PDF to PDF/A
Convert any PDF to the long-term archival PDF/A standard — required for legal, government and corporate archives.
- Encrypted in transit (TLS 1.3)
- Files auto-deleted in 60 minutes
- Requires free plan
Run PDF to PDF/A
About PDF to PDF/A
PDF/A is the ISO-standard flavour of PDF designed to be readable decades from now. It embeds all fonts, bans external dependencies, and strips out anything that might not render the same way in future viewers.
If your compliance team, regulator or document management system requires PDF/A, this is the tool. Pick the flavour (-1b for strictest legal, -2b for modern default, -3b for embedded attachments) and we convert via Ghostscript.
How PDF to PDF/A works
Three steps. Done in seconds.
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1
Upload your PDF
Any PDF up to your plan's file cap.
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2
Pick a PDF/A level
PDF/A-1b: maximum compatibility (legal). PDF/A-2b: modern default. PDF/A-3b: allows embedded files.
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3
Download the archival PDF
Standards-compliant PDF/A output, ready for long-term archive.
Why PDF to PDF/A on Pixenith
Built for serious work. Free for everyday use.
Privacy first
Encrypted in transit, processed in isolated workers, deleted within 60 minutes.
Lightning fast
Most jobs finish in under 5 seconds. Heavy ones run on dedicated worker pools.
Production engine
Powered by pikepdf, Ghostscript, Tesseract OCR, ONNX models — the same tech the pros use.
Free, no signup
Generous daily limits on the free plan. Upgrade only if you need bigger files.
Related PDF tools
Often used alongside PDF to PDF/A.
- Compress PDF Reduce PDF file size. Pick a preset (low / medium / high) or specify a target size (e.g. 200 KB or 2 MB) and we'll binary-search the quality ladder for the best-quality output that fits.
- Repair PDF Fix corrupt or damaged PDFs by rebuilding them.
- Protect PDF Encrypt a PDF with a password (AES-256).
- Merge PDF Combine multiple PDFs into a single document in the order you choose.
- OCR PDF Add a searchable text layer to scanned PDFs (Tesseract).
- Add watermark Stamp a text watermark across every page.
PDF to PDF/A — frequently asked questions
Everything you need to know.
What's the difference between PDF/A-1b, -2b and -3b?
-1b is the strictest and most widely accepted (use for legal and regulatory). -2b adds modern PDF features. -3b lets you embed source files (XML, CSV, etc) alongside the PDF.
Will the visual content change?
No. Pages look identical — we only adjust the underlying structure to comply with PDF/A rules (embed fonts, strip transparency, remove external references).
Why does my PDF/A file fail validation in another tool?
Validators have different strictness levels. Try -1b for the most universally-accepted output, or contact us if a specific validator is rejecting our output.
Can I use PDF/A for everyday sharing?
Yes, but it's larger than standard PDF (because every font is embedded). Use Compress PDF after if size matters.
What if my PDF has transparency or layers?
Ghostscript flattens transparency during PDF/A conversion. Layers (OCGs) are also flattened. The output looks identical.