Split PDF API
Split large PDFs into individual pages or custom page ranges programmatically. Extract chapters, unbundle reports, and automate document distribution workflows without manual tools.
curl -X POST "https://api.xspdf.com/v1/manipulate/split" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $API_KEY" \
-d '{"input_url":"https://files.example.com/report.pdf","options":{"mode":"by_page","page_ranges":["1-3","4-6","7-10"]}}'Manual PDF splitting kills productivity
Teams waste hours opening PDFs, manually selecting pages, and saving individual files. Automation breaks on complex documents. Scale is impossible.
Tedious manual splitting
Open PDF, select pages 1-5, save as new file, repeat for pages 6-10. Got 500 documents? That's 8 hours of mind-numbing work.
Unreliable open-source scripts
PyPDF2 corrupts bookmarks. pdftk crashes on encrypted files. ghostscript mangling breaks annotations. You spend more time debugging than splitting.
No way to handle volume
Need to split 10,000 invoices into individual customer records? Desktop tools lock up. Third-party services rate-limit you during peak hours.
The hidden cost of manual splitting
Staff time spent splitting documents: 15+ hours/week. Errors from manual page selection: 3-5% of files. Revenue lost from delayed distribution: Thousands per month.
One API call splits any PDF. Instantly.
310ms average split time
Upload PDF URL, specify page ranges or split mode. Get back individual files or a ZIP archive. Split by page, by range, or by custom rules.
Preserves all PDF metadata
Bookmarks, links, annotations, form fields, and embedded fonts stay intact. No corruption, no data loss. Output files are pixel-perfect identical to originals.
Enterprise-grade security
SOC 2 certified. Files encrypted at rest and in transit. Auto-deleted after 24 hours. GDPR compliant with EU data residency options.
500 operations free every month. No credit card required. See FAQ
import requests
API_KEY = "your_api_key"
response = requests.post(
"https://api.xspdf.com/v1/manipulate/split",
headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {API_KEY}"},
json={
"input_url": "https://files.example.com/report.pdf",
"options": {
"mode": "by_page",
"page_ranges": ["1-5", "6-10"]
}
}
)
split_urls = response.json()["output_urls"]
for i, url in enumerate(split_urls):
print(f"Part {i+1}: {url}")Built for document automation workflows
Everything you need to split, extract, and distribute PDF pages at scale.
Multiple split modes
Split by individual page, page ranges, fixed intervals, or custom rules. Extract every Nth page. Unbundle chapters automatically.
Preserve metadata and bookmarks
Maintains all PDF metadata, hyperlinks, form fields, and annotations. Output files retain original quality and formatting.
ZIP archive output
Get all split files in one ZIP download. Perfect for batch processing and automated distribution pipelines.
Webhook notifications
Get notified when split operation completes. Perfect for async workflows and batch processing pipelines.
Usage analytics dashboard
Track split volumes, success rates, and API latency. Monitor costs and optimize your integration.
Auto-expiring CDN URLs
Files served from global CDN with optional expiration. Download or stream directly. Full control over retention policies.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between split modes?
by_page: Split into individual pages (100-page PDF becomes 100 files). by_range: Extract specific ranges like pages 1-5, 10-15 (becomes 2 files). by_interval: Split every N pages automatically.
Use by_page for document distribution. Use by_range for extracting chapters or sections. Use by_interval for batch processing uniform reports.
Do you preserve bookmarks and annotations?
Yes. We preserve bookmarks, hyperlinks, form fields, annotations, and embedded fonts. Output files are pixel-perfect identical to the original pages.
Bookmarks and links are automatically adjusted to match new page numbers in split files. No manual cleanup required.
How fast is the split process?
Median split time is 310ms for 100-page PDFs. Very large documents (500+ pages) may take 1-2 seconds.
All requests are processed in real-time. Use webhooks for async workflows if you need to split thousands of documents without blocking.
Do you store my PDF files permanently?
No. Input PDFs and output files are automatically deleted after 24 hours. You can configure shorter retention periods or request immediate deletion after download.
All files are encrypted at rest and in transit. We're SOC 2 certified and GDPR compliant. Enterprise plans include custom retention policies and private storage regions.
What SDKs and languages do you support?
Official SDKs for Python, Node.js, Ruby, PHP, Go, and Java. REST API works with any language that can make HTTP requests.
All SDKs include TypeScript support, automatic retries, and built-in error handling. Check our docs for code examples and integration guides.
Start splitting PDFs in 5 minutes
500 free operations every month. No credit card required. Scale to millions with transparent pricing.