How to choose a PDF editor: editing, signing, OCR and privacy

Choose a PDF editor by the task first. Editing changes the text, images and pages already in a file. Annotation adds comments and highlights on top of the content. Filling and signing add data to form fields and a signature to the page. Conversion turns a PDF into another format, or the reverse. Many tools do one of these well and the others poorly. The best PDF editors ranking separates tools that change content from tools that only view, annotate or rearrange pages.

Separate editors from viewers and page tools

The ranking splits PDF software into three groups. Full editors change text, images and pages in an existing file. Foxit PDF Editor and PDF-XChange Editor are in this group, and Foxit's listing says it edits text and pages and handles signatures. Adobe Acrobat is also a full editor, and its free Reader only views, comments on and fills PDFs.

Browser tools such as Smallpdf and Sejda cover editing, conversion and signing without an install. Viewers and page tools such as Okular and PDFsam read, annotate or rearrange pages. Okular annotates and checks digital signatures, and PDFsam splits, merges, extracts and rotates pages. Neither rewrites text or images, so they complement an editor rather than replace one.

If the job is signing a form, check for e-signature support before you buy. Foxit, Smallpdf and Sejda list signing among their features on their sites, and the ranking lists e-signatures for Acrobat.

Check OCR for scanned pages

A scanned PDF is a picture of a page, so you cannot select or search its text until OCR adds a text layer. OCR, or optical character recognition, reads the image and turns the letters into text. Scans of contracts, receipts and archives need it before search works.

Sejda lists an OCR tool that converts PDF scans to searchable text. Smallpdf lists an OCR PDF tool among its converters. PDF-XChange Editor's download page lists OCR language packages, and it offers a portable build without OCR. Check OCR on one of your own scans before you rely on it, because the result depends on the scan quality and the language.

Decide between offline and online tools

Browser tools process files on the vendor's servers. The ranking says this about Smallpdf: its files go through the company's servers, which matters for confidential documents. Sejda's browser tools work the same way, according to the ranking.

Desktop editors keep files on your computer. PDFsam works on your own computer with no internet connection needed, according to its listing. For confidential documents, choose a desktop editor, or read the vendor's privacy policy and retention terms before you upload anything.

Check platforms

Platform reach narrows the field. PDF-XChange Editor is built for Windows only, so Mac and Linux users need another tool. Foxit PDF Editor runs on Windows and macOS. Okular runs on Linux, Windows, macOS and Android. PDFsam runs on Windows, macOS and Linux. Sejda has a browser version and desktop builds for Windows, macOS and Linux. Adobe Acrobat has apps on Windows, macOS, iOS, Android and the web.

Price, free limits and open source

Free options vary a lot. Acrobat's Reader is free, but editing needs a paid subscription. PDF-XChange Editor has a free edition for Windows, and its paid Plus edition adds more features, with a perpetual license option. Foxit PDF Editor has a free trial only, and its site lists a starting price of $10.99 a month.

Smallpdf has a free plan, with individual and team plans for more. Sejda has a forever-free tier with limited usage and features, and regular users reach its limits. Okular and PDFsam are free and open source. Okular is licensed under GPLv2 or later, and PDFsam is licensed under AGPL-3.0.

Free limits change, so check each vendor's pricing page before you rely on a free plan for confidential files. The ranking's overview makes the same point.

Compare the tools at a glance

Tool	Main job	Platforms	Free option	Open source
Adobe Acrobat	Full editing, conversion and signing	Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, web	Free Reader; editing needs a subscription	No
PDF-XChange Editor	Editing, annotation and conversion	Windows	Free edition; paid Plus	No
Foxit PDF Editor	Text and page editing, signatures	Windows, macOS	Free trial only	No
Smallpdf	Browser editing, conversion and signing	Web	Free plan	No
Sejda	Browser and desktop PDF tools	Web, Windows, macOS, Linux	Forever free, limited use	No
Okular	Viewing, annotation and signature checks	Linux, Windows, macOS, Android	Free and open source	Yes, GPLv2 or later

Top picks from the ranking

The best PDF editors ranking ranks the tools covered here in this order, with the editorial score in brackets:

• Adobe Acrobat (90.5): the most complete editing, conversion and signing tools, with a subscription for editing.
• PDF-XChange Editor (89.5): a free Windows editor with annotation and conversion, and a paid Plus edition.
• Foxit PDF Editor (88.5): a paid desktop editor for Windows and macOS that changes text and pages.
• Smallpdf (86.0): browser tools for occasional tasks, with files processed on company servers.
• Sejda (85.0): browser and desktop tools with a forever-free tier that has limited use.
• Okular (79.5): a free, open-source viewer for annotation and signature checks, with limited editing.

The ranking also includes PDF Expert (84.5), which suits Apple users who annotate, sign and fill PDFs and runs only on Mac, iPhone and iPad.

PDFsam (77.0) follows in the ranking. It is free and open source for splitting, merging and rearranging pages, but it does not edit text or images.

What to do next

Name the main task first. If it is occasional editing on a Mac, a browser tool or Acrobat's subscription may fit. If it is regular editing on Windows, compare PDF-XChange Editor and Foxit. For confidential files, prefer a desktop editor, or check the retention terms of any browser tool before you upload. Test OCR on a real scan, and check the export format if the file must go to someone who uses another program. For background on the open-source licenses in this list, read what is open source software. If your PDFs live in a shared drive, how to choose cloud storage covers where those files are kept.