A PDF editor allows you to edit a pdf file just like you edit any other file. What’s more, with most PDF editors, you can add pages, insert images, make improvements in quality etc. There are also quite a few editing features that you would use to make edits and minor revisions on your document.
The best-known pdf editor software is the Adobe Acrobat Distiller, but there are several alternatives available that can do a lot more than just edit existing pdf files. You may have seen my article about converting Google docs to PDF if you’re looking for this type of tool. The other major class of pdf editing tools is focused on creating new pdf files from your existing content sources.
Best pdf editor free download, best pdf editor software and best pdf editor windows 10 are just some of the options available if you are looking for a free document editing tool. There are plenty of free alternatives to paid software such as Adobe Acrobat.
Do you need a best pdf editor for windows 10? Are you looking for the best pdf editor for windows 10? Top Best Pdf Editors for Windows 10 helps you to edit your pdf. Just start searching and download any of them,this will help you better.
Why is PDF Software Essential for Work?
Many benefits can be generally associated with PDF software since the tool successfully influenced a very diverse set of industries throughout its inception. Any PDF software is considered beneficial for work due to the following benefits:
Ensuring File Security
Many businesses manage their customers’ sensitive information across PDF software. To protect these files from illegal access, the users are advised to protect their content with passwords, which keeps the PDF files secure from all kinds of thefts.
Compress Your Files Immediately
Rather than shifting yourselves to different file formats for compressing the file size, PDF software provides you with a complete option of compressing files unconditionally. Users can convert their PDFs into different qualities of compressions if they are working across limited storage.
A Consistent Tool
As a file format, PDFs have set their standards as one of the official methods of sending professional documents. To manage PDFs, PDF editors and software are necessary. Thus, it is very likely that this file format and software will not leave the market any soon. They would set up to be a very good investment for the developers.
Document Sustainability
PDFs are remembered to protect one important trait of any document, its format. PDFs became popular because they were able to sustain the formatting of any document and keep it intact across every platform. The PDF format allowed businesses to show well-organized and structured files to their clients to gain their attention.
Apache OpenOffice Draw
Best for adding images and splitting PDF files.
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This is yet another wonderful open source PDF editor that you can use on Windows, macOS, and Linux. It is primarily a graphics editor, but it can efficiently edit PDF files as well. To edit a PDF, add the PDF Import extension and then edit the PDF files and save them as a new document.
Pros of Apache OpenOffice Draw:
- It works on multiple platforms.
- Apache comes with many editing features.
- It can spellcheck.
- You can add graphics to PDF.
Cons of Apache OpenOffice Draw
- It slows down with a large PDF.
- Certain functions, like Excel, can slow down your workflow.
- You can encounter some errors.
Price: Free
PDFescape
Best for editing PDF online and adding text.
PDFescape is an online open-source PDF editor that allows you to edit PDF for free unless they have more than 100 pages. You can’t change a text or image, but you can add yours. It has an efficient text tool and you can also draw on the PDF, redact information, add sticky notes, etc.
You can also add, delete, rotate, reorganize, and crop pages from the PDF. You can upload your PDF, use the online link, or create a PDF as well. To edit and download the PDF file, you don’t even need a user account. You can use its site across all Operating Systems, but its desktop version runs only on Windows 7 and newer ones and it’s not free.
Pros of PDFescape:
- You can do all the work online.
- Has many tools.
- Can add your own text and images.
- Delete or add PDF pages.
- No need for a user account.
Cons of PDFescape:
- You can’t edit existing texts
- Limits the size of PDF and length of its pages.
- The desktop version is only for Windows and not free
Price: Free
PDF Architect
Best for editing scanned PDF documents.
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PDF Architect is a free PDF editor open source for Windows. You can convert more than 300 file formats like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc to PDF with this pdf editor. It is an extremely efficient open-source editor that allows you to revise PDF documents according to your need. It is available for Windows 7 and above.
Pros of PDF Architect:
- It comes with advanced editing features.
- With OCR, you can make scanned documents editable and save them as PDF.
- You can add a digital signature to the document.
- It allows you to create PDF forms along with filling and editing existing ones.
- You can merge many PDF files together.
- You can also make your document secure by editing its metadata.
Cons of PDF Architect:
- The free version will leave watermarks on your document. Go for the Premium version to avoid watermark and enjoy other features.
Price: Free Version Available
- Standard: USD $69/year
- Professional: USD $69/year
- Pro+OCR: USD $129/year
PDFSam Open Source PDF Software
PDFSam basic is a PDF file editor that supports merging, splitting, and editing of PDF files. It is also an open-source PDF editor. If you would like to edit or re-arrange the order of pages in a PDF file, this program is worth a try. It is a java application and can run on any device that has Java runtime.
Pros:
- Supports visual organization
- Allows for re-ordering of PDF pages
- Users can mix and merge pages
- Contains tools for extracting or splitting pages
- Allows for rotating and saving one or multiple pages
Cons:
- The visual document composer shows errors
- Requires Java
- A bit difficult to learn for beginners
Shortcomings of Open Source PDF Editors
- Many can be unreliable
- They involve higher installation costs
- There are no guaranteed updates
- They offer very basic functionalities
- They don’t offer any proper support
- They don’t work efficiently with all hardware
- There is no guarantee of a continued service
Sejda PDF Editor
A powerful online PDF editor with both a free and paid-in system provides a very wide variety of features in PDF editing. The free version, however, is quite limited in file management. Users are only allowed to work across three files a day, with a size limitation for the uploaded document. However, considering the options available in PDF editing, Sejda is comprehensively one of the most feature-rich online PDF editors in the market.
Pros:
- A clear integration service with different cloud storage.
- Provides a very handsome amount of editing tools for making the best out of a PDF.
Cons:
- Users are limited to uploading a file lesser than 50 MB in size or 200 pages in quantity across the free version.
HiPDF – Simple PDF Editor
Talking about wide functionality, it is impossible to forget HiPDF across this division. HiPDF is known as one impressive online PDF editing tool that complements its online functionality with a wide variety of tools to work with. With processes such as batch processing features and basic usability, HiPDF can surely provide a worthwhile experience while competing with offline PDF editors.
Pros:
- Users can access the tool from multiple platforms.
- Secures documents with 256-SSL encryption and allows batch processing.
Cons:
- There are limited editing features in hipdf.
LibreOffice Draw
Compatibility: Windows, Mac & Linux
LibreOffice Draw is one of the most powerful office suites out there and a free open source PDF reader on Mac and Windows. This PDF editor was designed to be like Microsoft Word to launch and edit PDFs without facing any hassle.
Editing PDF files is pretty straightforward, thanks to LibreOffice Draw functionality. It is essentially a diagram creator but comes with a strong capability to create and edit PDF files. It entails all the fundamental features you would like to have from a free, decent PDF editor, though its interface is a bit outdated.
Key Features:
- Edit images and text and white-out some regions to add text
- Capable of adding desired annotations on PDFs
- Support for file conversion for different formats
- Best open source PDF editor for Windows
Inkscape
Compatibility: Windows, Mac & Linux
Like Adobe Illustrator, Inkscape is a vector graphics editor while is open source. It is the best open source PDF software and is handy for many designers, illustrators, or anybody who likes to craft some vector imagery. Also, it can read, edit and extract data from PDF files. When you require basic editing functions for PDFs, then Inkscape is a handy PDF editor.
Key Features:
- Edit all parts of PDF file, including removing or adding images, links, etc.
- Able to split pages, add comments, annotations, etc.
- Save documents in PNG format with ease
- Entail a lot of image-editing tools for PDFs
- Able to manipulate graphics in a PDF file as well
PDF Architect Free
Compatibility: Windows 10/8/7
PDF Architect Free is an open source PDF editor Windows 10 developed by PDF forge. With its help, you can create a PDF from Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and other file formats. It is a fully functional PDF editing software. Also, it provides you with complete control over your PDFs and enables you to modify them. Moreover, it demands no export or copy of the content to another file format in order to perform modifications.
Key Features:
- Support editing pictures, text, and the diagram on PDF files
- Merge all the files into one PDF file
- Convert PDF files into numerous other formats
- Capable of adding annotations on Windows 10
- Sign documents using a digital signature
Okular
Compatibility: Windows, Mac & Linux
Okular is a PDF editor open source that is straightforward to use. It comes with a lot of modern features that you will only find in enterprise PDF editors. One great part is that it can create custom markers, making it easy to navigate in your large PDFs. Therefore, this option is handy for those who work on PDF-based eBooks.
Key Features:
- Come with basic PDF editing features
- Support creating custom markers
- Cross-platform PDF editor on Windows/Mac
- Best free open source PDF editor
- Able to edit text and other parts of your PDF file with ease
Skim
Compatibility: Mac
Skim is the best open source PDF maker for Mac, which can preview PDFs with comment features. This, in turn, enables to make snapshots for quick reference, highlight crucial text and navigate between pages using a table of contents along with a visual history. To find a PDF editor open source for Mac, choose Skim, which has got everything you need to edit PDFs.
Key Features:
- Publicly accessible to view and edit files
- PDF highlighter to add important content
- Come with smart cropping tools
- Make snapshots for quick reference
Which is the Best Open Source PDF Editor Software?
As discussed in this article, there is a very diverse set of options available while finding the best open source PDF editor for you. These options can range from offline Windows editors to online editors, considering the amount of work that needs to be associated with these tools. Conclusively, offline editors tend to hold more control over the diversity of features than online editors.
While searching for the best alternative to Adobe Acrobat open source PDF editor, you may come across PDFelement. Over consistent usage and detailed analysis, it is clear that PDFelement is the best option that may come in sight of any user who is looking for an impressive open-source PDF editing software for their work. This is majorly due to the diversity of features offered by the tool across a very simple and effective user interface.
Conclusion
We live in a world where everything is paperless. Nearly every business—including yours—has to deal with scanned documents and files. Sometimes your company has to edit these documents for internal use, or for external distribution. An efficient PDF editor helps you work faster, more efficiently and can serve a number of purposes in various industries from real estate to education to law.
You may not be a computer geek who knows everything about computers. For most of us, with so many options for a pdf editor, it can getting really confusing about the tools which we need to download and install. You do not want to spend hours on the research just to get a sense of your options.