Email Attachment Alternative
Email attachments are a black hole.
You've been attaching PDFs to emails your entire career. It works. Sort of. You send the proposal, you wait, you follow up with "just checking if you had a chance to look at this," and you hope for the best.
There's a better way. Same email, but instead of attaching the file, you paste a tracking link. Now you know exactly what happened.
Start free — no credit card requiredFeature-by-feature comparison
| Feature | TrackPDF | Email Attachment |
|---|---|---|
| Know if opened | Yes, with timestamp | No |
| Know which pages read | Yes, page by page | No |
| Know time spent | Yes, per page | No |
| Update without re-sending | Yes — replace PDF, same link | No — send new email |
| File size limit | 200 MB | 10-25 MB |
| Capture viewer email | Yes (optional gate) | No |
| Revoke access | Yes — disable the link | No — they have the file |
| Price | Free | Free |
Who should keep using email attachments
Email attachments still make sense in some cases:
- Internal docs between colleagues who don't need tracking
- Quick personal file sharing where analytics don't matter
- Files that need to live permanently in someone's inbox for reference
If you just need to get a file from point A to point B and don't care what happens after, an attachment is fine.
Who should use TrackPDF instead
If knowing whether your PDF was read matters to your work, TrackPDF is the better choice:
- Sales proposals — know if the prospect read your pricing section before the follow-up call
- Pitch decks — see which investors actually opened your deck and how far they got
- Reports and deliverables — confirm the client reviewed the work before sign-off
- Any PDF where "did they read it?" changes what you do next
Same email. Same workflow. Just a link instead of an attachment. The difference is what you learn after you hit send.
Frequently asked questions
Is TrackPDF free to use instead of email attachments?
Yes. The free tier includes all features — open tracking, page-by-page analytics, time spent reading, lead capture, and link revocation. You only pay when you need higher volume.
Do recipients need an account to view TrackPDF links?
No. They click the link and view the PDF directly in their browser. No account, no app download, no friction. It looks and feels just like opening an attachment — except you get analytics on your end.
Can I still send the link via email?
Yes. Instead of attaching the PDF file, you paste the TrackPDF tracking link into your email. The recipient clicks it and views the document. You use the same email workflow — the only difference is a link instead of an attachment.
What analytics do I get that email attachments don't provide?
Open tracking with timestamps, page-by-page reading analytics, time spent per page, whether the viewer returned to the document, and optional email capture. Email attachments provide none of this.
Can I update the PDF after sending?
Yes. You can replace the PDF file while keeping the same tracking link. Everyone who has the link will see the updated version. With email attachments, you'd need to send a new email with the corrected file.
Try it once.
Upload a PDF, send the link instead of the attachment. See what you've been missing.
Start free — no credit card required