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Best Free PDF Tools
Published 8/29/2026
10 of the 16 PDF tools in our directory offer a genuine free plan (63%). Here is what each one actually includes, checked against the vendor's own pricing page.
We track 16 PDF tools in the OfficeToolGuide directory. Of those, 10 (63%) offer a real free plan — not a trial that expires, but a tier you can keep using indefinitely.
Every entry below was checked against the vendor's own official pricing page rather than a third-party roundup. Where a free plan carries a meaningful limit, that limit is stated explicitly instead of being glossed over.
The free options
Icecream PDF Editor
Windows users wanting a straightforward, low-cost desktop PDF editor for personal use with an inexpensive lifetime-license upgrade path.
Free plan includes: Free version covers core editing, annotation, page management and form filling but lacks combining multiple files, commercial-use rights, and adds a default watermark; PRO removes these (from ~$59.95/yr or a one-time lifetime fee around $99).
iLovePDF
Quick one-off web-based PDF merging, splitting, compressing and converting, with a cheap ($5-9/mo) Premium tier for unlimited/batch use.
Free plan includes: Free Basic plan gives access to core tools with limited/reduced batch processing and roughly 100MB file-size limits (vs. up to 4GB on paid Premium), no desktop/mobile apps, and restricted AI features.
Master PDF Editor
Linux/Windows/Mac users wanting a capable, inexpensive perpetual-license PDF editor as an alternative to subscription products.
Free plan includes: Free unregistered version is restricted to personal, non-commercial use (view, fill forms, comment, print) and lacks text/image editing, encryption, digital signatures, watermarks, and JavaScript/document actions, which require a paid commercial license.
PDF Candy
Users wanting a free web-based PDF toolkit similar to Smallpdf/iLovePDF, with a low-cost lifetime desktop+web option ($99 one-time) as an alternative to subscriptions.
Free plan includes: Free online tools have file-size and processing-speed limits and a wait queue; paid plans remove the queue and raise the file-size cap to 500MB per task.
PDF-XChange Editor
Windows power users who want a lightweight, perpetually-licensed editor with strong OCR and annotation tools and a genuinely usable free tier.
Free plan includes: Free version has roughly 70% of features unrestricted (per vendor) but lacks enhanced OCR, fillable-form creation/editing, document comparison, and JS-driven dynamic stamps, which require the paid perpetual license (from $62 for Editor, $79 for Editor Plus).
PDF24 Tools
Users who want a completely free, no-registration set of online PDF tools (and a free desktop creator/printer-driver app) without hitting usage caps.
Free plan includes: Stated by the vendor to have no artificial limits on file size or number of conversions; entirely ad-supported with no paid tier and no signup required.
PDFsam Basic
Users who want a free, open-source, offline desktop tool purely for splitting, merging, and rotating PDFs without any cloud upload.
Free plan includes: PDFsam Basic is fully free and open-source (AGPL license), with no watermarks and no file-size limit; runs fully offline. Paid sibling products (PDFsam Visual, PDFsam Enhanced) add a visual editor / OCR / digital signatures via one-time purchase or subscription.
Open source — no paid tier to upgrade into, and self-hostable.
Sejda PDF
Privacy-conscious users needing web or desktop PDF editing/conversion without heavy subscription cost, with clear no-page-limit paid tiers for larger files (up to 500MB) starting from a cheap week pass.
Free plan includes: Free browser-based use has page and hourly limits and smaller file-upload sizes (exact numeric caps are not published on the pricing page); no signup required.
Smallpdf
Casual/occasional users who want a simple, browser-based tool for quick compress, convert, merge, split and e-sign tasks.
Free plan includes: Free plan gives access to 30+ tools but with limited document downloads/processing per day, limited mobile app access, and e-signature use capped at 2 documents/month via Sign.com.
Xodo
Cross-platform (web/desktop/mobile) PDF annotation and light editing, popular as a free PDF reader/annotator for students and note-takers.
Free plan includes: Free tier is very limited (only 1 free premium action per day) plus a free basic PDF reader; a 3-day trial of premium features is also offered.
How to read this list
This is not a ranking. Tools are listed alphabetically because "best" depends entirely on what you are trying to do — a free plan that is generous for a solo user is often the wrong fit for a ten-person team, and vice versa. Read the free-plan limits, not the position in the list.
Pricing and free-plan terms change without notice. We re-check these against official sources on a schedule, but always confirm on the vendor's own pricing page before committing a team to a tool.
No vendor pays to appear in this directory, and none of the links above are affiliate links.