About
keptlocal is a growing toolkit of privacy-first PDF and image tools that run entirely inside your browser. No uploads. No accounts. No file ever leaves your device.
What "kept local" actually means
When you use a typical online PDF tool, your file travels over the network to a server you have never seen, gets processed by code you cannot audit, and comes back. The privacy policy says they delete it within a few hours. You take their word for it.
keptlocal is built differently. The tools run on your device using JavaScript libraries and the browser's built-in Canvas API — your browser does the work. Your file enters memory, gets transformed, and the result downloads. No part of it touches a network.
This is not a marketing claim. It is an architectural fact you can verify yourself. Open your browser's Network tab (F12) while using any tool. You will see the initial page load, and then no further activity. Zero uploads.
Who built this
keptlocal is built and maintained by Hitendra Patel. I am a Senior Technical Lead at Vohra Wound Physicians in Ahmedabad, India, with fifteen years in Healthcare IT. My day-to-day work involves building data pipelines, integrating Azure AI Document Intelligence, working with FHIR and HL7 healthcare data standards, and handling the kind of sensitive documents — clinical notes, insurance records, patient data — that should never casually leave a controlled environment.
The site started after one too many conversations where a friend or colleague asked "is it safe to upload my tax forms to that PDF site?" — and the honest answer was "probably, but you genuinely cannot know." That answer was not good enough.
Tools that respect your data should not be a niche product. They should be the default. keptlocal is my attempt to make that true for everyday file tasks.
What is available today
keptlocal currently has 27 tools across two categories, all fully client-side:
PDF tools
- Merge PDF — combine multiple PDFs into one
- Split PDF — extract pages or split into separate files
- Rotate PDF — fix page orientation
- Reorder PDF Pages — drag-to-reorder thumbnails
- Delete PDF Pages — remove specific pages
- Add Page Numbers to PDF — stamp numbered footers
- Watermark PDF — stamp diagonal text on every page
- Compress PDF — strip metadata and unused objects
- Unlock PDF — remove password protection
- PDF to JPG — render pages as JPG images
- PDF to PNG — render pages as lossless PNG images
- PDF to Text — extract readable text from any PDF
- JPG to PDF — combine images into a PDF
- PDF Info Viewer — page count, dimensions, metadata
- Protect PDF — add AES-128 password encryption
Image tools
- Compress Image — shrink JPG, PNG, WebP for web or email
- Resize Image — dimensions, percentage, or longest side
- Convert Image — HEIC, JPG, PNG, WebP, AVIF
- Crop Image — free-form or fixed-ratio crop
- Rotate Image — 90°/180°/270° or any custom angle
- Flip Image — horizontal or vertical mirror
- Grayscale Image — convert colour photos to black and white
- Image to Base64 — generate data URIs for HTML/CSS/JSON
- Remove Image EXIF — strip GPS and metadata from photos
Utility tools
- QR Code Generator — generate QR codes privately, no account needed
- Password Generator — cryptographically secure passwords
- Word Counter — count words, characters, and reading time
The blog covers practical guides on PDF workflows, image formats, browser security, and the privacy risks of server-based file tools.
How keptlocal stays free
The tools cost very little to run — your browser does the heavy lifting, and the rest is static files served from a CDN. A small number of non-intrusive ads on the pages around the tools cover hosting and domain costs. There are no ads inside the tool itself.
keptlocal does not:
- Track you across sites
- Sell your data (there is none to sell — the tools do not receive your files)
- Require accounts or email signups
- Apply file size limits to push you toward a paid plan
- Add watermarks to processed files
See the privacy policy for specifics.
What is coming next
The immediate roadmap is more tools: bulk image operations, additional PDF manipulation tools, and a small set of AI-powered document tools (PDF summarisation, table extraction, invoice parsing) built on Azure AI Document Intelligence. The AI tools will require optional cloud processing and will be clearly marked as such, with explicit privacy disclosures — a deliberate departure from the fully local model, offered only where the capability genuinely requires it.
Found a bug, want a specific tool, or have feedback? Use the contact page.