Which online file tools upload your files?
For most files that’s fine. For contracts, payslips, ID documents, client data or anything your employer says shouldn’t go into unapproved services, a tool that never receives the file is simpler.
Task by task
| Task | Upload-based services | JFDI, in your browser |
|---|---|---|
| Merge, split, reorder, rotate PDFs | Yes | Yes: PDF toolkit |
| Compress a PDF | Yes | Yes, with four levels |
| Edit text, add text, sign | Yes | Yes |
| Fill in PDF forms | Yes | Yes |
| Redact | Varies by service and plan | Yes, removing the text for good (how) |
| Add or remove a PDF password | Yes | Yes (AES-256) |
| Word, EPUB, Markdown, HTML to PDF | Yes | Yes: file converter |
| PDF to Word | Yes, often with layout kept | Text and headings only; columns, tables and pictures aren’t kept |
| OCR (text from scans) | Yes, often paid | No |
PowerPoint, old Word .doc | Yes | No: browsers can’t read these |
| Spreadsheets: CSV, Excel, JSON, XML, SQL | Yes | Yes, keeping leading zeros and dates (why that matters) |
| Video: MOV, MP4, MKV, WebM, GIF | Yes, usually with size caps on free plans | Yes, no size limit (MOV to MP4) |
| AVI, WMV | Yes | No |
| Audio and subtitles | Yes | Yes |
| Images: HEIC, WebP, AVIF, compress, resize | Yes | Yes: image editor |
| Background removal | Separate services | Yes, on your device |
| Save files in the cloud, share links, team accounts | Yes, with an account | No |
| API for developers | CloudConvert and others | No |
Where the upload-based services are better
- OCR. Turning a scanned document into searchable, editable text needs heavy processing that’s usually done on a server.
- PDF to Word with the layout intact. Rebuilding columns and tables from a PDF is hard; the best results come from server-side engines.
- Old and proprietary formats, such as
.doc, PowerPoint, AVI and WMV. - Workflows: cloud storage, sending documents for other people to sign, team plans and integrations.
If you need those, use those services, ideally with files that aren’t sensitive.
Where the browser-only approach is better
- Privacy by design. There’s no upload to trust or check, and no retention period to read about.
- No size limits. The limit is your device’s memory, so large videos and long PDFs work.
- No account, no daily limit, no watermark.
- Speed for big files. Nothing has to travel across the internet and back.
- It keeps working if we disappear: QR codes contain your link directly, embeds contain your data, and downloads are ordinary files.
Other privacy-friendly options
Browser-only isn’t the only way to keep files local. Desktop apps do too: LibreOffice for documents, HandBrake for video, and the PDF editors built into Preview on a Mac. They’re good choices if you’re on your own computer and willing to install software. Browser tools suit work computers where you can’t install things, Chromebooks, and quick jobs on any device.