Flatten .pdf in iOS Reader

[Flynac]

Using my iPhone I used to be able to use the Adobe  Acrobat app and flatten a .pdf before I would save or send it. I have noticed that there is no longer an option. When I would export the .pdf, I used to get the options, "Share original/flattened copy" but I am no longer asked the question. I purchased the export option for the year but it only converts .pdfs to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and RTF. None of those options interest me. I just want to be able to flatten the .pdf before I email or text it so it cannot be pulled apart by the person I send it to.

[Flynac]

To help explain what I was referencing, Adobe has a webpage showing how it used to work:

Acrobat Reader Help for iOS: Emailing and printing

You can see under the ”Sharing a PDF” section in the link what I was referring to.

[Meenakshi Negi]

Hi Flynac,

Sorry for the delay in response.

After the recent update, Adobe Acrobat Reader no longer offers the flattened copy option when sharing the PDF.

However, there is a workaround that you can use to share the flattened copy of the PDF.

Please refer the steps provided here How to share a flattened copy of a PDF document.

Check if that helps.

Let us know if you have any questions or need help.

Regards,

Meenakshi

[Flynac]

Hi Meenakshi,

I had the chance to try it out and it worked perfectly.

Thank you so much for your help,

Richard

PS Too bad they cannot just put the option back to flatten.

Sent from my iPhone X

[Meenakshi Negi]

Glad to know it worked for you.

You may share your suggestion/feedback on this with the team over here Adobe Acrobat for iPhone and iPad - Feature Request/Bug Report Form.

Let us know if you need any help.

Regards,

Meenakshi

[MobileDeveloperCK · Accepted solution]

Hi Flynac​,

We just released Acrobat Reader 18.12.00 to the App Store on December 14, 2018.

This release contains the flattening capability that was restored due to popular demand.

Please see the updated forum FAQ document for more details.

How to share a flattened copy of a PDF document

Thank you for your feedback.

[jeremy_5442]

But now it is 2025 and it doesn't work again as far as I can tell. Why do you keep changing things that are POPULAR DEMAND?  The workaround post isn't up anymore either. 

[Amal.]

Hi there 

Hope you are doing well and sorry for the trouble you are experiencing. 

You may try to export the PDF to an image format and see if that works for you.  To export the PDF to an image format:

• Select “Image” as the export option.
• From the page that opens, select one of the two image formats: JPEG or PNG.
• Tap the pages that you want to export as images. Or, tap Select all to select all the pages.
• To share the exported pages, select Share images from the bottom and complete the workflow.
• To save the exported pages to the device, select Save to Photos.
• It displays a permission dialog if Acrobat is accessing your Photos for the first time. From the dialog, select an appropriate option to continue.
• Once the images are exported and saved in the device's Gallery, a confirmation message is displayed.

To know more about exporting PDF please check the help page https://adobe.ly/4f9ZTwQ 

Hope this will help 

~Amal