PDF, short for Portable Document Format, is a file format created by Adobe for easy viewing and sharing with formatting preserved--regardless of the software or operating system being used by anyone who views the document. However, a major issue associated with PDF documents emerges, and that is to edit the document content. As a solution, the market has been presented with assorted PDF editors enabling adequate modification of PDF files.
To save you time and effort, we've tested a number of PDF editors to pick out the truly worthwhile ones, including offline software and free online tools that can efficiently meet a wide range of your needs for editing PDF files.
Before choosing an appropriate PDF editor, take all factors into consideration like cost, compatibility and features.
Cost-Some professional PDF editors have an abundance of features, however, their high cost often put them out of reach for many individuals so that users may resort to free PDF editors with fewer features.
Compatibility-As of today, Windows has been released plenty of versions, of which the latest version is Windows 11. So when choosing software, consider which versions of Windows it can run on.
Feature-PDF editors come in a variety of flavors, packing with varying feature sets-from basic functionality to specialized tools. It's essential to know what you want to get from a PDF editor prior to paying for it.
If you are aiming for advanced and elaborated actions, or editing PDF files on a regular basis, dedicated desktop software will match your workflow best.
Cisdem PDFMaster is a one-stop and formidable PDF solution that lets you work on PDF like a master. With its aid, you can easily add new texts, images and links anywhere in your PDF and modify the existing text. You can also create an interactive PDF form or fill out forms provided by others. What's more, it does an excellent job of recognizing texts from scanned PDF and image with the high-precision OCR feature. That enables you to view or edit the exported file with no hassle.
Besides, it offers a generous 14-day trial period so that you can give it a spin to tell if it meets your demand before committing to it. If you intend to renew the app upon its expiration, you can get various discounts for the following situations: license for more than 1 PC; own another Cisdem product; use Cisdem for academia. In addition, it is a one-off fee that allows you to unlock all features and enjoy all future upgrades for life.
Free Download Windows 11/10/8/7
Adobe Acrobat is unquestionably a pioneering PDF software, whose company created portable document format. As a specialist in PDF, Adobe has a range of customization tools, all neatly arranged in the tool center, to help users quickly navigate to the features you desire to use.
In addition, if you are working remotely and need tools that empower collaboration to keep projects moving, Adobe Reader mobile app can make it possible as it lets you work with PDF documents right from your tablet or mobile phone.
But the drawback is that Adobe Acrobat Pro DC is a subscription-only program, which comes in two tiers: US$12.99/mo for Standard and US$19.99/mo for Pro.
Foxit PDF Editor is a leading alternative to Adobe Acrobat. It's packed with a full suite of PDF toolkits that cater to both power and novice users. And it comes with a clear and easy-to-use Ribbon-style toolbar--similar to Microsoft Office user interface, which enables a quick adoption to apply it.
As noted, this program includes almost all the features you may need that allows you to view, edit and share PDF files, along with document protection capabilities, including password protection and signature validation. Not only that, it provides an extensive list of supported languages, making you deal with your PDF documents seamlessly regardless of your speaking language.
However, it is crucial that this app is not free to use, and you can choose between perpetual license, yearly subscription and monthly subscription.
PDF Studio Pro is one of the most multi-functional PDF editors available. Rich with advanced tools, you can edit, create, combine, convert, secure and sign PDF with annotations, OCR and more.
Another strong point of PDF Studio Pro is that it offers a visual-friendly user interface, letting users perform the target actions in a breeze. Furthermore, you can add the tools that drive your most common workflows to Favorites Ribbon Group on the top menu bar, and the setting will be applied on restart.
In evaluation mode, a watermark is added to each page when saving a document. Or, buy a perpetual license. Any upgrade to future major versions is optional and each license key can be used on 2 PC for the same user.
Wondershare PDFelement is an all-in-one editor available for Windows and Mac. Like other PDF editors, this app offers everything you expect to edit PDF like Word. After running the program, you can add frequently-used tools to Quick Tools on the main screen, allowing you to get straight to the tool you want to use.
But unpleasantly, you are required to register or create an account to download and use PDFelement, otherwise only limited functionality is supported by unregistered free version. And even registered trial version will add a watermark to the exported PDF and put limitations on the size and number of files.
If you want to unlock all features, you need to shell out $79.99 per year, $109.99 for 2 years, or $129.99 for a perpetual license. Your yearly plan will renew automatically on your annual renewal date until you cancel.
LightPDF Editor is an all-in-one yet easy-to-use PDF solution that enables users to view, edit, create, convert, merge, split, compress or protect PDF files. With the toolbar across the top, and navigation panels along the side, this app makes it easy-peasy to select the page you want to work on and perform the preferred feature, be it adding, modifying, or removing text, or setting font style, color and size.
However, when editing text in the program, some annoying glitches will be encountered, which will greatly affect the user experience. For example, when the text is added, the font will automatically change into another font, which requires users to unify the font manually.
Moreover, non-VIP users will save the edited file with trial-watermark. So if you want watermark-free documents and unfettered access, you need to upgrade to VIP.
Infix PDF Editor is a full-featured app that edits PDF like a normal word processor. It's easy and fast to edit all text in a PDF, change fonts, size, color--all aspects can be modified. And many advanced features like find & replace, translation, page re-numbering, redaction, OCR, headers & footers are included in Infix Pro.
Apart from its wonderful features, this app presents a clean and uncluttered interface. It gives you a quick look at all important tools on the toolbar, and offers helpful explanations for each function.
When running the free version, the program will pop up a dialog box to choose the way in which Infix should behave: Professional mode, Standard mode and Form-filling mode. In the first two modes, a watermark is added to edited pages. It can be removed by purchasing the relevant version of the software with a monthly or perpetual commitment.
If you want to dip deep into a PDF file, it would be better to use desktop software. However, if you're doing some simple and fast editing jobs and unwilling to spend a chunk of change on PDF editors, then free online tools with fewer features may serve your needs well. And here presents a list of 6 best free PDF editors for Windows 11/10 online.
Sejda online PDF editor is the online, browser-based service packed with similar features to its desktop software, where users can add text, images, links, shapes, signature and form fields to PDF, fill out PDF forms, whiteout PDF or annotate PDF pages.
But less effectively, when modifying existing text, the program breaks down the text in the document into line by line, meaning editing the entire paragraph or page takes repetitive effort.
PDF Candy is a full-fledged web app that offers 47 online tools to process PDF: edit, convert, create, merge, split and much more. What makes it stand out from the rivals is that it is capable of applying OCR to get text from scanned documents with 19 languages supported. Beyond that, there is no limit on the number of pages when uploading and editing.
Smallpdf includes 21 tools that you may need to be more productive and work smarter with documents. As for its online PDF editor, it is absolutely free to add text, images, highlight, draw, and organize PDF documents. But editing existing text needs a Pro subscription with monthly or yearly options, and you can sign up for 7 days free trial to try it out.
Google Drive, part of Google Workspace, is a safe place to store, share, and collaborate on files and folders from any device. It integrates with Google Docs, Google Sheets and Google Slides, which are key components of Google Docs Editors office suite that allows to view and edit files, including PDFs, CAD files, images, and more. And the secret to PDF editing lies in its capability of converting PDF into Word automatically in Google Docs.
iLovePDF is a powerful and feature-rich online PDF tool to expand your PDF capabilities. You can organize, optimize, convert, edit and protect PDF with just a few clicks while keeping your data safe and secure.
However, there exits several restrictions on PDF features for free. For instance, users are denied to perform OCR, conversion of PDF into PDF/A and batch PDF processing. Moreover, only adding text, images and shapes are provided by the free version, while editing the existing text requires you to shell out $4 per month for Premium version.
PDFescape comes in 2 versions: free online version and desktop version. While deep PDF redacting is best done on a desktop, it's better to be allowed cloud access to features through a web browser when you're out and about. The online editor offers a set of multiple features to deal with, like editing and annotating PDF files, creating and filling out PDF forms, protecting and sharing PDF documents.
However, when editing the text in a PDF, there is often a glitch that prevents the program from automatically saving the modified text. Additionally, an annoying ad is displayed on the right of its website page to disturb you.
Microsoft Word is a world-leading word processor developed by Microsoft for improving individual and business productivity. As one key component of Microsoft 365 office suite, MS Word can also be purchased separately. And it is compatible with both Windows and Apple operating system.
Note: This works best with PDF that are mostly text. Otherwise, it might not look exactly like the original PDF, especially if the original PDF contains many graphics.
In this post, we have mentioned both online software and offline software in detail. Overall, browser-based tools are more convenient and money-saving than desktop apps, suitable for simple editing with limited features. If you want to explore PDF further, professional PDF editors like Cisdem PDFMaster is worth the investment. What's your favorite PDF editor? Leave a reply in the comments section.
Bianca is a senior tech editor and strategist at Cisdem with Over 10 years of experience on PDF related solutions which covers all document editing, annotating, converting and managing etc.
