Adobe Acrobat DC AlternativesOnly Free apps categorised as PDF Editors

The best free PDF Editor alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC is PDF-XChange Editor. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 100 alternatives to Adobe Acrobat DC and loads of them are free PDF Editors so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting free PDF Editor alternatives to Adobe Acrobat DC are PDF24 Creator, Master PDF Editor, PDFgear and Stirling-PDF.

filter to find the best alternatives

Adobe Acrobat DC alternatives are mainly PDF Editors, but if you're looking for PDF Readers or Document Managers you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Open Source, Free, Linux, Windows + Open Source, Windows, Windows + Free and Edit PDF. You can also filter by region, for example EU-based alternatives if you prefer software developed in the European Union. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Adobe Acrobat DC.
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Alternatives list

  1. PDF-XChange Editor icon

    PDF-XChange Editor

     170 likes
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    Feature-rich PDF editor offering direct content editing, ABBYY OCR, viewing, annotation, form filling, PDF merging, compression, and encryption. Operates efficiently offline, requiring no registration and no ads, while providing privacy-focused features and convenient portability.

    142 PDF-XChange Editor alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Pay once)
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • PortableApps.com
    • Wine
    Version 10 (2024)
     
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    15
    118
    Comments about PDF-XChange Editor as an Alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC
    Comment summary: PDF-XChange Editor is praised for its customizable interface, speed, affordability, and extensive features, often compared favorably to Adobe Acrobat DC. Users appreciate its lifetime license and lower cost, but some find its OCR capabilities lacking, and a few struggle with features like text editing that Adobe handles better.
    Top Positive Comment
    munteanzeno
    3

    Can make small edits for free (comments, extra text). Search bar is simple and works well.

    Top Negative Comment
    Guest
    0

    A lot of things that you can't do. Didn't worked well enough for me at all.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Alternative User
    Positive
    0

    Adding signature and adding text is available for free.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
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    3 of 15 comments
    Adobe Acrobat DC Icon
    PDF-XChange Editor icon

    • Most users think PDF-XChange Editor is a great Adobe Acrobat DC alternative.

    • PDF-XChange Editor is the most popular Windows alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC.

    • PDF-XChange Editor is the most popular free alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC.

    • PDF-XChange Editor is Freemium and ProprietaryAdobe Acrobat DC is Paid and Proprietary
    • PDF-XChange Editor is Customizable, Lightweight and Privacy focusedAdobe Acrobat DC is not according to our users
  2. PDF24 Creator icon

    PDF24 Creator

     145 likes
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    PDF24 Creator is free and feature-filled PDF creation, merging and conversion tool for Windows. Its unique feature among the free PDF printer tools is an editor, which allows to easily assemble, create and modify PDF files with Drag & Drop.

    171 PDF24 Creator alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Main window
     
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    3
    36
    Comments about PDF24 Creator as an Alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC
    zlelmefs
    Positive
    0

    It's actually free and has done everything I've needed it to do.

    G Downs
    Positive
    0

    PDF Creator is a great alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC. It has all the tools that the Adobe has but does it without trying to put a hole in your head! A great piece of work!

    Guest
    Positive
    3

    PDF editing features also available!

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Adobe Acrobat DC Icon
    PDF24 Creator icon

    • Most users think PDF24 Creator is a great Adobe Acrobat DC alternative.

    • PDF24 Creator is Free and ProprietaryAdobe Acrobat DC is Paid and Proprietary
    • PDF24 Creator is LightweightAdobe Acrobat DC is not according to our users
  4. Master PDF Editor icon

    Master PDF Editor

     71 likes
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    Master PDF Editor is complete solution for editing PDF and XPS files. You can insert, edit, remove, copy, add images or graphics. Export, import, remove and change page layouts. Also Master PDF Editor provides full functionality for changing PDF information, including author...

    132 Master PDF Editor alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Pay once)
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    Master PDF Editor screenshot 1
     
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    4
    44
    Comments about Master PDF Editor as an Alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC
    Guest
    Negative
    24

    Free version for windows will include watermark on saved documents.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    4

    Has all the basic features such as merge, split, delete and it is in active development and it is available for LINUX :)

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    -1

    It has more festures in the payed version and thus suites my usecase and it actually works on linux and does not just say it does and then it doesnt, at least that was the case with pdfsam in the extended version.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
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    3 of 4 comments
    Adobe Acrobat DC Icon
    Master PDF Editor icon

    • Most users think Master PDF Editor is a great Adobe Acrobat DC alternative.

    • Master PDF Editor is the most popular Linux alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC.

    • Master PDF Editor is Freemium and ProprietaryAdobe Acrobat DC is Paid and Proprietary
  5. Ad
    Screenshot
    LightPDF.com icon
    LightPDF.com

    Cloud PDF toolkit provides over 20 tools for editing, conversion, OCR, merge, split, annotation, batch processing, and signatures, with free online access, cross-platform usability, no watermarks, no size limits, and options for ...

    https://lightpdf.com
    Learn More
  6. PDFgear icon

    PDFgear

     55 likes
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    Read, edit, convert, merge, and sign PDF files across devices, for completely free and without signing up.

    46 PDFgear alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    PDFgear screenshot 1
     
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    3
    10
    Comments about PDFgear as an Alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC
    Shaz Shah
    Positive
    0

    It does an excellent job of converting my M$ docs. The OCR capabilities are really good and the ability to arrange pages (including splitting and merging with other PDFs) is another bonus. The install is lightweight in comparison to Adobe Acrobat and I've not had any stability issues... yet

    Ahmed Gamal
    Negative
    0

    The app does not support the Arabic language.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    Faster. No pop-ups trying to sell add ons.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Adobe Acrobat DC Icon
    PDFgear icon

    • Almost everyone thinks PDFgear is a great Adobe Acrobat DC alternative.

    • PDFgear is the most popular Web-based, Android & Android Tablet alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC.

    • PDFgear is Free and ProprietaryAdobe Acrobat DC is Paid and Proprietary
    • PDFgear is LightweightAdobe Acrobat DC is not according to our users
  7. Stirling-PDF icon

    Stirling-PDF

     48 likes
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    locally hosted web application that allows you to perform various operations on PDF files.

    87 Stirling-PDF alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Online
    • Self-Hosted
    • Docker Hub
    • Cloudron
    Stirling-PDF screenshot 1
     
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    1
    Comments about Stirling-PDF as an Alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC
    KimiBCN
    Negative
    0

    It lacks many features and has bugs. The PDF open button sometimes disappears.

    Adobe Acrobat DC Icon
    Stirling-PDF icon

    • Stirling-PDF is the most popular Self-Hosted alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC.

    • Stirling-PDF is the most popular Open Source alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC.

    • Stirling-PDF is Freemium and Open SourceAdobe Acrobat DC is Paid and Proprietary
    • Stirling-PDF is Privacy focusedAdobe Acrobat DC is not according to our users
  8. Smallpdf icon

    Smallpdf

     58 likes
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    Smallpdf is the first PDF Software you will actually like. The perfect gateway to productive, portable and cost-efficient document management solutions in your everyday life.

    177 Smallpdf alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Subscription)
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Online
    • Android
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    • Android Tablet
    Desktop app home
     
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    16

    • Most users think Smallpdf is a great Adobe Acrobat DC alternative.

    • Smallpdf is the most popular SaaS alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC.

    • Smallpdf is Freemium and ProprietaryAdobe Acrobat DC is Paid and Proprietary
    • Smallpdf is LightweightAdobe Acrobat DC is not according to our users
  10. Sejda icon

    Sejda

     35 likes
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    Sejda helps with your PDF tasks: edit existing text, split, merge, extract, compress, export to other formats and more.

    134 Sejda alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Pay once)
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Google Chrome
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
    Sejda screenshot 1
     
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    1
    7
    Comments about Sejda as an Alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC
    Interstellar_1
    Positive
    0

    You get a limited amount of file edits per day, and the app is just an electron wrapper of the website, but it works well.

    Adobe Acrobat DC Icon
    Sejda icon

    • Most users think Sejda is a great Adobe Acrobat DC alternative.

    • Sejda is Freemium and ProprietaryAdobe Acrobat DC is Paid and Proprietary
  11. BentoPDF icon

    BentoPDF

     8 likes
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    BentoPDF is a PDF Toolkit that works fully offline with no sign ups. It's fast, secure and forever free. In an era where data is a commodity, we take a different approach. All processing for BentoPDF tools happens locally in your browser.

    64 BentoPDF alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Self-Hosted
    BentoPDF screenshot 1
     
  12. Breeze PDF icon

    Breeze PDF

     8 likes
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    Breeze PDF is a powerful, free PDF editor that works entirely offline in your browser. No uploads, 100% privacy guaranteed.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    Breeze PDF screenshot 1
     
  13. Signature PDF icon

    Signature PDF

     9 likes
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    Free open-source web software for signing (alone or with others), organizing (merge, sort, rotate, delete, extract pages, ...), editing metadatas or compressing PDFs.

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Self-Hosted
    • WebApps
    • Docker Hub
    Signature PDF screenshot 1
     
  14. KDAN PDF icon

    KDAN PDF

     185 likes
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    Comprehensive solution for editing, signing, form filling, OCR scanning, commenting, converting, and redacting PDFs, with AI-driven analysis and content extraction, data export to spreadsheets, text-to-speech, seamless use across desktop and mobile, and batch processing.

    261 KDAN PDF alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Subscription)
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    Your All-in-One PDF Editor
     
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    2
    8
    Comments about KDAN PDF as an Alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC
    Guest
    Negative
    3

    Adobe Acrobat DC is a full featured PDF editor. PDF Reader has a nice featureset for a PDF ... Reader, but is far from a complete PDF Editor.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Negative
    1

    PDF Reader is a PDF Reader, not a PDF Editor. It even says it in the name.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Adobe Acrobat DC Icon
    KDAN PDF icon

    • Most users think KDAN PDF is a great Adobe Acrobat DC alternative.

    • KDAN PDF is Freemium and ProprietaryAdobe Acrobat DC is Paid and Proprietary
    • KDAN PDF is Privacy focused and LightweightAdobe Acrobat DC is not according to our users
  15. PDFill icon

    PDFill

     39 likes
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    With PDFill you can create, fill, delete and submit PDF form fields; insert new formatted text, check, image, hyperlink, whiteout, highlight, drawing, comment and annotation anywhere in the document; save, print or email the filled and password-protected PDF; save and resume...

    162 PDFill alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Pay once)
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    The only free pdf-software able to split very big pdf-files over 200 pages
     
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    1
    7
    Comments about PDFill as an Alternative to Adobe Acrobat DC
    Guest
    Positive
    2

    except editing files, it allows for everything you would like to do with a .pdf files. It is a buttons based app more like a GUI for a command line tool.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Adobe Acrobat DC Icon
    PDFill icon

    • Most users think PDFill is a great Adobe Acrobat DC alternative.

    • PDFill is Freemium and ProprietaryAdobe Acrobat DC is Paid and Proprietary
12 of 83 Adobe Acrobat DC alternatives