Target 100 KB in this tab. Honest about raster images, and about multi-page files that cannot stay readable at 100 KB.
100 KB is tight for anything longer than a single clean page. A lot of “compress PDF to 100 KB” pages promise the number and hand back a blur. This one tries from a sharper image downward. If the smallest readable-enough setting is still over 100 KB, it stops and says how large the smallest copy still is.
Use 100 KB when a form actually asks for it. Do not use it for UPSC if it would push you under the 50 KB minimum — a one-page file aimed at 100 KB usually stays above 50 KB, but check the download. Do not use it for a full bank statement.
Count the pages. Five photographed A4 sheets will not become a crisp 100 KB PDF. Split to the one page the form needs, crop the background, scan in black and white, then target 100 KB. If you need the whole pack, ask whether the form really said 100 KB or whether 200 KB or 300 KB per page was the rule.
The download has no text layer. Seals and handwriting survive only as pixels. Zoom the download on your phone before you submit it.
No. A long or photo-heavy PDF can stay above 100 KB even at the lowest image setting. The tool explains that and does not pretend the target was met.
No. Rendering and JPEG encoding happen in this tab.
Maybe not. 100 KB on more than one page means a coarse image. If you cannot read a line, the portal cannot either. Split or use a larger cap.
100 KB is inside the 50–300 KB UPSC band. Still check the real file size. A result under 50 KB can be rejected.