PDF Redaction Studio Desktop
User guide for PDF Redaction Studio Desktop, the native app for Windows, macOS and Linux: what it adds to Studio, install options, opening PDFs and help.
Also available as:
Online ToolStudio (Cloud)Studio (Self-Hosted)Cloud APISelf-Hosted APIPDF Redaction Libraryn8n IntegrationWidgetMCP ServerObsidian PluginGoogle Drive™ AppPDF Redaction Studio Desktop is PDF Redaction Studio as an app for Windows, macOS and Linux. It has the same dashboard, document library and redaction editor, and adds a few things only a desktop app can do: opening PDFs straight from your file manager, a "Redact PDF" item in the Windows right-click menu, and unread-message badges on the Dock or taskbar.
Desktop at a glance
- Sign in with your pdf-redaction.com account. The app asks you to sign in when it starts. Your plan, workspaces and usage are the same as on the website, see Account & Billing.
- Documents stay on your computer. The document library, OCR, face detection and creating the redacted file all run in the app. A document is uploaded only if you choose Sync to cloud.
- Detection follows your settings. By default, Cloud PII sends page text to the PDF Redaction detection API. Turn on Local NER in the detection settings to keep page text on your computer.
- An internet connection is needed to sign in and to check your page allowance.
For the details, such as where files are stored and what happens when you open a PDF from your file manager, see How it works.
Desktop compared with Studio in the browser
| Studio Desktop | Studio in the browser | |
|---|---|---|
| Install | Windows, macOS, Linux | None |
| Open PDFs from your file manager | Yes, see Open PDFs | No |
| Sign-in | Required at launch | Required to open a PDF |
| Updates | Automatic from the Microsoft Store and Snap Store; manual for other builds | Always the latest version |
| Dashboard, document library, editor | Same | Same |
Start here
Install
Microsoft Store, Snap, macOS DMG and other builds.
Quick start
Sign in, open PDFs from your computer and save the result.
How it works
The built-in Studio, opening files from your system, storage and what goes online.
Troubleshooting
Sign-in problems, Gatekeeper and log files.
Release notes
What changed in each version.
Install PDF Redaction Studio Desktop
Get the app for Windows, macOS or Linux and redact PDFs right from your file manager.
Download
Troubleshooting
Fixes for common PDF Redaction Studio problems: backend won't start, sign-in fails, documents stuck in processing, insufficient credits and sync errors.
Install
Install PDF Redaction Studio Desktop from the Microsoft Store, Snap Store or GitHub Releases, allow it in macOS Gatekeeper, update it and uninstall it.