Does a link save space in the email?

Yes, and it moves the file somewhere the recipient has to be allowed to reach. That is the trade. A small attachment arrives with the message and needs no account. A link stays out of the size limit but depends on the host and its permissions.

Can I turn a PDF into a link on this site?

No. pdfpix has no server holding your files, because every tool runs inside your browser tab. Use a storage service you already have, and this guide covers what each one exposes.

Where can I host a PDF for free?

Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox and iCloud Drive all give a shareable link on a free account. They differ in whether the link shows a viewer with your account name or hands over a download.

Is a share link private?

Only as private as the setting on it. Anyone with the link means anyone it gets forwarded to, and links do get forwarded. Name the people instead when the file holds personal data.

How do I stop people opening the link later?

Switch sharing off on the file. Some services also offer an expiry date, but turning sharing off is the only way to be sure a link that has already been forwarded stops working.

Share a PDF as a link

pdfpix does not host files

Every tool on this site runs inside your browser tab. Your document is never sent to a server, which is the point, and it also means there is no server here to hold a file and give you an address for it. No converter turns a PDF into a link, because a link is somewhere the file is stored, not a format you convert to.

A hosted tier may exist one day for the jobs a browser cannot do. Nothing on the site can be bought today, so nothing here carries a price.

The free places to put a file

Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox and iCloud Drive all give a shareable link on a free account, and most people already have at least one of them. Upload, choose who can open it, copy the address.

They differ in how much they show a visitor. Some display the file in a viewer with your account name attached, some hand over a download. If the reader should not know who you are, check what the link page actually looks like before you send it.

What a share link exposes

Anyone with the link means anyone. Links get forwarded, pasted into chat and quoted in tickets, and every copy works. Search engines occasionally index one that ended up on a public page.

For a contract, an invoice with a name on it, or anything holding personal data, name the people instead. It costs a minute and it turns the link from an open door into an accountable one.

Expiry and revocation

Some services set an expiry date on a link, and some do not. All of them let you switch sharing off, which is the reliable version of the same idea. Turning it off is the only way to be sure a forwarded link stops working.

Keep a note of what you shared and when. A file that has been open to anyone with the link for two years is one nobody remembers publishing, and that is how documents end up indexed.

Shrink it first anyway

Anyone opening the link waits for the download, and on a phone connection a heavy scan is a long wait. The compress tool takes a size in KB and reads the result back before handing it over, so the text has to still be selectable.

Do it before uploading rather than after. Replacing a hosted file usually changes the link, which means resending it to everybody who already has the old one.

Strip what the file says about you

A PDF carries an author, a producer, creation and modification dates, and often an XMP metadata packet with more of the same. On a file with a public address, that is more than most people intend to publish.

The privacy scan lists every field it finds, including the document identifier and any attachments, and removes the ones you pick. It runs in the browser, so the document does not travel to be checked.

When an attachment is still better

A small file going to one person is simpler as an attachment. It arrives, it is filed, and it does not depend on a service staying up or a permission staying set.

Links win on size, on updating a document after sending it, and on sending to many people at once. The attachment guide covers the other side of that choice, including what the mail limits actually are.

Questions people ask

Does a link save space in the email?: Yes, and it moves the file somewhere the recipient has to be allowed to reach. That is the trade. A small attachment arrives with the message and needs no account. A link stays out of the size limit but depends on the host and its permissions.
Can I turn a PDF into a link on this site?: No. pdfpix has no server holding your files, because every tool runs inside your browser tab. Use a storage service you already have, and this guide covers what each one exposes.
Where can I host a PDF for free?: Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox and iCloud Drive all give a shareable link on a free account. They differ in whether the link shows a viewer with your account name or hands over a download.
Is a share link private?: Only as private as the setting on it. Anyone with the link means anyone it gets forwarded to, and links do get forwarded. Name the people instead when the file holds personal data.
How do I stop people opening the link later?: Switch sharing off on the file. Some services also offer an expiry date, but turning sharing off is the only way to be sure a link that has already been forwarded stops working.

Where to go next

PDF privacy scan See what a PDF says about you before you send it to a stranger.
Compress PDF Make a PDF smaller without turning its text into a picture.
Email two pdfs as one attachment Send two PDFs as one file that gets through the size limit.
PDF and Word help Find the right guide for PDFs inside other software.