Jaipur office, 6 something in the evening. I hit send on a mail to a vendor in Ajmer. Scanner pdf of a signed rate list plus three product photos the boss dumped in. Gmail sat a second. Then the mail bounced. Attachment bigger than 25 mb. I stared at the red bounce like it insulted me personally.
The scanner at our place is an old brother machine. Default is some fat colour setting. One page already looks like 8 mb. Four pages and a few camera shots stuffed into one pdf by the office boy. 28 mb. Of course it bounced. I did not check size. I just attached and prayed.
This happens every week in small offices. Kota coaching accounts, Udaipur hotel front desk, Ajmer mandi traders. Somebody scans “good quality” and Gmail says no. Outlook at the other end also says no. WhatsApp might take it, email will not.
The mail bounced at 6 in the evening
Boss had already left for home. Vendor needed the file same night. I could not send a Google Drive link because that vendor opens mail on a jio phone half the time. He wants a normal attachment. So I had to shrink.
First I needed the real number. Phone gallery lies a bit. Gmail compose also shows a size but I like a clear KB and MB before I fight. I drop the pdf on File Size Checker. It said about 28 mb. Yes. Bounce was honest.
Your file is not uploaded to our server. I like that in an office where we scan signed papers. I am not putting the rate list on some unknown compress website that keeps a copy.
Gmail limit is around 25 mb for the whole message. If your pdf is 24 mb, the mail body and maybe another small file can still push you over. I aim under 15 mb to be safe. 10 mb even better. People on slow wifi in Ajmer will thank you.
The bounce mail looks scary. “Message too large” or some English from Google. It is not a virus. It is just fat. Do not resend the same file. You will bounce again. I did that once. Two bounces. Felt stupid.
If the other person uses a company server, their limit can be 10 mb. Government offices sometimes even smaller. So “Gmail accepted it” is not the end. I still keep files lean.
That evening I did not have time to rescan four pages. Shop downstairs was closed. I had to work with what was on the desktop.
Check the size before you hit send again
Habit now. Before attach, I check. File Size Checker takes anything under 20 MB in this browser setup. Wait. My problem file was 28 mb. The checker on this site also has a 20 MB ceiling because the tab can freeze. So a 28 mb file I check in Windows right click properties. Or I check after I shrink it.
This is a small catch. If the file is already a monster, the browser tool may refuse it. That is ok. Properties window is enough to see 28 mb. Then I shrink the photos first, then I check again in the tool.
For images, size is honest in the checker. I drop each jpg. If one product photo is 6 mb, that is the villain. Phone cameras in 2023 are greedy. A shop board photo from Udaipur trip was 7 mb for no reason. Email does not need that.
When the checker says 1.2 mb I attach without fear. When it says 18 mb I do not even open Gmail. I go compress.
Password pdf is another trap. For email, a password file can go through size-wise and then the vendor cannot open it. I send unlocked unless the boss insists. Password in a second mail, not in the same subject line.
20 MB is the browser limit on FileOnDesk tools. Email is 25. A 28 mb file I check in Windows properties first, shrink photos, then check again in the tool. Tell the scanner uncle: 200 dpi, grey, one side.
Shrink the photos, then make a thinner pdf
My 28 mb file was a pdf, not a folder of jpgs. Harder. This site is honest. It is not Adobe. Heavy pdf compress like the big paid software is not the promise. What works well is shrinking the pictures, then making a new pdf.
I asked the office boy for the original photos. He had them. Three jpgs. The signed rate list I photographed on the table under the tube light. Not pretty. Readable.
Then Compress Image. Quality slider. I watch the preview. If the rate list numbers go muddy, I slide back a bit. I do not need print-quality flowers. I need the vendor to read Rs 450.
Each photo came down to a few hundred KB. Then I put them in JPG to PDF. Order: rate list first, then product shots. Download. Checker said 1.4 mb. I mailed it. Vendor replied ok in the morning. Boss never knew about the bounce. Good.
If you only have the fat pdf and no original photos, try opening it, screenshot each page, compress those screenshots, jpg to pdf again. Looks a bit soft. Better than not sending. Or go to the xerox shop next morning for a light scan. I have done both.
Do not zip the pdf and email the zip thinking Gmail will love you. Sometimes zip is still big. Sometimes the other person cannot unzip on phone. Shrink the actual pages. Do not rename pdf to zip. That is not compress.
Colour vs grey. A signed page does not need colour unless the stamp is pale blue you must prove. Grey scan is smaller. I label the button with a sticker now. Office boy still forgets.
I also split when needed. Four pages, they only asked page 1. Why send four? Split PDF for a range. Clerk in Ajmer once got angry at extra pages. Fair.
If it is still heavy
After compress, if the pdf is still 12 mb, I drop quality more. Preview. If text shakes, I stop. Then I remove a page they do not need. Then I try grey photos.
If one image is a poster, maybe they do not need the poster in email. Send the rate list. Poster later on WhatsApp. Mix channels. Office life is not one pipe.
Night time Jaipur electricity dip. Laptop fan loud. I still do this in the browser because I do not want a paid app for a one time bounce. FileOnDesk is enough for this job.
When you send, write a normal subject. Not “FILE” in caps. Mention what is inside. Vendor searches mail later. “Rate list 3 Feb compressed pdf” is a kind subject.
If Gmail bounce comes again, read the number. Maybe you attached twice. I have attached the old 28 mb and the new 1 mb together. Bounce. Remove the old one.
After a bounce, wait a minute. Do not smash send five times. Fix the file. Send once. Check sent folder. Size shown there should look small.
That night I learned to check first. File Size Checker is now in my bookmarks. Compress, then jpg to pdf, then mail. The bounce taught me more than any office memo.