Reference · 31 August 2026
PDF Metadata Fields
These PDF metadata fields are the eight standard Document Info keys this site reads. Each row states what the field is for, where it usually comes from, whether the editor can change it, and the common XMP counterpart from the PDF Association crosswalk. Empty fields are allowed. This is not an inventory of every object in a PDF.
Standard Document Info fields
Adobe’s Document Info dictionary documents these keys. This site’s viewer shows them as found on a supported PDF up to 25 MB. On an unsigned PDF, the editor can set or clear each one and verifies the saved copy. Password-protected, encrypted, damaged, and unsupported PDFs are rejected. The XMP column is a documented mapping, not a promise that the viewer parsed that property.
| Field | Meaning | Typical source | Editable on supported PDFs | Common XMP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | The document name many readers show in the title bar or properties. | Usually copied from the originating app’s title or export name. | Yes | dc:title |
| Author | A person or organization named on the file, not a legal identity proof. | Often the app author field or the operating-system user name. | Yes | dc:creator |
| Subject | A short topic line used for filing or search. | Usually typed by a person or inherited from a template. | Yes | dc:description |
| Keywords | Phrases meant to help retrieval. They are not a taxonomy. | Often entered by a user, CMS, or export preset. | Yes | pdf:Keywords |
| Creator | The application that created the original document. | Word, InDesign, Pages, a CAD tool, or another authoring app. | Yes | xmp:CreatorTool |
| Producer | The software that wrote the PDF representation. | A distiller, browser print path, library, or PDF export filter. | Yes | pdf:Producer |
| CreationDate | When this PDF was created, in the file’s own date field. | Set by the writer that first produced the PDF. | Yes | xmp:CreateDate |
| ModDate | When this PDF was last modified, in the file’s own date field. | Updated by later writers; not a complete revision history. | Yes | xmp:ModifyDate |
Creator is not Producer
Creator answers “which application authored the document?” Producer answers “which software wrote the PDF?” Mixing them is the usual source of confusion when a file shows Microsoft Word and a print driver, or InDesign and a library name. Both fields are ordinary Info strings, so the editor can change them on a supported unsigned PDF. Their values do not prove who authored the file.
Changing Producer does not change how the pages were drawn. Changing Creator does not prove a different person wrote the text. Use the values as labels. If a later system requires a specific producer string, confirm that policy before you edit.
CreationDate and ModDate are file timestamps
CreationDate is the PDF’s own creation timestamp. Modification date is the PDF’s last-write timestamp. Neither is a copyright date, a signature time, or a complete history. Some exporters copy the same value into both fields. Some leave both blank. Some rewrite ModDate on every save.
This editor accepts those two dates as datetime values and verifies them after save. It does not infer a date from page content. If a date is wrong, correct it. If your process does not want a date on the shared copy, clear the field.
Group PDF metadata fields by the decision they support
The eight standard keys become easier to review when they are grouped by purpose. The table below turns the PDF metadata fields into four questions a sender can answer without treating every value as equally sensitive or equally useful.
| Decision | Fields | Review question |
|---|---|---|
| Public identification | Title and Author | Do these labels identify the document and its intended author clearly, without exposing an internal draft name or unintended personal account? |
| Description and retrieval | Subject and Keywords | Would these terms help the recipient file or find the document, or do they expose an obsolete client, campaign, matter, or template? |
| Software provenance | Creator and Producer | Does the receiving process need to know the authoring or PDF-writing software, and is the stored label accurate for this export? |
| File timing | CreationDate and ModDate | Are these useful file timestamps, and could a recipient mistake them for publication, approval, signing, or authorship dates? |
Removing Producer because it names a library does not require deleting a useful Title. Editing the PDF metadata fields one by one can preserve retrieval value while correcting only the labels that are wrong.
A worked PDF metadata fields example
Consider a customer handout exported from a proposal template. The PDF metadata fields show Title “Q3 proposal draft,” Author “alex.local,” Subject “Project Northstar,” Creator “Microsoft Word,” Producer “Print to PDF,” and dates from last week. The visible pages say “Customer onboarding guide,” and the viewer also detects document XMP.
| Finding | Reasonable decision | Verification |
|---|---|---|
| Draft Title | Change it to the public document title because readers can surface the metadata title independently of the filename. | Reopen the saved copy and confirm the new Title exactly. |
| Local account in Author | Replace it with the intended team name or clear it if the handout does not need attribution. | Confirm the output value and separately consider any XMP author property. |
| Internal Subject | Remove or rewrite it because the project code does not help the customer understand or retrieve the guide. | Check Subject and Keywords on the final exported copy. |
| Creator, Producer, and dates | Keep them if the delivery policy accepts technical provenance; otherwise clear the fields deliberately. | Do not read these labels as proof of human authorship or approval time. |
Document XMP adds a separate review item. This site can report that the packet exists, while its editor leaves the packet unchanged. If the handout only needs corrected Document Info, edit and verify those PDF metadata fields. If policy requires the XMP values to match, inspect and reconcile them with software that exposes the relevant properties.
Fields may be blank, missing, or extra
A PDF does not have to populate all eight keys. The viewer shows a blank as not set. The Info entry count can be higher than eight when a writer added other keys, such as Trapped or a custom name. Those extra keys are not in the editor form. The remover deletes the complete Info dictionary, including keys this table does not list.
Blank Info also does not mean the file is empty of metadata. Read PDF metadata vs XMP before treating a clean properties dialog as a clean file.
Common XMP counterparts are a crosswalk, not a sync
The PDF Association DocInfo to XMP crosswalk is the source for the XMP column. This site does not read those XMP properties and does not update them when you edit Info. If dc:title and Title already differ, the editor will not reconcile them.
Object-level XMP, custom namespaces, attachments, and image EXIF are outside this table. Browse the PDF metadata guides if you need the XMP comparison or the removal tutorial instead of a field list.
What PDF metadata fields cannot prove
PDF metadata fields are editable labels, so they cannot prove who wrote, approved, owned, or published a document. Author can name a person who never touched the file. Creator and Producer can be changed without altering the page content. CreationDate and ModDate can be rewritten by export, merge, or save operations. Use signatures, controlled records, or a trusted document system when those claims matter.
The eight fields also cannot prove that no other metadata exists. XMP can carry related values, pages can have their own Metadata streams, and attachments or images may carry information outside this tool’s inspection scope. A clean PDF metadata fields table means those standard Info values are blank or absent; it does not certify a forensic wipe.
Match the tool to the risk. The free viewer is suitable for a quick inventory of supported fields and XMP indicators. The editor handles deliberate corrections on supported unsigned files. The remover clears the whole Info dictionary plus detectable catalog and page XMP references, then verifies that supported scope. Legal discovery, archival conformance, embedded media inspection, and forensic sanitization require workflows designed for those purposes.
Sources and scope notes
Readable and editable behavior comes from this site’s PDF code and tests. Field meanings and the XMP crosswalk come from the documents below, checked on 31 August 2026.
- Adobe Document Info dictionary (pdfmark)
Lists the standard Info keys this table covers, including Title through ModDate.
- Adobe Acrobat SDK metadata overview
Distinguishes document information from XMP metadata in Acrobat’s model.
- PDF Association DocInfo to XMP crosswalk
Documents the common Info-to-XMP property mapping shown in the XMP column.
Questions this guide answers
What are the standard PDF metadata fields?
The standard Document Info fields this site reads are Title, Author, Subject, Keywords, Creator, Producer, CreationDate, and ModDate. Other Info keys can exist. This viewer reports the total Info entry count; the editor exposes those eight fields; the remover deletes the whole dictionary.
What metadata does a PDF contain besides these fields?
A PDF may also carry XMP, page-level Metadata streams, attachments, annotations, and application-specific objects. This reference does not inventory those. The viewer reports whether document or page XMP is present. It does not scan EXIF in images or parse custom XMP properties.
What is the difference between Creator and Producer?
Creator names the original authoring application. Producer names the software that generated the PDF bytes. A report drafted in Word and printed to PDF can show Word as Creator and the print or library path as Producer.
Why are CreationDate and ModDate different?
CreationDate is when the PDF was first written. ModDate is when that PDF was last written. Re-exporting, merging, or saving through another tool can change ModDate, rewrite both dates, or leave them blank. Treat them as file timestamps, not publication dates.
Can these PDF metadata fields be empty?
Yes. Missing and blank are both normal. The viewer shows empty values as not set. On a supported unsigned PDF, the editor can clear a field and verify the saved result. Absence is not proof that XMP is empty.
Which PDF metadata fields should I check before sharing?
Review Title, Author, Subject, and Keywords for public-facing labels; Creator and Producer for software names; and CreationDate and ModDate for file timestamps. Then check whether document or page XMP is present. Keep useful values, correct inaccurate values, and clear fields only when the receiving workflow does not need them.