Facebook Email icon An envelope. It indicates the ability to send an email.
Email Twitter icon A stylized bird with an open mouth, tweeting.
Twitter LinkedIn icon
LinkedIn Link icon An image of a chain link. It symobilizes a website link url.
Copy Link lighning bolt icon An icon in the shape of a lightning bolt.
Save Article Icon A bookmarkThis story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? Log in .
Free PDF viewers are easy to find. In addition to Adobe Acrobat Reader, many programs can display PDF files, but finding a good free PDF editor — a program that allows you to edit and save an existing PDF — is a more challenging proposition.
The problem is that virtually all of the programs capable of editing PDF files try to sell you on added features, whether that's a monthly subscription or a "freemium" model that offers basic features for free, but charges for premium capabilities.
This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? Log in .
AdvertisementWhile it can be difficult to find a good free PDF editor, it's not impossible. Most offer cloud-based web apps, though there are also PDF editing programs that can run from a desktop app.
Here are five PDF editors you might want to use.
AdvertisementPDFescape has been around for a long time and has a somewhat dated look, but it's obvious how to upload PDF files and then use the tools to add text, images, and form fields. PDFescape runs for free in a web browser, though if you want to use the desktop app or use some of the premium features, you'll need to subscribe starting at $2.99 per month.
Pros:
Cons:
Smallpdf is a simple and easy-to-use web-based PDF editor that is a great choice if your editing needs are modest but you need fast results. To get started, just upload a PDF and then use the small toolbar at the top of the webpage to add text and graphics or choose from a handful of tools in the menu. The free version is web-only with limited editing tools, but the features expand substantially if you pay for the Pro plan, which costs $108 a year for one user.
Pros:
Cons:
PDF Candy takes an app-like approach to PDF editing, in the sense that everything you might want to do is a different icon accessed from a central landing page. That makes PDF Candy easy to use — select the task, upload the file, and let the app do its thing. However, the lack of a single interface can make using it feel disjointed. It's as if every feature — from editing text to rearranging pages within the document to extracting images from the PDF — was a different app on your smartphone. The paid plan removes your hourly task limits, and you can get a lifetime license for $99.
Pros:
Cons:
Unlike other options in this list which are primarily web-based, PDF-XChange Editor is available only as a desktop app for Windows. While there are both free and paid versions of the program (the paid version starts at $46 per year), the only restriction is that PDFs in the free version are saved with a watermark. The app is full-featured and includes a wealth of editing and document management features as well as the ability to extract and edit text in the PDF using OCR.
Pros:
Cons:
A few of the options in this list are Windows-only; this one is only for the Mac. Apple Preview is built into MacOS and is the default PDF viewer. But click the markup button near the search bar and you'll see a new toolbar with options to add text, graphics, signatures, and more to your PDFs. It's missing some of the more generous document management and editing features — there's no OCR, for example — but it's included with your Mac and there's nothing to buy.
Pros:
Cons:
PDF editors vary significantly, so you should zero in on the ones that have the specific features you need. One big differentiator among PDF editors is OCR support — if you need one that can extract the text from a PDF file in editable format, you have fewer options to consider. Likewise, you might have a preference for editing PDFs in a web browser or a desktop app. Whether you are using a Mac or PC will determine if you can use PDF-Xchange or Apple Preview, for example.
Perhaps most importantly, keep an eye on what restrictions the free version imposes on the program's features and capabilities. While most PDF editors give you some capabilities for free, the convenience cost might outweigh the monetary cost of paying for an editing program, depending on your needs.
Dave Johnson is a technology journalist who writes about consumer tech and how the industry is transforming the speculative world of science fiction into modern-day real life. Dave grew up in New Jersey before entering the Air Force to operate satellites, teach space operations, and do space launch planning. He then spent eight years as a content lead on the Windows team at Microsoft. As a photographer, Dave has photographed wolves in their natural environment; he's also a scuba instructor and co-host of several podcasts. Dave is the author of more than two dozen books and has contributed to many sites and publications including CNET, Forbes, PC World, How To Geek, and Insider.
