Top 10 Best PDF Editors

Ah the PDF file. That incorruptible bastion of digitized security and credibility. Hey, if it’s in a PDF it must be the real deal—those things can’t be edited!

Or can they? For whatever purpose you have in mind, nefarious or otherwise, you’ll be happy to know that PDF files can indeed be edited. So whether you’re fixing a typo, swapping out an image, making yourself 10 years younger on official forms, or intending to commit some kind of online cyber fraud, we’re here to help you get started with the top 10 PDF editors. Let’s go!

The good people at Foxit offer a wide range of “fast, affordable and secure PDF solutions” including PhantomPDF, a multi feature PDF editor whose highlights include:

• Automatic text reflow as you edit keeping the layout under control
• Advanced text editing allowing you to move and resize text blocks for more compelling layouts
• Advanced object editing where you can edit images, objects and object shading

It’s a solid product with other features like connected PDFs and version management. Check out their blog post How to edit a PDF document.

Still not convinced? Then check out this quick, interactive tutorial of Able2Extract by Investintech.com. It shows just how simple it can be to edit a PDF file with this easy to use yet powerful software. With Able2Extract Professional 11 you can really take your PDF-ing to the next level.

Along with PDF editing, you’ll also get the ability to convert files of nearly any relevant type to PDF and vice-a-versa. You can even extract data from a table in a PDF directly to Excel. You’ll get a range of annotations like highlighting and pop-up notes, and a ton of other features.

The desktop software is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux and they have a mobile app as well for on-the-go PDF conversion. It’s not the cheapest on the list, but if PDF conversion and manipulation is a serious part of your business, then definitely give this one a closer look.

Next up is Nitro’s intuitive and easy to use PDF editor.  “Add, delete, and modify text and images in PDF format. Nitro’s PDF editor also enables you to insert, extract, and rotate pages as well as copy/paste text into Word or Office files.” They also have an OCR (optical character recognition) tool to make scanned documents searchable and editable. You know, if you’re into that kind of thing.

PDF-XChange Editor is, according to their site, the smallest, fastest, most feature-rich PDF software available. The non-licensed version gives you access to about 85% of the features—the advanced features will put a watermark on your document if you’re not licensed. If you’re not looking to shell out any cash, this is one of your best options.

BONUS: it also has a free stamp collection FTW! That’s right, go stamp happy and make your stuff look O-fficial! Throw that TOP SECRET stamp on everything.

pdfforge’s PDF Architect is light, easy to use, and flexible. They offer customizable modules so you can add only the options you need saving on size and cost.

Nuance’s Power PDF was recently named as the best PDF editor by PC Advisor. This solid, professional software has many features from conversion to editing, but it doesn’t come cheap. A great option if you’ve got the cash for it, and it’s available for Mac as well.

iSkysoft PDF Editor enables you to edit PDF files in a similar manner to how you would edit MS Word documents. You can modify texts, add text, adjust text font and color, and more. This one is also available for Windows and Mac.

PDFelement is another affordable option for creating, converting, editing and signing PDFs. The editor has some nice features like automatic text reflow, spell check, and easy adjustment of font type, size and style, without messing up the formatting. Also has an OCR tool if you need it.

You were wondering how long we could go on talking about PDFs without mentioning Adobe. Well wait no more. The company that started it all brings you Adobe Acrobat Pro DC, which has been called “the best Acrobat yet” by PC magazine.

Some new features that set this one apart include the new Adobe scan mobile app that allows you to transform any document into a PDF by scanning it with your phone—pretty cool actually. There is a file comparison tool if you need to check for differences between documents, and better conversion on Mac if you’re using MS word in Mac.

According to PC Magazine, “Soda PDF offers powerful tools for creating and editing PDF files in a sleek, modern interface with a useful cloud-computing component.” With their cloud feature you can access all of your documents via any device with a web browser; it’s a good options if you need to work a lot from your phone. It has all of the standard editing features along with measurement tools like rulers and grids.

Don’t count to closely or you likely to get to 11 here. But this one’s a little different.

PDFescape is a web app you can use with all the major browsers. Just drag and drop a PDF file into their webpage and start hacking away at it. If you’re looking for quick, easy, and free well then look no further. Just keep those files under 10MB and 100 pages and you are good to go!

As you can see, you’ve got no shortage of options available—from quick and easy to a whole lot of fancy features. So give one a try and dive into the exciting world of PDF editing. Just try and keep it legal.