Text randomly disappearing from your file? This guide helps you figure out why you’re dealing with a PDF missing text—and how to fix it fast.
Let’s Start With Why Your PDF Might Be Missing Text
You open a PDF and notice some of the text is missing or replaced by rectangles or strange glyphs. No matter how many times you scroll, zoom, or re-open, it stays the same. You’re probably dealing with a PDF missing text due to a font issue.
If a font wasn’t embedded properly or your device doesn’t have it installed, the text might be there—but invisible. Sometimes, things go sideways during the export or printing process, especially if you’re using a different computer than the one the PDF was made on. That’s also why you might get missing text when printing a PDF even if everything looked fine on screen.
Use Smallpdf’s Edit PDF Tool To Reveal Hidden Text
One of the fastest ways to figure out what’s going on is to load your file into Smallpdf’s Edit PDF tool and check whether the “missing” content is actually there—just styled in a way that makes it unreadable. If that’s the case, all you need to do is change the font.
- Go to the Smallpdf Edit PDF tool in your browser.
- Upload the file to the Edit PDF tool.
- Use your mouse to select the hidden text.
- In the toolbar, change the font, font size, or color.
- Once everything looks right, download your fixed PDF.
Revealing hidden text in a PDF using Edit PDF
If your PDF is missing text because of font issues, this quick fix can bring everything back without needing to touch the original file.
Edit PDF is a Pro feature, but don’t worry—you can try it out with a free 7-day trial. That gives you full access to the tool (plus all the others), no strings attached.
PDF Missing Text on Windows 10?
Windows 10 has its quirks, and one of them is how it handles PDFs that use non-standard fonts. If a file was created on another system and sent to your PC, your viewer might not know what to do with unfamiliar fonts—leading to that classic PDF missing text moment.
Try installing the missing font on your system. If you know the original font name, search for it online, download the font file, and install it by double-clicking and hitting "Install." Reopen the PDF, and the invisible text should appear. This fix also helps if you’ve had issues with missing text when printing a PDF from your Windows machine.
Why Mac Users Might Be Seeing Blank Spots in PDFs
If you're using a Mac, Preview might be showing you only part of the story. It’s fast and simple, but it doesn’t always handle non-standard fonts well. That’s why you might open a file and see random blank spots—hello, PDF missing text.
The good news is that macOS also lets you install fonts system-wide. If you get a hold of the font used in the original document, adding it through Font Book can bring your text back. Alternatively, use Smallpdf's Edit PDF tool to see if changing the font gets the text to show up properly. Either way, you don’t have to retype a thing.
Trouble Reading PDFs on Your Android Phone?
PDFs on mobile are another story. On your Android phone, things like low memory or app limitations can cause parts of the file to fail to load properly. If the file is large or packed with unique fonts, some of that data might be skipped when the app tries to display it.
To fix this, upload the PDF to Smallpdf from your phone browser and use Edit PDF to highlight and re-style any text that’s hiding in plain sight. Alternatively, open the PDF on your desktop later to get full editing control—and maybe install any missing fonts there, too. This trick also applies if your print PDF has missing text after transferring it from mobile to desktop.
PDF Text Disappears in Chrome
Chrome’s built-in PDF viewer is convenient, but it doesn’t always get it right—especially when it comes to non-standard or unembedded fonts. If your PDF is missing text in Chrome, try downloading the file and opening it using a different PDF viewer. Such as our PDF Reader.
Print PDF Missing Text?
You preview your file, everything looks great—and then your printer spits out a page that’s half empty. If you’re getting print PDF missing text results, it’s usually due to a missing font or a glitch in how the printer processes the file.
Use Smallpdf’s PDF to Word tool to convert the file. Once converted, open the Word version and change the font to something more standard, like Arial or Calibri. Then save it as a PDF again and try printing the new version.
Answers for When Your PDF Isn’t Talking Back
Why is my PDF missing text?
Most of the time, it’s a font issue. If the file uses a font that isn’t embedded and your device doesn’t have it installed, the text won’t show. That’s the most common cause of PDF missing text problems.
How do I recover missing text in a PDF?
Try opening the file in Smallpdf’s Edit PDF tool and changing the font to something basic. If that doesn’t work, convert the file to Word using Smallpdf, change the font there, and save it as a PDF.
How do I fix unreadable or invisible text in a PDF?
Highlight the faint or invisible text using Smallpdf Edit PDF, then tweak the font and size until it’s readable. Installing the original font on your system also helps bring hidden text back.
Why are some of the letters in my PDF invisible or blank?
This usually happens when the font used in the PDF isn’t installed on your device. To fix it, install the missing font or use Smallpdf to convert the file to Word and change the font manually before saving it again.
