In the event that Adobe's PDF editor is insufficient, we've examined the finest Adobe Acrobat alternatives.
Since Adobe created the PDF, it is safe to say that Acrobat is one of the best PDF editors available. But it's not the only piece of software that can generate and share documents. There are several Acrobat alternatives available, whether you want to avoid paying for a Creative Cloud subscription or you require more sophisticated PDF editing capabilities than Adobe offers. Not only expensive, premium apps are affected. Many of the top free PDF editors already compete with Acrobat's extensive production and productivity features.
In light of this, we've compiled a list of the top Adobe Acrobat substitutes. We have investigated user interface and experience, document generation, platform availability, and cost as part of our testing. Added additions like OCR, digital signing, and security features have also been rated.
1. Nitro PDF Pro
The best Acrobat alternative for individuals who must, must, must avoid subscriptions at all costs is undoubtedly Nitro PDF Pro. This PDF editor doesn't provide any ongoing payment plans. a solitary permanent licence.
When we tested the software, we discovered that it had a powerful toolbox that was comparable to Adobe Acrobat in a positive way. The software's user interface and experience make it exceedingly straightforward and easy to use—a quality that the occasionally overwhelming Acrobat struggles to claim.
You can create a new PDF document or edit an existing one using additional tools. You have a tonne of tools at your disposal, such as several ways to annotate documents so that others can follow your directions.
It's not as easy as we'd like it to be to edit the content of an existing PDF, making that Nitro's most vulnerable tool. The rest of the implementation is excellent, and we were particularly pleased with how the ability to convert files to and from PDFs was handled.
In the end, we discovered that this Adobe Acrobat substitute is "a good PDF editing software package that allows you to make changes to documents, annotate them, and execute a variety of alterations on them. Additionally, it includes effective OCR and conversion tools.
This PDF editing programme costs $180 per licence and may be used on either a PC or a Mac. Business volume licencing is additionally offered.2. PDF24 Creator
The finest free PDF editor overall is PDF24 Creator, which is also one of the top Adobe Acrobat alternatives for Windows.
The tool, a PC-only desktop app that runs offline and is perfect for low-spec PCs, is surprisingly feature-rich despite the no-cost approach.
We ranked the software as "one of the best examples of free tools that go above and beyond" during our time with it. It has all the capabilities and tools you might possibly need to create and edit a PDF document.
The presence of tools for PDF production, compression, merging, and conversion produces excellent results. OCR and eSign add-ons are effectively used. You can easily find what you need and what to do thanks to the user-friendly, productive UI.
We even thought it had one advantage over Adobe. We praised Acrobat for having tools for practically every use case and stated, "the only exception is if you need something more advanced for filling out forms, in which case an editor like PDF24 Creator or PDFZilla could work better, despite looking a little bit clunkier."
The PDF24 Creator is unlimitedly free to use. Although the workflow might not be as seamless as Adobe's, the pricing is unbeatable.
3. Foxit PDF Editor
It's a great alternative to Adobe Acrobat to use Foxit PDF Editor. Like Adobe, Foxit has been providing PDF products for years. Users can have faith in Foxit thanks to the many prestigious endorsements boldly shown on the Foxit website, including those from companies like Amazon, Google, Dell, and Intel.
Foxit PDF Editor, the company's top Adobe Acrobat substitute, has a wide range of practical functions. Watermarking, adding headers and footers, customising password permissions, making templates, and turning other documents into PDFs are all included in this. Drag-and-drop functionality is a useful tool that lets you convert files from other formats, such PowerPoint or Excel, to PDF.
The redaction options were, in fact, a particular highlight for us. We were pleased with how quickly and effectively they removed private information from documents.The functionality is helpful for teams that are aware of the value of abiding by international data laws.
Foxit PDF Editor has flexible pricing, with options for monthly and annual memberships. You can buy a perpetual licence for a one-time fee if ongoing payments are one of the reasons you're looking for the finest Adobe Acrobat alternatives.
Pro and Pro Plus are two updated editions of the PDF editing programme that offer more functionality for power users.
4. EaseUS PDF Editor
If you're using a PC, EaseUS PDF Editor is the finest option because it's one of the top Adobe Acrobat alternatives for Windows.
EaseUS offers both a Pro edition and a free, if constrained, version, unlike many of the top Acrobat alternatives. This is quite helpful in a pinch, but it has many limitations, like the inability to put a watermark to your documents. But the programme is only accessible in the Pro version.
We called EaseUS' product "a powerful, PC-only PDF editing software tool that allows you to manipulate and alter documents with comparatively ease" in our evaluation. Additionally, it has good OCR capabilities and more conventional utilities like a converter. Outstanding eSignature and PDF conversion utilities can be found elsewhere.
Impressively equipped for altering PDF files, the programme divides pages into boxes that may be enlarged and moved. The text itself, as well as the font and colour, can all be altered.
And everything is contained under a beautifully simple user interface. This makes using the programme a total breeze, akin to Adobe Acrobat's outstanding user interface, which focuses on maximising efficiency.
The cost of the EaseUS PDF editor varies, with options for monthly, yearly, and one-time purchases of "lifetime upgrades." 'One licence for one computer' is the policy. There are bundles offered.
5. Readdle PDF Expert
Look no further than Readdle PDF Expert if you're looking for the greatest Adobe Acrobat replacement for Mac, iPad, and iPhone.
Even while Apple Preview is an outstanding programme that comes preloaded on modern Apple devices and "should be able to cater to all but the most demanding PDF road warriors," it is not a true PDF editor like Acrobat.
A far better alternative to Acrobat, PDF Expert is significantly more feature-rich. Along with converters for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, OCR software, and eSign tools, Readdle's offering also offers image and text editing.
We were impressed by the software's "many useful features for people who use PDF files on a regular basis" when we tested it out. When using the software for the first time, you won't need much assistance learning how it works because of the clear UI design and well-organized layout. We admired PDF Expert's ability to sync documents with all Apple devices flawlessly.
There are numerous editing options available, including the capacity to extract or rearrange pages, join documents, redact sensitive material, and highlight certain areas of the PDF and add notes. For individuals who are utilising the software on an iPad and have an ink pen, being able to draw straight on the PDF is also beneficial.
For new users, performing routine PDF editing activities is quick and intuitive thanks to the slick interface and a well-organized toolbar. Simply said, PDF Expert makes you feel knowledgeable about PDFs.
Pricing is available as a perpetual licence or an annual subscription, but only the annual charge allows use across iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
