Method 1: Compress in Chrome (fastest)
- Open getpdfpress.com in Chrome (Samsung Internet and Firefox work too).
- Tap the upload zone. Android opens the system file picker — your PDF is usually under Downloads, Recent, or Drive.
- Pick your target (500KB covers most portals; 200KB for stricter ones) and a compression level.
- Tap Compress, then Download File. Chrome saves it to your Downloads folder.
Method 2: Make smaller scans with Google Drive
Android's most common scanner is built into the Google Drive app (+ button → Scan). Two settings keep scans small: after scanning, tap the filter/palette icon and pick Black & White or Grayscale for text documents, and in Drive's scan settings choose a normal paper size rather than photo-quality output. A grayscale scan is roughly a third the size of color before you've compressed anything.
Finding the compressed file on Android
Open the Files by Google app (or your phone's file manager) → Downloads. The compressed copy has "-compressed" in the filename. Long-press → info shows the new size. You can also pull down the notification shade right after downloading and tap the completed download to open it.
Uploading to portals and attaching to email
On a portal in Chrome, tap their upload button — the same system picker opens; choose the file from Downloads. In Gmail, tap the attachment clip → Attach file → browse to Downloads. Because Android exposes one shared Downloads folder to every app, the compressed file is immediately available everywhere without moving it.
Android-specific tips and gotchas
- Photos of documents? If your "PDF" is actually a stack of camera JPGs, upload them to JPG to PDF — you'll get one properly optimized PDF instead of huge raw photos.
- Data Saver in Chrome can interfere with large uploads on some networks; switch to Wi-Fi for big files.
- Duplicate downloads get numbered (file-compressed (1).pdf) — upload the newest one.
- Manufacturer file managers (Samsung My Files, etc.) all show the same Downloads folder; use whichever you like.